At the start of the week, our plan was simple. We had taken Friday off to meet with a WDNR forester to walk our woodlots and learn about forest management. I was then going to finish laying the wood floor in the master bedroom while Maggie painted doors. On Saturday, I was going to spend the day making maple syrup. A busy but simple weekend.
Things began to go south as the week wore on. Because my work is tied to the construction season, I was very busy and it looked like it may be difficult to take Friday off. Speaking with our son at UW-Platteville, we learned that they may switch to remote instruction after spring break in a week, due to the COVID-19 virus. However, school was to still be in session the week before break.
Thursday, the WDNR forester called to cancel due to illness.
The forester cancellation actually helped a little. Maggie traveled to the property Thursday night, and I worked late Thursday to wrap up some tasks. I headed out Friday morning, stopping along the way for work calls and email. I arrived a little later than expected, but was able to finish the floor. I also disassembled the next door for Maggie to paint. Our son called Friday afternoon to tell us that the university had just cancelled school for next week, creating 2 weeks of spring break because of the virus. He had been planning on getting picked up by his roommate's parents at the start of spring break, but asked if we could pick him up because he was planning on bringing a lot home in case the break got extended. We arranged to pick Henry up Sunday.
On Saturday my plan for boiling our last batch of maple sap into syrup proceeded. The trees only produced about 15 gallons of sap due to the warm weather. It still took nearly all day to boil that down as Maggie painted. Henry called around noon to tell us his roommate's parents were coming up that day, and indicated they would take our son home. I had been looking forward to spending some windshield time with Henry, but at least he was on his way home.
We still do not have a stove, and have been eating at local restaurants for dinner. Because the maple syrup boiling is so time-intensive, we tried something different this week. On Friday, we stopped at the Richland Locker, a local butcher shop, and bought some brats. We brought some carrots from home. Before the last syrup boil, we put a grate over the fire and cooked our first dinner at the property. The brats were grilled over the coals, and the carrots went into a cast iron skillet with some butter, salt and pepper. When the carrots were nearly cooked, I drizzled a little maple syrup on to carmelize. It was a simple but delicious dinner - a nice way to wrap up a chaotic week.
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