The maple season is over when this temperature pattern ends. At this time the color of the sap will become darker. If sap is collected after the season is over it will be low in sugar content and have an undesirable taste.
An electric hand drill works well for this task. You could also drill a hole using a hammer and a long nail; hammer it in, then remove it.
Get one or more 5 gallon pots. Dig a shallow hole in the ground where you want to build the fire. Build a box out of cinder blocks around the hole. It need only be large enough to accommodate all of your pots. Set a fire grate in the box to hold the pots, leaving enough space below the grate to build a fire. Build a fire under the grate so it will heat the pots.
The process of boiling sap down to syrup takes many hours, and you can’t take any breaks or you’ll end up with burned maple syrup. The fire needs to be hot enough to keep the sap boiling constantly, and you need to keep adding more sap when the liquid gets low - even if it means staying up all night. You can hang a coffee can with a handle over the sap pot. Cut a hole in the bottom so the sap trickles out gradually. This way you won’t have to be there to monitor its progress at all times.
If you remove the syrup too late, it will thicken or burn, so make sure you monitor it closely. You can finish the syrup inside if you want to be able to control the heat and temperature more closely.
Filter the syrup while it’s still quite hot, or else it will stick to the cheesecloth. Special cotton filters made to absorb less syrup are available for sale online.
