Outdoor Education students visit Estabrooke Pond Sugar Shack

By Chet Knights
Outdoor Education Student
    The East Grand Outdoor Education class recently went to Marc Crone’s sugar shack business where he produces maple syrup.
    Crone began his operation in 2009 when he built the sugar shack. The sap is brought into the sugar shack through a maze of tubing where the sap is collected and boiled down. It takes 40 gallons of sap to produce one gallon of maple syrup.
    Crone first showed the group how the sap is boiled down and how the maple syrup is graded. Next he took them behind the sugar shack where the sap is stored before it is brought into the sugar shack. They also hiked into a hardwood ridge where there are 400 trees tapped and the sap runs downhill to the sugar shack.    
Photograph by Dave Conley
TAKING A LOOK — Marc Crone, owner of Estabrooke Pond Sugar Shack shows James Berry, right, Cassidy Woo and Chet Knights,  background, how the sap flows through the lines on the way to the sugar shack. This year’s syrup can be purchased at the Crones on Route 1 or at the Millyard.
    The day the group was at the syrup operation, the sap did not run because it was too warm out so Crone turned on the vacuum pump to draw sap from the lines. He showed the students the vacuum tubes that hook to the trees and sap runs down the lines. Next, he talked about how to run a small business and what it takes to run a syrup business.
    Last year, Crone said he had a good year producing 100 gallons of syrup, which he was able to sell locally. So far, this year does not look very good due to the early warm weather.
    It takes freezing temperatures at night and above freezing temperatures during the day for sap to flow.
    Production this year may be around 30 gallons. It was fun to learn how a small local business is run.
Photograph by Dave Conley
VISIT — East Grand Outdoor Education students recently visited a local sugar shack business to see first-hand how a local seasonal business works.