In The News
Bonz Beach Farms
Documentary: It's Maple Syrup Time at Bonz Beach Farms | SRCN
2019 — As spring makes its way into Northern Michigan, the month of March officially marks the start of Maple Syrup season. And Sunrise Cable Network recently stopped at Bonz Beach Farms just north of Onaway, as Gary Shepherd and his crew were back at work tapping and making syrup in time for their first open house of the season the weekend of March 23-24, 2019.
Watch NowHow a local man survived his fight against West Nile virus | Presque Isle County Advance
February 20, 2020 — A North Allis Township man is still recovering from a battle with West Nile Virus months after fighting to get back the life a mosquito almost took.
It’s hard to fathom that Gary Shepherd, the owner/operator of Bonz Beach Farms and a picture of health for a man in his early 60s, almost lost his life to the disease that is transmitted from infected birds to the pesky insect.
Northern Michigan Farmer Recovers from West Nile Virus After 65 Days in Hospital | 9&10 News
August 26, 2020 — Nine years ago Gary Shepherd took a chance and bought Bonz Beach Farms in Onaway.
“I was trimming some trees outback, one of them was a maple tree,” Shepherd said. “It started dripping some sap and I’m going like ahh I can make maple syrup here.”
What started as his signature maple syrup quickly turned to produce.
Gary battles debilitating effects of West Nile virus with intensive rehabilitation | Mary Free Bed
August 14, 2020 — It took 65 days in three different hospitals before Gary Shepherd was able to return to the two things he loves most: his family and his farm.
Gary’s from Onaway, a small town in northern Michigan where he owns Bonz Beach Farms. He grows fresh produce, makes maple syrup and honey, and cares for egg-laying chickens. During an off-season trip to Arizona In November 2019 with his father, everything changed.
Maple farmers reap benefits of March syrup-making scramble | The Alpena News
March 13, 2021 — To Up North maple farmers like Gary Shepherd, March means a mad, syrup-making scramble before spring fully arrives and the sap stops flowing.
Inspecting what he calls his favorite tree on a recent, chilly March morning, Shepherd pointed to small scars where the tree was tapped in recent years.
In a decade, the scars will be gone, but the tree will remain — one of hundreds of thousands of maple trees that dot northern Michigan woods, proffering their amber riches to breakfast plates in Michigan and across the country.
Maple syrup farmers grow hopeful with ideal weather | Spartan Newsroom
March 4, 2022 — LANSING, MICHIGAN – Michigan maple syrup farmers sound optimistic that the industry will see a successful 2022 season after production declined in recent years. While the state ranks in the top 10 syrup producers in the country, it produced only 150,000 gallons in 2021, 20,000 less than the prior year. In 2020, the value of production dropped to $8.26 million, a 13% decrease from 2019, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Watch NowWant an up-close look at maple syrup production? Onaway farm will offer opportunity | The Cheboygan News
March 11, 2025 — Gary Shepherd, the farm's owner, started with just 60 taps in his first year of syrup production. Now, the farm boasts about 4,300 taps, with sap moving through two miles of tubing into a collection pumphouse.
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