Sugaring Season Wrap-up
Rochester Area Sugaring 2008
By Martha Slater

With the cold, windy weather this past weekend, and the calendar now showing mid-April, the majority of Rochester sugarmakers contacted Sunday by the Herald reported that they were either done sugaring or just about done. Coming after one of the snowiest winters on record, the 2008 sugaring season presented a number of challenges—not the least of which was just getting to the sugarbush.

North Hollow sugarmaker Louis Donnet began boiling the second week of March and finished up Saturday, April 5. A one-man operation with 26 taps, he boils on a tiny 2-ft. by 2-ft. arch in a sugarhouse he "recycled" from the late Laurence Marsh and rebuilt next to his home. This year, he made six gallons and one quart, all medium amber. He and his wife, Becky, keep what he makes for their own use.

A philosophical sort, Donnet said that, no matter what happens, he always finds something to enjoy about sugaring season. He can also be counted on to add an observation to his statistics. This year, he noted dryly, "It’s amazing how high up on the trees all my taps turned out to be after the snowbanks melted!"

Another North Hollow sugarmaker, Jay McIntyre, began boiling March 15 and said he had just finished Sunday, April 13. He made 112 gallons (98 of them fancy), from 625 taps. Most of them are on pipeline, with about 20 buckets. This is his 20^th year sugaring, and he does the work mostly by himself, with help from his wife, Donna.

McIntyre grew up sugaring with his grandfather, Leslie, and about five years ago, began using a new sugarhouse he built near the location of his old one. He also went back to using wood to fuel the 4-ft. by 13-ft. arch.

Ralph Darrah of North Hollow is also celebrating a milestone. Spring 2008 marks his 50^th year of sugaring by himself. When he spoke with the Herald Sunday, April 13, he said he thought he’d finish up this week, noting, "One or two more warm spells and I’ll be done!" All in all, he said he thought it had been a rather poor year.

Darrah didn’t start boiling until March 26, and so far, had made 62 gallons (55 fancy and the rest medium amber) from 350 taps, all on pipeline except for two right behind the sugarhouse. The wood supply he put up a few years ago is still holding out, so he expects to keep at it. In addition to the syrup, which he sells, he also makes maple cream and four years ago, won a "Best in Class" blue ribbon for that at the Vermont Farm Show in Barre.

Bob Harvey reported that he and his son, Mike, had finished around April 10. They had 130 taps, all on line, just above Mike’s home on Clay Hill in Rochester, and started tapping the first of March.

"We boiled the next day, since we had a good run, then shut down for a while," Bob said, "but, our season was a lot better year than last year."

The Harveys boil on a wood-fired 2-ft. by 4-ft. rig in a sugarhouse Mike built near his home. They ended up with about 26 gallons, a lot of it fancy, some grade A, and the last grade B. Bob does the boiling and gets the wood up. Mike also boils occasionally and is in charge of distribution, since the two give their syrup away to family and friends.

Harland McKirryher, known for having the coldest sugarbush in town at his Bingo property, reported that he never even tapped this year, since he was working six days a week at the Rochester Post Office.

"I missed it and I’ll be back at it next year!" he said.

Larry Straus, of South Hollow Lane, reported that he and his brother-in-law, Garth Quillia, finished up April 12, after making 35 gallons, all fancy and medium amber. They had 140 taps, all on buckets, up about 30 from last year.

"We’re expanding our operation and happy to be boiling in our newly constructed sugarhouse," Straus said. "We’ve had a good season, although we got off to a late start, with the cold spell in mid-March."

Although in 2006, Mike Andrews of Rochester had 700 taps on plastic line, all located on the mountainside behind his mom’s house on Brandon Mt. Rd., he reported that, unfortunately, he wasn’t able to sugar for the second year in a row. His wife Wendy, noted, however, that "we definitely missed it and expect to be back sugaring next year."

Dick White of Brook St. in Rochester said he had "about an average year," and made 53 gallons, "mostly all fancy," from his 375 taps. That’s up 50 taps from last year, all on pipelines. He started boiling March 13 and finished up Monday, April 7.

