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| Sugar Shack |
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| Sap Bags |
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| Maple Sugar on Snow |
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| Yummy! |
Bobo and Danny Go to a Sugaring Off Party
There are no leaves on the trees, barely any buds. Giggles roll down the snowy hill as the wagon full of excited children breaks the silence of the woods. The maple grove stands ankle deep in snow and a lemony late March sun paints a tangled web of shadows on the crusty ground. It’s sugaring time in Vermont. Even though the nights are still very cold, the days are well above freezing and there is a stirring in the roots of the maple trees…a waking up.
Friends from the neighboring farms gather at the McCloud’s farmhouse on Sugar House Hill. The old Ford tractor is hooked up to the hay wagon that will haul the guests, mostly kids, down the packed white road to the sugar shack where the sap bubbles away in a great cast iron cauldron. For the first time, Bobo and Danny are old enough to be on our own. They hop onto the wagon and sit at the very edge where their legs can hang over the side of the wagon. They have front row seats, and they’ll be the first ones off when they arrive at the sugar shack at the bottom of the hill!
The tractor moves slowly and the boys notice that each tree has a spout sticking out of it. Hanging from the spout is a plastic bag that looks like a pillow filled with amber maple sap. These sacs look a little like water balloons, thinks Bobo to himself, it sure would be fun to punch one and watch it explode! Bobo loves to experiment and he often acts before he’d think about the consequences. Suddenly, without warning, Bobo leaps off the wagon, runs to the nearest sap sack and, pulling his arm back as far as his heavy wooly snowsuit will allow, he punches the bag with all his might! Wham! A geyser of sap explodes from the top of the bag and drenches Bobo from head to foot! “Help!” he screams as fresh, amber sap slides down his bangs and into his eyes. It feels like a cold river inside his collar and down his neck, and his wooly snowsuit glistens with drops of sap. Meanwhile, he must catch the hay wagon or he’ll miss his ride to the sugar shack. The kids on the wagon shriek with laughter as they watch Bobo stumble through the snow, grab the edge of the slow moving wagon, and hop back on.
Soon Mr. McCloud’s sugarhouse comes into view, and everyone can smell the sweet maple steam as it billows out of the chimney. “I’m going to get right up front!” exclaims Bobo, “That way I’ll get the most toffee!”
As soon as the wagon stops, the boys jump off the wagon and run across the snow. They peer through the windows of the sugar shack and see a huge pot hanging from the ceiling. Under it, flames dance energetically; Farmer McCloud had been keeping that hot fire going for days. When sap is running in the maple trees, the farmer has to pile wood on the fire under the pot so the sap continues to boil… getting thicker and sweeter with time. Usually the farmer stops his cooking when the sap has turned to syrup, but today he has let it go longer. He has boiled it down to the maple sugar stage and it will turn into chewy toffee when it hits the snow. It is important to keep feeding the fire with wood, so the sap continues to boil.
At long last, Farmer McCloud opens the door of the sugarhouse; the maple syrup is ready! Bobo pushes his way up to the front of the crowd, but suddenly he feels a hand grab the back of his jacket. “Excuse me, young man!” booms the deep voice of Farmer McCloud. “You need to learn some manners before you can be a visitor here!” And with that, he leads Bobo into the sugar shack and gives him a good talking to! “You will be my helper today,” his blue eyes peer deeply into Bobo’s and there is no smile on his lips. Bobo’s eyelashes stick together when he blinks and he is aware of a sappy stickiness all over his snowsuit and face. “While the guests are having their treat,” continues Farmer McCloud, “I would like you to keep the fire going. Add a log when the flame gets low. If you do a good job, you will have some maple toffee when everyone else is through. By the way,” he added sternly, “I know how that sap got all over you and I am not happy about it!” With that, Farmer McCloud shut the sugarhouse door and left Bobo all alone.
***
“I am happy to have all of you here at Sugar House Hill Farm!” booms the farmer’s voice, “Welcome! Are you ready for a treat?” and he holds a bucket of steaming maple sugar up in the air. I’m going to need two helpers.”
Danny stands behind the other kids. He’s worried about his brother, but he has made some new friends and they all wait to see what Farmer McCloud will do next.
Then, looking right at Danny and Zoë, the girl next to him, Farmer McCloud signals for them to come up front and help with a very important job. These two children would be the ones to help dribble spoonfuls of syrup on the snow! “Here,” he said as he handed Danny and Zoë ladles, “do what I do.”
Farmer McCloud scoops out some syrup from the bucket and throws it on the new fallen snow. Danny and Zoë do the same as shrieks of joy erupt and the guests race all over the snow grabbing at pieces of toffee as it hardens into puddles of chewy candy. Soon, everyone has a mouthful of maple toffee…. teeth stuck together, tongues licking and playing with the chewy balls, the voices quiet down to a hum that sounds like “Yum!” Everyone gets as much as they want, and soon they’ve had their fill and they get back to the business of enjoying each other’s company.
At this point, Farmer McCloud goes into the sugar shack and sees that Bobo is still working hard at feeding the fire. “OK, Young Man,” he says quietly, “I hope you’ve learned your lesson today. Thank you for helping with the fire. You may go out and join the guests.” Bobo walked out to the snowy area and there was plenty of toffee left on the snow. He ate a little bit, and then jointed the kids in a big snowball fight. Soon the shadows started to stretch across the ground and the air cooled; it was time for the families to say their goodbyes and head home.
This was the end of sugaring season, but everyone knew there would be other parties to look forward to. Old Stanley Swanson would have people over for strawberries and whipped cream in the spring. Maurice Cote and Edith would have the neighbors over in the fall when it was apple harvest time and they’d make fresh apple cider. And in between there would be potlucks at the grange and weddings and funerals. Out in the north woods of Vermont, there were always reasons to get together when the farm work was done.
As for Bobo and Danny, well it had been one of Danny’s favorite parties but not one of Bobo’s. But I think Bobo learned about consequences that day, and that’s a good thing!
(Note: As is so often the case with my “Bobo and Danny Stories”, this story is one from my childhood, but I’ve changed the names to entertain my young grandsons. In this story, Ruthie, Ann and Martha were the characters. Martha jumped off and punched the plastic sap bag.)
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