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Maple Syrup - Origin & Destination LbNA #43022

Owner:Wisconsin Hiker
Plant date:Aug 15, 2008
Location:
City:Dover
County:Windham
State:Vermont
Boxes:2
Found by: Eidolon (2)
Last found:Jun 19, 2009
Status:F
Last edited:May 15, 2016
A collaboration by Wisconsin Hiker and Martini Man.

Last checked/found: 15-AUG-08

Location: From Dover, take Cooper Hill Road for ~1 mile until you reach Rice Hill Road on your right, just past the Inn on your left. (OR From the center of West Dover, take the Valley View Road for ~3.5 miles. Just as you get to the Inn on the right, you’ll see Rice Hill Road on the left.) Take Rice Hill Road (a gravel road) until you see the last big stone & wood house on the left, immediately after this the road narrows. Park here alongside the road.

Distance/Time: 60-90 minutes depending on trail conditions & your hiking speed.

Terrain: Somewhat rough trail w/rocks, stumps & roots on Town Forest Land. Trail can be quite wet & muddy after a heavy rain.

NOTE: There are no inkpads in these boxes. Black or brown ink would work well.

CLUES:

Vermont is the largest producer of pure maple syrup in the U.S. and produced 450,000 gallons in 2007.
All Vermont maple syrup is essentially organic, made by boiling the sap of maple trees, with nothing added. Traditionally, maple syrup was harvested by tapping a maple tree through the bark, then letting the sap run into a bucket, which required daily collecting; today less labor-intensive methods such as the use of continuous plastic pipelines are often used.

To see this process, head down the narrow road on foot and within a minute or two you’ll see a trail on the left. Turn onto this trail. After walking about 15 minutes, perhaps admiring maple trees along the way, you’ll reach a stone wall. Stop at the wall and take 6 steps to the east. The origin of Vermont’s tasty sweet treat is hiding beneath a rock adjacent to the wall, beneath the log fallen across it.

Please rehide the box carefully since there was a porcupine in the area when we were there. Be sure to put the rock on top to reduce the chance of it getting attacked. Those critters might be interested in some of that sap!

Syrup production is concentrated in February, March, and April, depending on local weather conditions. Freezing nights and warm days are needed in order to induce sap flows. Maple sap is collected from the buckets and taken to the sugarhouse; or routed there directly by plastic tubing and pipelines.

Continue on down the trail, passing another stone wall on the right.

It takes approximately 40 quarts of sap to be boiled down to 1 quart of syrup. As the sap boils, the water evaporates; it becomes denser and sweeter. A mature sugar maple produces about 40 quarts of sap during the 4-6 week sugaring season, which means each tree can only produce one quart of syrup!

Eventually you’ll reach a “T” with a “DS1” marker. If you continue straight ahead, you’ll see a wooded knoll behind a 6-trunked maple tree. Make your way behind the knoll and look for a pine with a bulbous root growing from the rock. The destination for the famous syrup is tucked in the ledge under the tree.

As we’re sure you knew, maple syrup is the preferred toppings for pancakes, waffles, and French toast in North America! Once again, be sure to rehide the box well to protect it from hungry critters.

We thought we could take this road and loop back to our car, but after hiking a LONG time, we never reached our car and had to turn back. Therefore, unless you know the trails better than we do, we suggest you retrace your steps back up the hill to return to YOUR origin!

There are many places in the area to purchase some of Vermont syrup if you’re looking for a treat after your hike.

Since we live a long ways away, we’d really appreciate an email with a status update if you look for the box. Thanks!


Hike length: 2-3 miles