Hello to all Journey North Classes,

Greetings from Deephaven, Minnesota! We are the "Chanhassen Chiefs", a 4-H Club from Carver Co. There are 12 of us and we are 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th graders. We are very eager to tap our first maple tree.

About Our Tree
We've picked our tree and are looking for signs of Spring so we know when to tap. Our tree has a Southwest exposure, is 72 inches around (circumference), has moderate light, medium crown, and medium branchiness. It is in a wooded area with other maples and some oaks, so the branches are high. It is about 40 feet tall.

We are looking forward to our sugaring project and comparing notes with Union School in Vermont. In order for the contest to be fair, they need to know a lot about our tree:

• The % of daylight the tree gets,
• The description of the crown,
• Where we will locate the bucket.

Deephaven is located on the southern shores of Lake Minnetonka which is about 30 minutes west of Minneapolis. Deephaven is a small community with lakes, marshes, parks…and maple trees.

We are having a winter with lots of snow, ice and cold temperatures. For example, due to extreme windchill (-20 zero F) students were not allowed to go outside for recess 10 days in January. We have had 54 inches of snow this winter and the ice on the Lake is 30 inches thick. Ice-Fishing houses, snow mobilers, and ice hockey skaters crowd our lakes.

We would like to hear from you. Do people sugar in your neighborhood?

"Chanhassen Chiefs" 4-H Club
Deephaven, Minnesota
betha@usinternet.com