I’ll be taking a full super of honey off the hive Sunday, so I went out today to put the bee escape on the hive to make tomorrow’s activities much easier. I did my first and last harvest last fall without using a bee escape, and I’ll never do it again. It took forever to get all the bees off the frames, and I ended up with a yard full of pissed off bees.
Another advantage of the harvest is reducing the size of the hive to a more manageable level. Right now, I’m resorting to a step stool to get the height I need to inspect the top most supers.
Urban Beekeeping in Austin, Texas 
Wow, honey already? Your girls start early down there.
And I’m with you 100%: Clearing boards are the way to go as both humans and bees are happier for it.
Best of luck with the harvest!
Well, I did leave an inordinate amount of honey on over the winter to be on the safe side, and the nectar flow is totally on here in Austin so I felt comfortable with a harvest.