Day Two – On the Road with Oregon Bounty: Hidden in plain view
Day Two of “On the Road with Oregon Bounty” has made its way to the Mt. Hood/Columbia River Gorge region. Today, Greg takes you to a secret spot in the forest to hunt for the elusive wild huckleberry.
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I have a secret place that I visit only once a year, if that. Somewhere on the south side of Mt. Hood, well off the highway, down a dirt road and through a thicket of brambles and fallen trees, is my huckleberry patch. A hollow surrounded on all sides by protective bushes and middle age timber, you enter by stooping under a decomposing Douglas fir that lies across a dry creek bed. I’m sorry I can’t tell you exactly where, because then you might try to find it. Actually, some years my secret place is so good at disguising itself that even I have a hard time locating the front door.
When it comes to huckleberries, timing is everything. They can appear anytime in August and hang on for just a few weeks. Some years they’re still clinging to their wistful branches as late as the middle of September. The berries can be as small as a currant or as plump as a blueberry. Their skins vary from deep red to near black. Depending on the year, they can be in clumps that require only a gentle tug to send dozens cascading into your pail, or as sparse as a Charlie Brown Christmas tree. That is what makes a successful huckleberry hunt so satisfying.
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