Sap production

  Day 13 May 21, 2023 Hours today: 1.5 Total hours: 57.5 Today was a good day. We took an easier day today and instead of working on the trail we headed up to proctor. The reason we did this is because we are making two signs to mark the progress we have made. This was Trasks idea and we plan to have them done by express fest. Once we got to school we headed to the wood shop where Greg cut us two slabs of wood about 14 inches long and about 6 inches wide. We also sanded down the wood to prepare it for the laser engraver. We completed our design and we plan on laser engraving it tomorrow with Spencer.

 As we continue our time on the ranch I have realized how helpful we have been to Trask. I hope next year another group can come and experience what it’s like to work on a farm. Especially some of the problem skills necessary for dealing with adversity. While nothing disastrous has occurred we have certainly faced difficulties. However, being able to explore the three hundred acre property has been worth it entirely.  This week we spent the majority of our time clearing brush to make a pathway to the highest point on the property. Then after we got to the top we began clearing a large radius. One of the purposes of this is to set up a camping spot for the future. However, more importantly a base spot for the sap production. Most of the maple trees are down the hill and interestingly enough the whole property used to be fields where sheep were.  We are on track to complete our goals. While we may have been over ambitious originally. We have helped a great deal in setting up the eventual

Day 12 May 20, 2023 Hours today: 3 Total hours: 56 Today we got up to the trails around 9. We did more of the same preparing the plateau for Trask to begin his sap extraction process. In the three hours of work we got a lot done. Since we can’t use the chainsaw, the new axe has been super helpful. I cut down around 10 trees and Mia even grabbed the axe and cut down a tree. We also continued to add to the brush pile. It’s getting a lot bigger and will be burnt eventually.  

Day 11 May 19, 2023 Hours today: 8 Total hours: 53 Today was a great day, when we got up to the trail there was a new axe awaiting us. This instantly energized me and I was ready to get going. Because the mule is still broken we had to walk most of the trail. Once we got up there I got right to work. We started clearing trees and made great progress. The view is starting to come in and Trask was exited. We also moved all the brush into one huge pile that will be burned later on. We headed back after Nate and I quickly helped Trask pull the tarp off the pool and grabbed a dog. We headed back for a bite a eat and took the dog to school.  

Day 10 May 18, 2023 Hours today: 3 Total hours: 45 Today we woke up around 8:45 and had a quick breakfast. We went to grab the mule but when we arrived we were met with a nasty surprise. The mule had a flat tire on its front right wheel. This slowed us down a bit as we had to walk the trail now. However when we got up to the clearing we still were able to make great progress. We cleared all the way to the stone wall and made one huge brush pile. We also began taking the lower hanging branches off the bigger trees so we could walk and see further.  

Day 9 May 17, 2023 Hours today: 3 Total hours: 42 We rose early and got right up to the farm. We had to do this because we had our final sports games this Wednesday. We got up to the clearing and began our routine of clearing. First we had to fix the chainsaw. We did this quickly and used it to cut away small brush. Our system was two people cut and two people clear. Our goal is to clear out the top so that there is a nice vein of the surrounding area. Also I hope Trask fixes the axe so I get to use it.