The syrup season begins in late February with the assembling and cleaning of all of the equipment in  the log cabin where the evaporator is located.  The main lines are tightened throughout the forest and lateral lines distributed for the gravity pipeline system that flows into a large collection tank.  The spiles are drilled into the frozen trunks of the sugar maple trees just before the first warm temperature arrives. 

Sap comes from the maple trees containing 1.25-3% sugar content:  it varies by the year and soil in which the trees grow.  Sufficient water must be removed from this sap by boiling to bring the sugar content up to 66-68% sugar to be recognized as pure maple syrup.  It requires about 40 litres of sap to make 1 litre of maple syrup.

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It takes about three days of warm sunny weather to warm the trunks of the trees to permit the sap to rise toward the branches.  This is the sap that flows through the newly installed spiles, down the collection lines to the collection tank. The best weather for the sap to run includes sunny days with a temperature of +5C and little wind followed by cool nights of -5C.  However occasionally there is a big sap run when the atmospheric pressure drops rapidly, even if there is a light rain. Often at the time of the full moon there will be a cold snap when the sap does not run.  You take the sap when it runs.

The boiling of the sap to make maple syrup creates a complex array of sugars and tastes.  Maple syrup is graded into four colours and tastes:  Golden, for a delicate taste;  Amber for a rich taste;  Dark for a robust taste and Very Dark for a strong taste.