March 21, 2025 - With snowsuits on and boots to navigate the half-frozen, half-thawed terrain, runny noses and rosy cheeks framing smiles as bright as the welcome sun of spring, Daycare and Biidaaban students enjoyed an outing to the sugarbush and sap boiling station set up in a clearing just off the road leading to Fort LaCloche.
Blue buckets hung from the maple trees; three per tree according to Michael Abitong, Land-Based instructor for Sagamok Education. One bucket faces each of the directions following the sun, West, South, and East, where there is optimal warmth, thawing the sap inside the tree so it will run into the buckets poised to catch it. Approximately 80 sap buckets are placed at the boiling station. The children scurried excitedly about, gathering them from the trees, dumping the sweet water into a large collection barrel, and then racing back to the tree with their classmates to rehang the bucket before too much sap is lost.
The fire burns warmly at the center of the little syrup making ‘village’, with a tripod erected overtop of the fire, and three large cast iron cauldrons hang just above the flames, containing the various stages of the sap boiling process. Patrick Wemigwans, a friendly helper working alongside Michael Abitong, gently stirs the sap while it cooks, and demonstrates various key pieces of knowledge to the eager students. He shows them the ladle he uses, how to keep the fire just right (stacks of wood and pieces of birch bark wait nearby to stoke the fire), and how he pours the sap through a strainer to remove the bits of bark and bugs that may have fallen in if the lid isn’t on just right. He dips a small sample cup out of the sap barrel for students to taste-test the cold, clear, sugary water, generated straight from the maple tree, prior to boiling and eventual transition into maple syrup.
Patrick and Michael hold up two drills for the students to differentiate between; the antique one requires a good amount of strength to physically turn the handle to drive the drill bit into the tree (for tapping purposes), while the other, an electric drill, is much quicker, but noisier and needs a full battery charge before heading out. Not every student was keen to give it a try, but many opted to operate the drill themselves, while Michael oversaw and helped guide them. Amazing for 6 or 7-year-old kids! For most, it was their first time operating a power tool! There was quite a feeling of accomplishment, as seen by their expressions of concern and complete concentration at first, to bewilderment when they observed the hole they had created, and awe when the natural sap began to immediately gather at the hole site. Students were given a tap and either twisted it in or gave it a ‘tap’, or two, until it was firmly in place. After that, they picked up one of the emptied blue sap buckets and figured out how to hang it on the built-in hook and attach the lid. Now, all that was left was to wait for the precious sap to drip down and gather in the bucket.
This process takes many hours, of course, and is a continuous labour of love during sap season. Students participate in their scheduled block of time and are taught many important lessons during their learning time with Michael, Patrick, and their teachers in the outdoor classroom. And the learning is not just about sap/syrup! When students are outdoors, learning from the land like this, they learn about working together with others, surviving in various climates and terrain, navigational techniques, safety and stewardship, protecting the environment, while utilizing its bounty responsibly and respectfully, and enjoying the innocent fun that is so often found outdoors. The sun on your face, birds chirping in the trees, squirrels scampering about, the breeze blowing the smoke from the fire into your face, and friends discovering ice formed on puddles and cracking it open to get to the mud cakes down below - this is all an exploration of self and surroundings. Nature is engrained in the fabric of our soul and when we are close to it on occasions like these, growth happens, learning is engaged, the good life courses through us like the sap through the maple tree.
Of course, it doesn’t end here! What trip to the sugarbush would be complete without a sample of the rich, amber syrup the students were a part of making? A trek along the forest trail leads the classes to Fort LaCloche, where volunteers have been busily preparing a feast of hot pancakes and sausage. A generous serving of fresh maple syrup is drizzled overtop, and the students dig in, savouring the fruits of their labour and their Creator.
Miigwech to our land-based instructors who plan and organize these opportunities for students of Shki Waase-Aaban Binoojiinh Gamik, Biidaaban Kinoomaagegamik, and the high school Raven group to learn about tapping maple trees and preparing the sap boiling station. Miigwech to the volunteers at Fort LaCloche for setting up a welcoming space for students to sit down and enjoy a tasty seasonal treat. Miigwech to Kara Abitong for the video compilation she shared to further the kids’ knowledge about the sugarbush and local area, and to Calvin, and all bus drivers, who transported the students safely to and from this outdoor learning adventure. The waterfall outside of Fort LaCloche was flowing faster than the sap from the trees, but its melodious thundering sound was the perfect picturesque backdrop to cap off an enriching day outdoors.
