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Bob Trelford heads out to check the sugar bush ...

... arriving at the 'Sugar Shack'

Just as his grandfather did before him, each spring finds Bob Trelford in the family sugar bush in Southampton.

Checking the pails for sap results

With a hundred pails on the giant maples on his property. Trelford has his work cut out for him.  Every day, he goes out to check them but, with an unseasonably cold spring, the sap is slow to start.

"We have to have at least six hours a day above freezing in order for the sap to run," Trelford explains.  "So far that hasn't happened for more than a week."

Prior to the cold snap however, the weather was warm enough so that Trelford could siphon off 50 gallons of the rich sap that would become pure maple syrup.

Trelford explains the boiling and skimming process of the sap to June Lee of Port Elgin

"It's a lot work," adds Trelford, "but I really enjoy it.  I have the help of friends and family and ... they enjoy the syrup!"

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Sunday, March 27, 2011