Birch Syrup

6/19.5/14
On the way to Talkeetna

I almost forgot, on our way back to Talkeetna we stopped at a Birch Syrup  producing place.  I had tried birch syrup before and did not care for it and never bought any.  This birch syrup was very good, so of course we bought some.  This was quite and interesting place, they tap the trees and run lines just like maple syrup.

This explains the entire process.  I takes more birch sap than maple sap to make the syrup.  You start with 10,000 gallons of sap and end up with 100 gal of syrup.

Notice all the little bottles lined up in an arc on the left.  Every day during the harvest they fill a different bottle.  The beginning of the season the syrup is very mild.  At the end of the season it is so strong that it can only be used for baking.  The season is only 2 - 4 weeks.  As soon at the trees start putting out leaves the sap is gone.  Each year is different, this year they only harvested for about 17 days.

Along the way we stopped at the Alaskan Veteran's Memorial

This Fireweed is almost chest high, it would be nice to see it bloom

That's about it, thanks for stopping by.
Nancy