A sweet tooth led to Wally Steidle's lifelong hobby.
Wally and his partner Susan Steidle started beekeeping about a year after their 1972 arrival in Punchaw, B.C. - between Prince George and Quesnel on Blackwater Road - from Chicago. But, his love affair with honey began long before.
"When I was a little kid my grandmother, when we went to visit her, she always made me a honey sandwich for the trip home," said Steidle. "It's just a comfort taste."
The Steidles were showcasing their honey at the British Columbia Northern Exhibition along with other members of the Prince George Beekeeping Association.
A neighbour in Punchaw gave Steidle her old beekeeping hives and equipment when she learned about his weakness for honey. In order to learn about the craft, the Steidles took a three-day weekend course at CNC, which hooked them on beekeeping for life.
"We ended up buying a package of bees from California, which is two pounds of bees and the queen," said Steidle. "It was pretty exciting, but you're pretty scared you're going to do it wrong and they're going to fly away on you."
The first year they produced 80 pounds of honey. A good average is maintaining about 100 pounds a year.
Steidle is now the president of the Prince George Beekeepers Association.
In the old days, he recalled how the group's meetings were standing room only at the experimental farm where they were held. Then interest waned.
"It's making a slow comeback, we've got about 30 members," he said, adding it helps that Prince George allows residents to keep bee hives in their yards. "It's a hard hobby now with all the bee diseases out there."
Steidle said he's been stung too many times to put a hard number on it.
"The worst is getting stung in the ear lobe, the lip and sometimes the webbing between your fingers, that hurts a lot," said Steidle.
Anyone is welcome to join a meeting of the Prince George Beekeepers when they meet on the second Monday of each month at CNC, 7 p.m.
