How North American Indigenous Peoples made Maple Sugar | BUSHCRAFT | CANADIAN | SELF SUFFICIENT
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- čas přidán 23. 03. 2022
- Peter takes you to the Hiawatha First Nation to meet Caleb Musgrave, who walks us through how his ancestors made maple sugar. He demonstrates making a birch bark basket, a cedar spile and a fan. He discusses the tools and techniques used pre and post European contact. He explains storage systems for the sugar.
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Guest - Caleb Muskgrave @Canadian Bushcraft
Featuring - Peter Kelly
Cinematography - Catherine Wolfe
Producer & Editor - Catherine Wolfe
SOCIAL MEDIA
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Facebook - / the.woodland.escape
MUSIC
The amazing music in this episode is graciously provided by our friends, Richard Fortier and Al MacDonald.
#maplesugaring #indigenous #indigenousskills #bushcraft #18thcentury #pioneerlife #americancolonialhistory #history #canadianwilderness
Caleb thank you for keeping the old ways alive and relevant.
I recovered 25 gallons of maple water back about 3 yrs. ago. I could not get it to the proper temp. to boil down. So, the family and I drank maple water, and it was very good the way it was. I enjoyed you and your buddy in the last part of the video. I bet that maple dough was excellant. !
Indeed it was. Apparently, drinking the pure sap when fasting is said to purge the entire body.
Best thing I have watched in quiet a while .
Flattered, Charles, thank you.
Thia was literally a treat to watch. We all need to learn how to live off of the land as we never know when we may hay to.
Thanks You.
This is one my favorite channels. I'm in New Orleans, and sadly much of this local tribal knowledge is lost.
It is a shame to see one’s history lost to time. Thank you for your interest and support.
WOW....your stuff just keeps getting better Mr. Pete!!! Isn't it just amazing how people came up with how to do things.
Patience is surely the number one tool to have. Thank you for showing us the ways of the Native Peoples. And as always, be well! Robin
Thanks Robin. Right on the patience thing. Most days there is a lot of it in the tool box but, occasionally it is like the tool you put down somewhere and simply can’t find. Appreciate your continued interest.
Absolutely the best videos of this type on CZcams.
Flattered indeed, thanks Bill.
Absolutely fascinating. I have long wondered how the natives did all of this and this was a great explainer. Thank you for bringing this to us all, and a massive thank you to Caleb to for keeping the ways of his people alive today.
Caleb is indeed both knowledgeable and a good teacher.
Thank you Peter and Caleb, for a fascinating tutorial on maple sugar making. It’s a treat to watch and learn this amazing history.
Glad you enjoyed, Ronda.
Good morning Peter. Back to fall like weather here. Spring storms yesterday and possible snow this Saturday. Have a great day friend and thanks for sharing.
Thanks Michael.
@The Woodland Escape what a great video. Please tell Caleb we appreciate him sharing and for all the history. Appreciate you both. Thanks again.
Very interesting and educational
Just fantastic! Thanks to the kind gentleman who demonstrated the native way to collect and process the maple sugar.
Ideed, Caleb is a wealth of information and an excellent teacher.
It's an expensive thing to invite you along for Maple Sugaring. I appreciated all the ethnography that Caleb Musgrave brings to the table.
Yup, I’m thinking I ate up most of my product! Caleb brings a lot to any table.
An incredible gifted speaker and teacher, learning about the Hiawatha First Nation People's beautiful stories, authentic crafts, foraging and cooking traditions. My elderly parents, my husband and I thoroughly enjoyed this documentary, my father once carved my mother weaved and I am still learning, thank you for sharing, beautiful. My husband, children and I lived in Victoria BC Vancouver Island during Covid-19 Jun 2020- Feb 2022 unfortunately did not get the opportunity to experience your beautiful culture due to Covid-19. We hope to return one day 🙏
We sincerely appreciate your interest and support of our channel.
Fascinating. That man (Caleb) is full of the knowledge of traditional indigenous ways of life. Thanks for sharing.
He is indeed a very knowledgeable man.
love the vid... would like to see more of this type of this content.. thanks so much.
Thanks Lee and we working on more.
Wow. Please give us more long videos like this of handcrafts and productions or builds from start to finish!
