Roger (Pete) Schmidt, 86, is keeping a close watch on the maple trees in his yard.
The Plymouth resident is expecting the sap to flow just about any day now.
Every spring, Schmidt taps lots of maple trees in his area of the "Big Woods," or what's left of it, to make maple syrup, which has been a family tradition since his great-grandparents farmed this very same land.
Personally, Schmidt likes to drizzle maple syrup on pancakes, eggs, ice cream, salad — "just about anything," so he's looking forward to replenishing his supply, he said last Wednesday, pointing to bare shelves in the cool cellar of his home. Maple syrup makes for a good sugar substitute, he said, adding, "When you live in the woods, you do as they do."
A lifetime in the woods has taught him to be patient and to wait for Mother Nature to reach just the right weather conditions for maple syruping. Last week, it was too cold, so he didn't see too much activity in the trees, Schmidt said. But he has higher hopes for this week or next.
For maple syrup producers like Schmidt and others across the metro area and beyond, taps are in and ready to go, and it's a waiting game at this point.
Schmidt is unsure of what this season will bring, though, he's guessing it'll be "fair" and probably not as impressive as last year. The spring came on so gradually that "the trees ran like the devil," he said, adding, "You almost had to gather the sap twice a day."
By the end of the run, he wound up with 53 gallons of syrup, which got divvied up among his family and friends.