To The Editor:
We know that this has been a hard year for everyone, and you are just trying to get out of the house and enjoy what the outdoors has to offer, but please be mindful of private property and the destruction thereof. Our maple sugar orchard is on Lincoln Gap and we are making a plea to cross-country and backcountry skiers to stay on the Catamount Trail from Lincoln Gap to West Hill Road and not stray off and ski down through our sap lines. Every time you ski over a line it stretches it, freezes it into the ground and cracks the plastic. Every time you lift a line to go under it, it again stretches it and weakens the plastic. This requires repairs and/or replacement of the lines and if not repaired affects the sap flow, which in turn lowers maple syrup production. We have had to replace many of our lines because someone has skied across the top or caused small avalanches that have buried the lines so deep we have been unable to dig them out for the sugaring season. This being a problem especially this year with the 20-plus inches of snow that we have received in the past week.
Our sugaring operation is a small family operation that has been handed down through the generations since the early 1800sm and it is extremely expensive to keep fixing and replacing these sap lines. Sugaring is not an easy task, it requires a lot of hard work and long hours with little financial reward, so we can use all the help we can get. We once again nicely request that you please respect our property.
We are more than willing to share our wonderful Vermont outdoor scenery and life, but that comes with respect for the landowner's property. Thank you for your consideration and may you stay well and safe in these crazy times.
Rachel Mccuin for the Hartshorn family sugarmakers.
