The sugarbushes are bustling in Cambridge and Bolton. We caught up with our woods director, Scott St. Onge, for an update on how the sugaring season is kicking off.
“Both Cambridge and Bolton crews have been tapping since the start of January. We have had some interesting weather thus far with a rollercoaster of temperatures bouncing from below zero one day, and jumping to above 30 degrees the next. One thing we have had on our side is the lack of snow, which has made it easier to maneuver through the woods. This will surely change soon, but the teams are taking advantage of it while they can. We will continue on pushing through tapping and see if mother nature brings us any early season runs along the way!”
We have indeed seen some chilly temps recently. Last week Cambridge saw -17F at the bottom of the mountain and it was no doubt much colder as you went up. When conditions are really cold like that, the woods crews either focus on indoor work (repairs, machine maintenance) or switch their work days to the weekend or which ever days are warmer. The reason for this is: 1.) it is cold for human beings. The woods crews are tough. Really tough. But -17F is cold by any standard and those temps can be dangerous. 2.) Much of the equipment they work with (plastic tubing, plastic taps) becomes brittle in extreme cold. You can’t squeeze a tap into a plastic tube when the tube is frozen like ice.
Hopefully the month of February will see some milder temps so we can finish up tapping soon. If you want to follow the fun and drama of the sugaring season, we will be posting updates from the sugarbush on our social media platforms (Instagram @runamokmaple; Facebook Runamok Maple) regularly.
Until next time, stay warm!
– The crew at Runamok