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Oops, Jumped on an old thread.

I kept bees for a couple years as a 4-h project when I was a young-un in SE Montana. It's not too much work to keep a hive or two. In the fall when the bees all went back to the hives, I stacked straw bales around the boxes and always left half the honey for them. I lost one hive during a winter when we saw -40 or lower.

You may be able to check with a local apiculture club or 4-h group about some of the tools. A honey extractor is a pretty large investment for a single hive experiment. Otherwise I thought it was very interesting and a good source for a little extra income. I had a science teacher who bought everything I could produce so he could make mead.

As far as getting stung... It's going to happen. Some things you can do to minimize it are a veil and gloves, white coveralls, duct tape around cuffs, and a smoker. Do your work early in the morning and don't use pit-stick or scented soap the night before.