I know youโre in California, and I donโt know what kind of maple trees you have out thereโฆ but itโs worth mentioning that you can make maple syrup from maples that arenโt sugar maples.
Acer saccharinum and Acer negundo, silver maple and boxelder, are two examples Iโve heard of which thrive in the area Iโm from, which is much much too warm for sugar maples. There are probably even more maples that will work.
You need more sap to make it but they still make syrup.
You can also make syrup from birches and hickory trees, but itโll taste different, of course.
You also have to look out with birch syrup because 1. It burns easily and 2. It contains xylitol which is deadly for dogs and cats to eat