"I thought I’d make more syrup this year, because of all the snow, but apparently there’s only so much sugar in the trees and it turned from fancy to bean syrup in about three days," White noted. Since his wife, Diane, uses the dark stuff to make her famous baked beans, that’s not a bad thing.

Ray Gendron, who with his wife, Joyce, operates the largest sugarmaking operation in the valley, was washing lines when he spoke with the Herald Sunday, April 13. He said he planned to boil that afternoon, and so far, had made about 375 gallons from their 2,000 taps. The Gendrons began tapping in early March and boil on a 5-ft. by 14-ft. oil-fired arch, in what used to be a dairy barn next to their home on Rte. 73. They sell their syrup mostly to mail order customers through their business, "Mom and Pop’s World’s Best Maple Syrup." They also sell it at fairs and at the roadside rest area at Moss Glen Falls in Granville.

Brad Johnson has only missed a sugaring season once in 45 years and told The Herald Sunday that this year, he expected to keep going "for maybe another week." He started tapping at the end of February, and had fewer taps this year, about 600, all of them on pipeline, at five locations, including Liberty Hill, Austin Hill, and Mt. Cushman. Johnson boils on a 3-ft. by 10-ft. wood-fired arch in the sugarhouse next to his home on Route 100 south of Rochester village. He reported that he’d made 98 gallons so far, "about 60 of really beautiful fancy and 25 just slightly darker and the rest dark amber."

As he has in past years, Johnson said he’d had a lot of help from Randy Brouillard and his two sons, Justin and Cody, noting, "This year Randy and Cody did most of the work and I sat back and watched! It was some hard going to begin with, and if it hadn’t been for those young guys, I would have been stuck! Debbie Brouillard brought meals out to the sugarhouse, so she’s an important part of the operation, too."

Tom Paquette and his wife, Terry, of Brandon Mt. Road, are part of a group of sugaring partners that includes Dan and Peggy McKinley of Main St., and Walt Wells of Brandon Mt. Rd. Tom reported that they finished tapping at the end of February and began boiling March 12. They finished boiling April 10, and made a record-breaking (for them) 35 gallons on 150 taps (up five taps from last year).

"The first 15 gallons were fancy, the rest were medium amber and dark amber," Paquette reported, adding, "We had two occasions during this season where wind storms blew large branches down on the lines. We had to cut the branches out and restring the lines, which made us lose some sap, although we did discover the situation pretty early on."

For this group, maple syrup is a lot more than a wonderful topping for pancakes. Last Sunday, April 6, the partners planned a potluck for four families, at which every dish had maple syrup as one of its ingredients.

"We had muffins, venison, chicken, baked beans, salad dressing—it was great!" Tom said.

The partners boil on a 12-ft. by 16-ft. sugarhouse at Apple Hill Farm on Brandon Mt. Rd., using a wood-fired arch measuring 18 inches by six feet. All of the syrup they produce is for their own use and that of their large extended families.

Denny Rhoades of State Garage Road in Rochester began sugaring with his father at age 11, and has been sugaring for over 40 years. This year, he began boiling March 17 and finished up Sunday, April 13. With 800 taps, all on pipeline, he made around 95 gallons, which is 15 more than last year.

Mid-way through the season, Rhoades got the opportunity to buy a larger, wood-fired, used 3-ft. by 10-ft. arch and installed it in the small sugarhouse next to his home. Most of his sugarbush is scattered at locations on Liberty Hill, Sky Hollow and Rte 100. He had help from his son, Josh, as well as Joe Shaw and Charles Smith.

On Tuesday, April 15, Harold Hubbard of North Hollow reported that he had made 250 gallons of syrup, about half of it fancy, so far. Hubbard, who has help from his family, started boiling March 15 and had 900-1,200 taps this year, all on a vacuum line into the sugarhouse.

"We didn’t even put out any buckets for the tourists this year," he noted.

Hubbard sells whatever syrup his family doesn’t eat, and said, weather permitting, he hoped to get in a few more days of boiling, "since the packers are paying almost as much this year for dark syrup as they did last year for fancy. And, if they want to pay for it, then I’ll try to make it for them!"

____________