Wild Huckleberry Picking

Yes, that's right all you East coast folks - the huckleberry is a real berry and not just the name of a cartoon character. The town of Bingen, WA even has a Huckleberry Festival each year celebrating and serving the fruit.

Huckleberries are a wild berry present in the forests all around Trout Lake. In fact, there is even a street sign when entering Trout Lake indicating the direction to "the" huckleberry fields. However, the most well known fields are apparently picked out pretty quickly, so the locals typically have their own "secret" spots deep in the woods, accessible only via forest roads.

Our neighbor Jack is one such local, and he recently invited us to go picking with he and his daughter Kya. So we hopped in his truck and head up a forest road into the woods. Within the span of just a few hours in the woods, Corinne and I managed to pick about 8 pounds of berries. The berries are difficult to grow commercially, so the ones available in the store are generally pretty expensive - the local farmstand sells them for $7/lb. The berries are a bit tart with a complex flavor; they make good pies and sauces, but are also great on cereal. Thanks, Jack!

- Mike (& Corinne)