We appreciate your interest.
Making a small batch of syrup from my walnut tree is on my after retirement bucket list.
Caleb has a very engaging and informative presence that complements yours very well. Future collaborations would be well received. This was a very enjoyable visit with both of you. Well done!
I quite enjoyed my day with Caleb. He is a very knowledgeable man.
Please research the issue of toxicity of black walnut (juglone) before trying to tap your walnut tree.
Hey Peter! If I live to be a hundred, I'll never forget watching the sap being boiled down to syrup in the large copper vats on the ol' family farmstead.! It ALWAYS made the pancakes and waffles taste better... and the home made butter wasn't bad either! Good times and great memories!
You and I share very similar childhood memories!
Excellent video Peter.. I'm too far south for sugar maple but I have heard of people tapping pecan, black walnut, hickory and what we call "sweetgum" all of which we have in abundance. You and your guest have inspired me to tap some of our trees and try to make syrup and sugar next season.
Keep up the good work..!
Thank you!
Love it, I could watch this all day long.
Thank you.
So very interesting, the things we take for granted. Thanks for sharing this process with us.
Thank you!
Just fascinating
Thank you.
Absolutely wonderful. Thank you for this.🌲🪵🪶
Thank you.
There is a Rice Lake, Wisconsin... Hiawatha park etc... as well.
very cool.
Small world!
Peter, clearly one of you best videos yet. I support Caleb's view on the "pre-contact" use of clay pots rather than heated stones for evaporation, but I also know that further north, sap was sometimes stored and later boiled over fires in moose hides! To us, hemlock (kaw gaw gee minj) translates as "raven" tree. In the southern portion of the raven's range in Ontario and Quebec, where protective cliff faces are not available, ravens much prefer to roost and nest in hemlocks. My family has been making sugar in sap kettles since the 1700's and those offspring who have not switched to evaporators for commercial production, continue with kettle boiling for personal use. For the past 45 years, I have used four 15 gallon sap kettles closely spaced in a line for syrup production and a fifth 10 gallon kettle to advance a portion of the run to sugar after the syrup is first filtered. Sugar making is always a two step process with a pause for filtering unless you want to become constipated by all the carbon that gets into the syrup in kettles! Although I have not done so myself, I have seen the use of the granulating (sugar) trough (nasay-yaw wangwawn) but with tools taking the shape of an extra wide paint brush rather than the paddle shape illustrated in the video. To make good nasay igun (granulated sugar) you should have allowed the temperature to go a bit higher so that it goes almost as fine as powder. With the lower temperature you made naw min aws. Paddle shaped tools are for granulating sugar in iron kettles. The sugar paddle that I use is much larger, as I prefer to work the sugar from a standing position rather than paddling on my knees. As Caleb said, the sugar must be brought to high heat over a very low fire or it will boil over. Once the syrup reaches the proper temperature, you let it cool somewhat without fire, then tip the kettle up on a 45 degree angle and begin working it with the paddle. The bottom tip of the paddle is usually shaped to fit the chine in the kettle used.
Wow Doris, even more insightful information, I cannot thank you enough. I could learn so much from your teachings . What do think of doing an episode with me, I would be honored?
My grandfather on his property had a sugar shack and made maple syrup and the house I live at now, back in the 1940's and up until the 1970's the original owner used to make sugar candy and sell it. It was something once so common and now we don't see as many people getting involved in the traditional harvesting of maple syrup and I can only think of one or two I've heard of that are Native American where I am that collect sap and process it in their traditional ways. It's good to see someone making it the way it was originally done in this country once.
To Europeans it was simply a process but, to indigenous people it was a magical time.
Interesting history lesson 🙂👍
Thank you.
Sixty years ago my grandfather showed me how to make maple syrup and maple candy. The hint of smokey flavor from boiling the sap down over an elm wood fire is still in my mind. My grandmother made maple candy with the last quart of syrup. God bless their souls.
I find memories that have taste associated with it, rarely fade.
I find memories that have taste associated with it, rarely fade.
What a fascinating video. The amount of work went into every task from tools to the sugar. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Beverly.
The more I learn the more I know I don't know. I'll tell you, this again reaffirms how much can be lost without out the work you guys do. Simple tools make so many other useful things. Amazing video again.
