Julien Castonguay manages the evaporator Monday while making maple syrup at Pep’s Pure Maple Syrup in Sabattus. Castonguay said he has been sugaring since he was a young boy and now helps his grandson, Tom Edgecomb, operate the family sugarhouse. “The season has been better than I thought it would be,” Edgecomb said. The season started early this year because of the lack of snow, and the abundance of rainy days caused the sugar content of the sap to be lower than ideal, he said. The cold nights this week should get the sap flowing just in time for this weekend’s Maine Maple Weekend. Pep’s will be making maple syrup and maple glazed donuts with bacon bits from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

Donna Castonguay, left, and Deidra Edgecomb help Monday get Pep’s Pure Maple Syrup in Sabattus ready for Maine Maple Weekend. The family-run sugarhouse has produced about 140 gallons of maple syrup so far this spring. About 200 gallons is made during a typical season, Edgecomb’s husband, Tom, said. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal