Red salmonberry Yellow salmonberry #5 Salal Berries They tend to grow in open areas along streams at lower elevations. The bushes are usually three to six feet tall with thorny branches and three-leaflet, green, serrated leaves. The berries are mildly sweet with a faint bitterness. The ripe berries are yellow to red-orange and are shaped like their blackberry cousins. Salmonberries aren’t my favorite, but a lot of people love them. The underripe berries are white to light pink or they may still have their white flowers attached. The bushes are often about 6 feet tall with broad, soft, three-pointed bright green leaves that turn yellow in the fall (and also make great toilet paper). The bushes tend to grow at subalpine elevations in damp, sun-exposed areas. The berries are red and juicy with a bright tartness when they’re ripe, and although they resemble raspberries they are much flatter in shape. They seem to flip from underripe to dusty and dry in a matter of days. Thimbleberries are hands down my favorite wild berry when they are fully ripe, but ripe berries can be hard to find. Blueberries with fall colors One of our favorite things is fresh huckleberries or blueberries in our morning oatmeal #3 Thimbleberries These plants seem to often be interspersed with heather plants in the high alpine. The leaves tend to turn color earlier in the year and the berries are very sweet with a mild grassy flavor. They are typically found in higher alpine areas and the main differences from huckleberries are that the bushes are usually ankle high and the berries are a powdery bright blue. Typical huckleberries Pink huckleberries #2 Cascade BlueberriesĬascade blueberries are closely related to huckleberries and are very similar in appearance. The flavor may be juicy and tart or grassy, but shouldn’t be too bitter. The berries may have some dried flower crud on the end, which sounds gross but can help with identification. The berries look like store-bought blueberries and can be anywhere from light pink to purple black, but if you’re worried about identification stick to the navy blue ones that are the most common. The leaves are about the size of a thumbnail to the size of a thumb and they turn orangey red to purple in the fall. They are found in subalpine to alpine habitat on knee to hip high bushes with alternating simple green leaves that come to a gentle point. Huckleberries are probably the berries that are easiest to find and identify in Washington State and are also one of the tastiest. Of course, I wouldn’t want readers to ingest any danger berries so I’ve linked to Wikipedia in all cases to help you begin your own research journey until you feel comfortable munching in the wild. And thanks to the abundant wild berries in the state, hiking can even become a treat for your sense of taste. Hiking in Washington State is known for its ability to fill the senses of sight, touch, smell, and hearing with delight.
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