Late July

Willow having a cool down bath, looking somewhat vulnerable, not quite the way the small rodents see her.

We were up early to beat the heat. We headed for the backroads in search of berries. Our first stop yielded a half bucket each. They were small. By 10:30 I was ready to call it a day. The heat was picking up. Lisa said we should try further up the mountain. We hit a cut block where the berries were bigger and more plentiful. Willow ran rampant chasing rodents. We picked, filling our buckets, admiring the view of valley bottoms and towering mountains. I gave up figuring we had enough. Lisa kept going, thinking every berry was for her grandchildren. They love the jam.

More grass hoppers than I can remember. Damn aliens I say. Just look at them. The armour, the big eyes, antenna, the jumping. They have always been easy to catch. I’d hook a #8 hook under their shoulder pads and put a couple split shot sinkers a foot above, the fish were happy until I brought them in.

Once done we were both hot and thirsty. Willow was laying in the shade, tongue hanging out.

Four buckets total.

Lisa preparing a batch of berries to be frozen.

7 thoughts on “Late July”

  1. Christian

    Sounds like a great day!!! You were the one that taught me how to rig up a grasshopper on a spin cast rod. I remember that day like it was yesterday.

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    1. underswansea

      When picking berries, I always think of the time when you were little picking berries with Grandma and she fell landing on the slope with her feet above her head and you couldn’t get her up no matter how hard you tried. Grandma loved telling that story! Take care.

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  2. mountaincoward

    Are they what we call bilberries (wild blueberries I suppose)? We’ve got lots this year and I keep walking up the fells picking them and thinking each time I should have brought a box for them or something!

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    1. underswansea

      Yes the bilberry and huckleberry are closely related. We really enjoy picking huckleberries, freezing them to use in the winter.

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    1. underswansea

      The berries are Huckleberries. Wonderful tasting and good for you. They grow wild on cutblocks and slides. They can be hard to find and are prized among foragers in this neck of the woods. Lots of grasshoppers this year. So far they haven’t eaten the garden. Take care.

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