Sap Flowing on the North Shore

Time to tap into the sap flowing from sugar maple trees on the North Shore. Pioneer Press:

Antoine Ouilmette, one of the first white settlers to the north suburbs and namesake of the village of Wilmette, tapped maple trees in the 1830s, when he lived in a cabin just a stone's throw from Lake Michigan, near where the Michigan Shores Club stands today.

"The area was thickly wooded at that time," Patrick Leahy, director of the Wilmette Historical Museum, said. "The forest was part of his livelihood."

Yes, sentimental tree-huggers, trees can be useful, and survive the seasonal invasion. They need to be big enough to hug with your fingertips barely touching.