Simple tools are my favorite… no power, no noise!
This video was most fascinating, absolutely love the old ways. Thank you!
Thanks for your continued interest, Jeanie.
Thank you for this fabulous insight into the maple sugaring process . I'm in the middle of doing this myself, but took a break from watching the fire to view this video . Another winner, Peter :- ]
Thanks Bob and again, thanks for the 18th century frolic.
I have never seen how this was done, by far one of your best videos. Other than your videos on making your home, as well as all your other projects. Very well done. Thank-you
Thanks Lance … encouraging feedback.
I enjoyed this video so much and I was impressed by the fact that the old way of tapping did not need to damage the tree it was more respectful of the life that is giving life and you could visit that same tree many years and not be killing it or the other things that live in the tree all year long I look forward to seeing more videos thank you
Thanks, Tammy. Certainly something to be said for living close to the land without constantly destroying it.
Absolutely a great video!! Lots of content and knowledge in that time frame. Love what ur doing
Thank you.
Wonderful.
Will never look at sugar the same again.
Imagine all the effort to get something sweet like that, it would have been a very nice gift if someone gave you on of those cones back in the day.
We were going to take a cone home but, we ate it all as we sugared it, lol.
What an interesting and amazing process. Great video. Thanks for sharing this with us.
Thanks Larry.
This always fascinated me, how the process works to acquire the syrup. I appreciate the way you bring awareness to the way it was and the people who came before , thank you
Thanks Tammy.
Wow. Survival and celebrations to preserve life and community.
I visited a maple syrup tour, they never explained this or maple sugar...or perhaps I don't remember. This was one of the best vids I have seen on the history and explanation of maple syrup, maple butter and maple sugar, truly amazing!
Glad you enjoyed it! Caleb is very knowledgeable and passionate about his culture.
This has to be one of your best videos ever! It's just packed full of information. I've been aware of some of these methods but seeing them in actually use is way better than reading about it. I particularly liked his observations about what was left behind in the old trees. I have some maple sugar but have been using it sparingly. My thoughts about that have certainly changed. Thanks for a very enlightening video.
Syrup also has some positive health effects!
Thanks David, it is nice to receive encouraging comments.
What a humble man, incredible video loaded with tons of information! I can taste the sugar and smell it boiling.
It is pretty darn tasty . Not much was left to bring home?
Peter, A family friend we visited regularly in Parry Sound made maple syrup. That was another highlight of spending time at the cabin.. His description of the process always fascinated me. I don't know why, but his syrup always tasted better than anything else I tried.. We were never there early enough to witness the work. Since then, I've been able to observe locals making it. It sure takes a lot of effort and patience to produce that liquid gold!
Him making that fan was simply amazing.
His point about "hot rock boiling" makes sense. I've said watching some of these "survivalist shows" using multiple rocks to boil water "for safety" could backfire. Of course, just bringing water to a boil is a far cry from rendering something down.
It does indeed, James but, worth every minute.
Watch listen and learn what a gift with two wise man all we need is one more always Freddie 👍
Thanks Freddie.
Awesome! I love your videos and history lessons!
Thank you.
I am working in a 23 000 tap sugar bush near Algonquin park. We make a lot of maple syrup, sugar, candy, butter and more but it is still very good to see how things used to be done. I never heard about the birch bark cones. That is really interesting. I like the talk of cooking a porcupine in the sap too, no shortage of porcupines out here. We also have a resident moose in one place we tap too. It is nice to see syrup being made with simple tools and a bush with no tubing too.
Wow, 23,000 tap , Tom, you are a very busy fellow and I suspect your about to get a whole lot busier. Can you imagine if you had that many taps set and were doing in the tradition way? I imagine you’d need a whole lot more help. Appreciate your interest.
An absolutely fantastic video, and amazing knowledge transfer! I love learning the way our ancestors did things, humanities I mean, from carpentry to travel, to staying warm, to communicating with people you don't know the language of
Indeed and that communication was instant as it is today. Things took longer to accomplish but, oh the satisfaction.
Your channel popped up tonight and I watched this one with Caleb, and two with you making a hatchet and a Trivet at the blacksmith shop. I found all 3 so enjoyable that I subscribed to your channel. I do not normally subscribe to things but you drew me in. Thank you for a wonderful evening of enjoyment.
