Huckleberries!

Ever since we've lived in this area (including the time before we moved to Prineville) we've taken little day trips to different areas to explore. I can't even tell you how many times we've driven this road and passed these bushes. To us they were just forestry undergrowth. That is, until late last summer when Bill went up on his own for a chukar hunt.

I don't think he got anything on that trip but he did pass by some elderly people that were in the bushes. They had containers strapped to their waist and were busy picking away. Bill stopped and asked what they were doing and they said they were picking huckleberries!

When he got home that day he told me about it and we decided to go back up and see if we could get some for ourselves. Truthfully I never knew what a huckleberry was before then. I think the first time I ever heard that word was on a cartoon when I was a kid (Huckleberry Hound!). And then of course the famous line from Bill's favorite movie, Tombstone, spoken by Doc Holiday (Val Kilmer), "I'll be your huckleberry."

I found out that huckleberries are almost like little blueberries. They look practically identical except for the size. They have a really nice sweet-tart taste. I almost think better than a blueberry.

We drove up the road and found a couple of likely spots. Nobody else was around so we parked the car and got our containers. 

Here's Stella peeking out from a huckleberry bush. "I'll be your huckleberry." I showed her how to eat them off the bush. I'm not sure that was a good idea!

More bushes. Stella in the background.

I'm not sure how long we were there but it was quite a while. It's not hard to pick the huckleberries, just kind of tedious.

This is our haul from about 90 minutes.

When we got home I spread them out in a single layer on parchment paper on sheet trays and stuck them in the freezer. When they were frozen solid it was a simple matter to transfer the berries to freezer bags then back to the freezer for future use. 

Delicious use!