SmokestackLightnin

Anybody else expecting her bootlace to get caught in the auger?

No but it would definitely remove the bottoms faster then 3 shots of tequila.

Unless you plan to lead test your syrup do not boil in galvanized pans. Sorry not trying to scare you but there are better options for reasonable cost.. If you have a choice I would recommend staying away.

Second boil completed on Sunday, another 7 litres of light syrup. Taps are all frozen up now, sap should run again at the end of this week. Likely darker syrup from the next run. Off to Punta Cana Thursday morning, my kids will collect the sap for our third and final boil starting Good Friday. Here are a couple more pictures of my setup. The main boiler in action and the stainless steel pot and single burner I do the finishing boil on.

Here is the bounty from the first boil. The jars have been a poached already, three are missing but I had around 8 litres of syrup. Second boil goes on today. The sap has stopped running but hopefully get 1 more run next week.

Still not running much here. How many litres of syrup did ya manage??

First boil was around 7 litres of syrup, all in mason jars and sealed.

First boil completed last night. Started with 350 litres of clear sap. Just like Sinker my first syrup was a beautiful light, smooth tasting syrup. I have anouther 300 litres of sap collected and will start my second boil when I return from fishing on Thursday. I will try to post some pictures of the operation and end product. Here is a video of my boiler setup from 4 years ago:

http://www.youtube.com/my_videos_edit?video_id=g4PA1_OrqBI&video_referrer=watch&ns=1&feature=mhsn

Got to try my hand at it once with an old timer. Boil down ratio was almost 100 to 1. Used part of it to make a wicked wine too.

I've seen it in specialty food shops and the price was through the roof. I have never tried it but have heard it has a unique flavour.

This is my 8th year making syrup. Just a hobby and fun thing to do with the kids and their friends. I put out 45 buckets this year and so far collected approximately 180 - 200 litres of sap. It started running Wednesday and we had a solid run yesterday, but today's run will likely match what I have collected so far. I had a boiler made from stainless steel and it holds around 350 litres. I use a 3-burner propane stove and go through 150 lbs of propane doing 3 boils a season. Propane price works out to be around $100 or $15/gallon of syrup.

Although propane is not the most cost effective way of doing it I don't have to deal with prepping the wood nor tending a fire. I start my boils at 3pm and they go all night. By noon the next day I pour off what I have and do the finishing boil in a stainless steel pot the size of turkey fryer.

Last year was slow but where I am, this year has the makings of a long season with good syrup. So far my best quality and quantity came in 2009 and 2010. This winter resembled those for temps and snow load. Good luck to everyone doing syrup this year.

Has anyone tried making birch syrup?

Just read the article on Henry. Really enjoyed it. Firm believer in second chances. Says something about his work ethic coming back from such a bad public relations fiasco.

 

I like how the article showed the business end of things as well

Self-inflicted wound

The site looks great, but for me personally, I won't order from any website that does not have a telephone number on the contact page.

The site looks great, but for me personally, I won't order from any website that does not have a telephone number on the contact page.

There is a phone# on the contact page

Have they provided any reasoning as to why they won't make the change? The one thing that people should consider is lodges on Nippissing are very close to Mattawa and other parts of the Ottawa River which alreay open the season on the Friday before the third Saturday in May. The competition is allowed to open a day early so some potential customers may choose Ottawa River over Nippissing for that reason.

 

My Whiteys

...and here's the tank I got. We figure it went about 15lbs.

 

Nice fish, a 15 pound whitefish would be a new Ontario record.

Just pray the property does not fall on the flood plain controlled by the Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority (NVCA).

They need to adjust their facts a bit. There are more than 57 bald eagle nests in Ontario. The actual fact is there were 57 known active bald eagle nests in Southern Ontario in 2011, up from 51 in 2010. Of those 57, 41 were successful in reproduction. It is not known how many bald eagle nests there are in Ontario, the study only covers Southern Ontario.