We appreciate your interest and support Steve. It is always encouraging to receive positive feedback.
That was awesome! It is so fascinating on how things were done! Also how useful and practical life was! Labour intensive but efficient! I liked you comment about patients being the most important tool.
Yup and sometimes that particular tool is missing from my toolbox.
Mine too!😀 I am just constantly in awe on how people lived , survived and thrived! My own ancestors thought nothing of jumping into an open boat and sail to the unknown! Amazing!
Those people really had to work hard for everything in life! How amazing that it is still being carried on today! Very informative and interesting. Thank you, Peter!
Thank you.
I’m a bison rancher in Manitoba. I wish I had time to tap all the Mb Maple I have. My grandmother used to do it back in the day of big families and homesteading in the wilderness.
Being a Bison rancher you probably don’t have a lot of free time for that there sugaring business.
This video is very informative and joy to watch.
Thank you.
One of those historic mysteries. Who first tasted maple sap, sugar cane, beat juice, et al, and thought gee I out to boil this till thick… or even to sugar.
Yup, those unanswered questions. Who first thought to eat an egg?
Appreciate your efforts and dedication! Thank you for covering this topic. In this one episode you covered several things that have been for too long a dying way of life. The indigenous lifeway's are a rich and precious part of my life. Thank you for sharing this with your viewers. Thanks again and keep your powder dry.
Thanks once again, Ashley and watch your top knot!
Very educational remember this from grade school but never this much detail mostly just how to get sap from the tree. Same method to get latex from rubber trees.
Thanks Roger.
Thanks again for a great lesson on history.
As I have come to expect from your videos, very entertaining and a great history lesson.
Glad you like them!
Very fascinating and informative thank you Peter and Caleb.
Appreciate that. Caleb is a person with an amazing wealth of knowledge and likes to share it. I’m fortunate to call him a friend.
Another great video, Peter. That fan, "nice fireside project" is outstanding. Excellent idea, precisely exicuted. Wow!
Thank you very much!
I really enjoyed this episode. Answered a lot of questions I had about how maple sap was processed originally by indigenous people. Thank you!
Thank Grace.
Hi Peter.
Fabulous! Mind you, I would have been use sending you two out to make Maple Sugar back in the 18th Century because there would have been none left and the pair of you staggering back to the village like barrels! 😂
Best wishes,
Mark
You got that right, we didn’t have much to take home and we’re in no need of supper that night!
Love these videos so much! There is a lot to learn. Tank you to share your knowledge
Thank you and we appreciate your support and interest.
Thank you for making this!! I saw some friends on the Red Lake Reservation made some Maple syrup 30 years ago! They didn't make sugar out of It though! This was awesome!
Thanks Donald.
I understand a little better what you mean't when you said that we have lost so much over the centuries by not having written records when indigenous cultures were taken over by ' progressive' empire builders.
Well done & thanks for the lesson.
I hadn't even heard of maple syrup 20 years ago!!
Always has been one of my favorite foods. My earliest memories are of making syrup on the farm.
Very cool to watch and learn!!
Thanks Mary.
Fascinating! Thanks so much love the video. Hoping by next year to buy acreage in New Hampshire with maple trees🍁
Thanks and good luck on your search.
These types of life skills that you show us should never be forgotten. I'm now living off the land as much as possible on my farm. Everything you do fascinates me. Thank you for sharing.
Our pleasure Kathy. Good to hear from those who choose to live close to the land.
Awesome video lotsa love from, Indiana,
Thanks Tina.
Very interesting and informative video. Thanks for sharing both your and Caleb's knowledge.
Thanks. Not only is Caleb a knowledgeable lad, he is a great teacher.
I can remember being a kid in the boy scouts on a campaign trip to Maine and I spent all my money on gifts to take back to my family it was pure maple sugar ( candy ) I had a lot of it , but by the time I got home to Pennsylvania , I only had enough left to give each person on my gift list two pieces each . I will never forget that . It was so delicious .and I felt so guilty because I spent a lot of money and really wanted to give them something nice from Maine , they all loved it ( thier two pieces ) but I still feel guilty to this day , I must have at a couple pounds of it
Great story Walt and I cab most certainly relate.
