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Handcrafted in USA Handcrafted in USA This is a two-part article. Part 1 is written by Smoky Lake Owner, Angela Schumacher, describing Maywood’s important role in Smoky Lake’s origin story. The second part of this article is written from the perspective of Maywood and describes how their maple program has evolved and improved over the years with the help of Smoky Lake.
This article was originally published in the Smoky Lake 2020 Catalog/Yearbook. You can download this article in its original format HERE.
Written by Smoky Lake Owner, Angela Schumacher
On a crisp Saturday morning, in March of 2008, I attended Maywood’s annual Flapjack Day event with my boyfriend, Jim. Before diving into a tower of pancakes, we toured their sugarbush and our guide was full of enthusiastic stories. It was clear that I am not the only one who has made many fond memories at Maywood Environmental Park over the years!
For as long as I could remember, I had wanted to tap a maple tree and make my very own maple syrup. But I lacked one important thing: maple trees. After the Flapjack Day Event, I crossed my fingers and whispered to Jim “Do you have any maple trees on your land?”
I never could have imagined how this one simple question would completely change the trajectory of my life. Long story short, maple fever took hold of us. Today we lead Smoky Lake Maple Products, a team of specialized artisans handcrafting premium, world renowned maple equipment.
Last year, our story with Maywood came full circle when they reached out to us for a new evaporator. It was a thrill to work on this project, knowing that they had been a catalyst for our own early growth!
Written by David Kuckuk, Maywood
Since the early 1980s our syrup pan rested atop cinder blocks and used wood heat to boil the sap. With each freezing and thawing that comes with winter and spring, the cement slab floor in the Sugar House has shifted making it impossible to seal the blocks and contain the smoke. A sugaring volunteer was easily identifiable from his smoky smell and watering eyes. It was obvious a new method was needed.
The switch from our old system to our new Smoky Lake Corsair has had several very noticeable benefits. There is virtually no smoke to contend with compared to the eye-watering system we had previously. The elimination of smoke greatly improved the flavor of the syrup. Processing efficiency was greatly increased, reducing our cooking time by many hours each day. All of these factors have made conditions and end results more enjoyable for our volunteers, but nothing beats the smiles on the faces of children and adults that taste Maywood’s new and improved maple syrup.