The article also mentions that this was an active nest. Each active nest is monitored and numbered accordingly, I wonder which nest this artice refers to?

I had the pleasure of watching FR-1 for a number of years on Bobs Lake in Frontenac County. It was very productive nest.

Here is the most recent report (2011) from the Southern Ontario monitoring program, it's a quick read but gives a good insight on the eagle population going in the right direction:

http://www.birdscanada.org/download/BAEArpt.pdf

One other hint make sure your battery is not sitting on bare concrete. Put it on a piece of plywood or a milk crate.

This does not apply for newer batteries. Years ago when battery cases were hard rubber current could be conducted through the case and run to ground on a concrete floor. Nowadays battery cases are made of polypropylene, which is highly insulative material.

How old are the deep cycle batteries?

I owned a cottage for 9 nine years closeby on Bobs Lake. Had the opportunity to fish Chippego twice with an older gentleman who owned a cottage on the lake. He had cottaged on Chippego all his life and thoroughly enjoyed the times he spent there. Chippego is a spring fed bass and pike lake, with both small and largemouth bass. It's a small to medium sized lake with most of the shoreline severed and developed.

We loved the area. The people from Verona and Harrowsmith we met were great, the towns also have Beer/Liquor outlets, building centres, restaurants and grocery stores. We would golf at Rivendell and also spend time in nearby Westport. Due to it's close proximity to the US made for a lot of Americans cottaging in the area. This made it very busy in the summer but very quiet in the spring and fall. Chippego falls under the new bass season so the season will open on the third Saturday in June in 2013.

Good luck in your cottage search.

 

Second, increased pigmentation in animal tissue is a natural defense mechanism against heavy metals and other contaminants.

Most likely the cause, especially high iron count in the water.

... why would a desireable fish like splake/rainbows be open all year and bass are closed during winter when people don't target them anyway...haha, seems so stupid to me.

 

 

 

For splake it's because they are a "put and take" species.

This is the third time I have come into this thread to say something only to delete what I wrote.

I will just ask, do we really need an extra week if there is any chance it will jeopardize another population of fish, especially in the Kawarthas? Why mess with it? Yes the bass are booming right now, but that can change quickly. Ten years ago the walleye were booming, I can't say that about them now. (See very few small fish now)

Overharvesting and habitat loss led to the change in the walleye. I don't see that as an issue for the bass.

The resource could probably sustain an earlier opener or even a C&R season. And don't forget they are not just proposing an earlier season start in 17, 18 and 20. But also a later close in 18 and 20 which holds some very fine, if not some of the best bass waters in the province.

In the 9 seasons now... that I've been on the lake.. they've gone from an incidental catch to being absolute pests!

You're very modest, I would have said my angling skills improved.

Looks like the MNR wants to change bass opener from the fourth Saturday to the third Saturday in June for selected zones. For your reading pleasure, MNR has created a document highlighting the proposed bass season changes for Southern and Eastern Ontario:

http://www.mnr.gov.o...prod_095259.pdf

since the vast majority of TV fishing shows on air now are just plain awful.

Well said

Very sorry for you loss.

F1 - First generation Male Brook Trout, Female Lake Trout cross

I'm seriously concidering putting the smallest powered jackplate I can find on my alaskan, so I can raise the motor when idling into

my hunting marsh. Smallest set back I can find so far is a 3 7/8" set back.

 

I'm not looking for performance imrpovements but just trying to minimize the amount of weeds I have blocking my water intake when idling

into my hunting spots.

 

 

Lunds reply was this:

 

"If any after market part causes a covered component to fail, then that covered component would not be covered."

 

I take this as if it's installed incorrectly and damages the transom it will void the warranty, same as any outboard or transom transducer

for that matter.

 

What do you think they mean?

Every boat manufacturer will tell you this. I was told the same thing by Nitro when I ordered a Jackplate with boat.

Does your boat have hydraulic steering? If not you may have to factor that in due to cables not working with a jackplate.