@@TheWoodlandEscape thank you
very good demo,thank you
Thanks Carlos.
Very interesting video thank you Peter.
Thank you.
I am continuously amazed by how the human family survived and thrived in the face of the various challenges of nature. We are all one big human family, but the various smaller families learned to thrive by patience. A valuable lesson in modern as well as past times. Thanks so much for the sharing of your knowledge and the beautiful crafting of this great talent. I enjoyed this greatly. Again, thanks.
Thank you!
Loved this!
Thanks Charlene.
Most excellent, I never have seen that done.
Thank you very much!
Our pleasure.
Thank the nature and the tree 🌳 for life sugar 🍀🍀🍀🌎🍀🍀🍀
Indeed!
amazing camera work as always I love it
Thanks Sally, I’ll pass that on to Cathy.
Amazing.
Fascinating
Glad you find it so Kerry. Appreciate your interest.
This is fascinating. THANK YOU for bringing us along. I want to live in the woods...sometimes
Our pleasure, Joe, glad you’re. Time spent in the woods isn’t deducted from your life span!
@@TheWoodlandEscape At 65, I need to get at it
Thank you and your buddy
I certainly appreciate your continued interest.
That was fantastic!!
Thanks Daniel. Quite the historical name … Daniel Boone was a commander at the Battle of Bryan’s Station.
@@TheWoodlandEscape I had heard that, I know his brother Squire is buried in a cave about 30 min from me. He was quite the frontiersman in his own right. The mill by the caves still stands and you can read the scriptures from the Bible he had carved into them. A lot of rich frontier history here in the southern part of Indiana, much of it still looks as it did then.
Excellent video! Thank you both for the lesson!
Our pleasure and thank you for your interest.
good job guys
Thanks Charlie.
What a great video. And cool experience.
Hank you.
Sorry, meant, Thank you.
That's so cool
Great episode, always love your videos. You talked about Caleb’s podcast. Can I get the info on that?
We put a link on that very episode.
Very fascinating
Thanks Bobby …always a kind word.
Good evening. I have noticed that our ancestors didnt waste or throughout items. Now that you showed the clay pot broken; is there a way to fix it possibly drilling holes in it and adfing nore clay? Dont really know if it would work or if they would have done it.
There are finds that indicate they did indeed.
Did you pour water in there at the end and make tea? MMMMMmmm bet that was good.
I suspect Caleb did, Cathy and I had to head for home.
Most impressive! Is there a place or site that these "fans" can be purchased?
Not that I’m aware of Millie if they are for sale. Pretty easy t make. You need to get yourself a chunk of cedar at have a go at it.
The woodland excaspe. Ha! I watched this fan being made again and "give it a go" is beyond my capability, sorry to say! I will have to just keep on wishing I had one. Maybe once the boarder is open again. Peace!
Has someone who's trying to turn back in time to get back many lost freedom, your channel is a treasure trove.
Thank you so much for all this work.
Also : czcams.com/users/OzaawaaMigiziNini?app=desktop
Thank you, and thanks for sharing Caleb’s link.
Always the biggest obstacle to creating a wonderful product is,.. "We would have had more maple syrup and sugar, if we hadn't been eating so much of the sweet Ambrosia". hahahaha
So true!!
Maybe I missed it in the video, but do you ever reheat the sugar with water to make reconstituted maple syrup?
Never have nor have I ever heard of it, but I suppose it might be possible.
@@TheWoodlandEscape reducing it to sugar would certainly lighten the load for packing, then reconstitution with water would be a nice bonus for flapjack syrup at the basecamp.
How did the Natives ever discover how maple sap could become sugar in the first place?
Good question but, like many things, unanswered … who first fermented a grape to make wine and better yet, who first tried an egg for food!
If a dear found there sap back in the day I'm sure they would see that as a plus. They could just make a dinner out of it.
Indeed and a nutritional one at that.
Glade I'm not a sugar lover! Even though I enjoyed this video!
How many gallons of sap did you boil down to get this?
Approximately 10 gallons for the 2 cups of sugar. Had we stopped at syrup, we would have had a little over a quart.
Deer poops in sap bucket, deer becomes entree.