Written by Amanda Arbogast 

Dave Dahl is a retired geologist for the Minnesota DNR. He has spent the last 50 years living on the Iron Range and currently resides in Hibbing where he is a hobbyist maple syrup producer. He taps 100 trees every spring and uses tapping trees as an excuse to spend time outside when the weather is just starting to turn from winter to spring. Dave has been going to the state fair ever since he was a kid and was always intrigued by the agriculture building, especially the maple syrup area. He decided to enter last year on a whim and took first place for best maple syrup (also taking 1st place this year).  After the award, he decided to take it a step further and take a trip to Massachusetts to enter an international contest held by the North American Syrup Council, where he won best in show.  Dave attributes his maple syrup quality to the size of his operation. “Tapping 100 trees is a lot for a backyard operator but is a small amount for a big producer” Dave states. “I do it as a hobby to get outside and give maple syrup to friends and family”.  He thinks it’s a great thing for anyone to try and you can get started with just a few low-cost supplies.

Visit mnmaple.org and minnesotagrown.com to learn more about maple syrup.

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