NH Maple Syrup

[Senter Cove Guy]

I had the pleasure of visiting with the Hunter's at their Maple Syrup Shack in Melvin Village this afternoon. I hadn't been in there in over 30 years. Jeff and Cy Hunter were tending the syrup making with other family members in attendance. The building dates back to 1922. The production totals of each year were recorded on the inside of the sliding front door with some also recorded on the side of the door casing. Jeff took a paper cup and dipped some sap directly out of a collection bucket and let me taste it. It was the consistency of water with a very slight maple taste. Then I got the real treat, a sample of syrup directly from the boiling process. Mmmmmmm!! Forty gallons of sap boiled down to one gallon of maple syrup.

Production this year is not as large as other years. Since the tree's were tapped, there have been cold spells which stop the sap flow by freezing the tap hole followed by warm and then cold again which confused the trees.

I wonder how many other maple syrup shacks there are around the lake. I know of at least one more, the Vappi family on route 171.

Can't you just picture the olde days with families gathered around a "Sugar Shack" and the kids sitting in the snow eating snow covered with maple syrup? Part of the good life here in NH.

Pictures
1 - Sap House Sign
2 - Sap House
3 - Wood for fire
4 - Sap bucket - 1 of about 1500
5 - Small evaporator
6 - Large evaporator
7 - Steam exiting through the roof of the sap house
8 - Syrup being drawn from the filter box
9 - Yearly production figures recorded on sliding front door

[fatlazyless]

About one hour north of the lake on Rt 175 in Thornton, and 10 minutes from exit 28, there's a big one; Benton's Sugar Shack, home of the $5.75 Sunday pancake breakfast. Every August they hold a big-big-bash weekend of outdoor blues music, the White Mountain Boogie, plus they have a golf driving range, mountain bike-cross country ski area and occaisional special events, like the Model T's turned into snowmobiles meet. Oh yes, a large black steam locomotive turned into a snowmobile. Plus maple syrup and sugar. Check out their websites!

[GWC...]

About one hour north of the lake on Rt 175 in Thornton, and 10 minutes from exit 28, there's a big one; Benton's Sugar Shack... Check out their websites!
Here's the link:

http://www.nhmapleoutlet.com/menu.htm

http://www.nhmapleoutlet.com/images/catcandyItem4large.jpg

[tomboymom]

Awesome pictures.

It truly has been a strange and limited sugaring season this year. There are lots of small producers in the greater Wolfeboro area, and I can state with confidence that everyone who sugars tends to welcome drop in visitors. If the steam is rolling, feel free to stop in!

The Tappers at Via Lactea farm in Brookfield, The Hammers on 109A in Wolfeboro, The Frenchs and The Beans both on Waumbeck in Wolfeboro, and the Ingrams on Cotton Valley Road are all smaller producers who mainly sugar to honor the tradition.....although some have maple syrup to sell.