We had a faulty hydrometer.  That explains the problems we had problems boiling from so much nitre and the over dense batch of syrup.  And why it took 2+ hours between batches when last year it was about an hour.  It also explains why we had problems getting syrup through the filter press: it was too thick from being over dense.

We bottled today.  When the milk can was emptied into the finishing pan it was a thick as molasses.  We couldn’t get all the syrup out of the milk can.  This raised a red flag.  We could tell it was too dense and added sap into the finishing pan to reduce it before we started the burners.  We ordered a new hydrometer yesterday and it arrived today.  When the syrup came to a boil we tested it.  It was still over dense.  Cut back with more sap to reach 31.  Then boiled a little longer to reach proper density.  It went through the filer press without problems.

By adding sap back we made the batch bigger.  Bottled 9 ½ gallons, one of the largest batches we can recall.

With faulty instruments the results are faulty too.  We now wonder how much of the previous batches are over dense.

26 overnight.  Partly cloudy.  Tried to reach 33 for a little while then dropped again.  Trees tried to drip: the sun warmed them but it never got warm enough to drip much.

Forecast is 20 tonight and 43 tomorrow.