SF bay area: Where to pick wild blackberries?

[Muse]

I live in Berkeley and used to climb the hills to Tilden Park on my bike and collect a lot of wild blackberries. Last times I tried it, I didn't make out too well.

One time I was biking in Marin County and saw a lot of blackberries on the side of the road, but I don't remember exactly where it was, it was so long ago.

I've about run out of home made blackberry jam and want to go on a foraging mission one day this coming week, hopefully collecting enough to can several quarts (around 5/8 lb. sugar to one lb. fruit). I figure right now is about the right time of year to do this.

Does anyone know of some great areas for picking wild blackberries within reasonable driving distance of Berkeley? I don't know if I want to do it on my bike....

 

[IronWing]

I found some great patches in Happy Camp.

 

[Newbian]

Try picking them off a blackberry bush or picking up some in a grocery store.

 

[Muse]

Try picking them off a blackberry bush or picking up some in a grocery store.

Duh, where are the bushes? I can't afford to pay for 20 lb. of store bought berries.

I found some great patches in Happy Camp.

Where's that? Near the Oregon/CA border? I want close to home.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

Try looking for a blackberry/strawberry farm. You can pick them yourself for cheaper, but I think that the season just ended. Doesn't hurt to try though. My girlfriend and I went twice this year and it was delicious. We went to one near Santa Cruz though.

 

[nonameo]

Well, do you have a sharpie?

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Here ya go.

 

[Muse]

Try looking for a blackberry/strawberry farm. You can pick them yourself for cheaper, but I think that the season just ended. Doesn't hurt to try though. My girlfriend and I went twice this year and it was delicious. We went to one near Santa Cruz though.

I never heard of a farm. I suppose you mean you pay and pick. It's been a very cool summer and I think there's probably a lot of ripe fruit out there. My tomatoes, which usually start really coming in (turning red) around August 1 are just now turning red. I picked some but the main crop has not turned red yet. Thus, the summer seems 3-4 weeks late this year, or rather, things are ripening that much later because of the lack of sun and warmth. I think I'll try the Berkeley hills first over the weekend and if I don't do well enough there probably drive to Marin County and try to find some great spots where I can clean up. It was a pretty wet winter and spring, so the bushes are certain to be lush. The vegetation and especially the trees in Berkeley look extremely healthy now.

It's an adventure and a change, a chance to do something out of the ordinary and plan and execute a day trip. Good for the soul.

 

[Muse]

Well, do you have a sharpie?

You mean that thing that Terrell Owens stuck in his sock in order to sign a touchdown ball and toss to a fan?

 

[Muse]

Here ya go.

Sounds like a pay and pick, but they don't say there what it costs. They refer to pickers as "customers." That doesn't appeal to me, and Colma's a long way away from Berkeley. I think I'll be able to find great picking spots around here if I look hard enough. I did well in the past, they are sure to be there especially in a wet year like this one.

 

[Sukhoi]

I've seen tons on a road heading west out of Petaluma (can't remember which though). If that's too far, I would suggest heading out to Walnut Creek/Orinda area or up to Vallejo. I generally see more blackberries growing on roadsides in drier parts of the Bay Area.

 

[zinfamous]

I live in Berkeley and used to climb the hills to Tilden Park on my bike and collect a lot of wild blackberries. Last times I tried it, I didn't make out too well.

One time I was biking in Marin County and saw a lot of blackberries on the side of the road, but I don't remember exactly where it was, it was so long ago.

I've about run out of home made blackberry jam and want to go on a foraging mission one day this coming week, hopefully collecting enough to can several quarts (around 50-50 sugar by weight). I figure right now is about the right time of year to do this.

Does anyone know of some great areas for picking wild blackberries within reasonable driving distance of Berkeley? I don't know if I want to do it on my bike....

the walk out through "Berkeley Bulb" is lined with blackberries. You have to be persistent, though. They are usually picked.

 

[KillerCharlie]

I'm guessing you're referring to the non-native invasive Himalayan/Evergreen blackberries? They're EVERYWHERE around western Washington... literally everywhere.

True wild blackberry bushes are pretty rare though.

 

[Muse]

the walk out through "Berkeley Bulb" is lined with blackberries. You have to be persistent, though. They are usually picked.

Woah! I've lived in Berkeley for around 40 years and never heard of Berkeley Bulb. What is it?

 

[Muse]

I'm guessing you're referring to the non-native invasive Himalayan/Evergreen blackberries? They're EVERYWHERE around western Washington... literally everywhere.

True wild blackberry bushes are pretty rare though.

Hell, I don't know what they are but the berries are delicious, eaten raw or made into jam or pies. Probably very healthy eating, too, ... well as long as they aren't contaminated by pollutants. That's why I think I'll try to take the advice of a site I read yesterday that said it is a good idea to not pick the berries you see from the road, a well traveled road.

 

[shortylickens]

This whole thread is some sort of gay code, isnt it?

 

[Newbian]

This whole thread is some sort of gay code, isnt it?

Only if we were talking about dingle berries.

 

[Muse]

This whole thread is some sort of gay code, isnt it?

Oh, go back to Hell, Shorty. It's about blackberries, damn it!

I decided to go see what I could find in the hills of Berkeley before making a longer treck to Marin or something. At first I found little, and was passed in the opposite direction by what appeared to be a seasoned hiker with 3 dogs, and I asked her if she knew where I could find a lot of wild blackberries. She replied that she hadn't been seeing any, that it's late for them, she grows her own olallieberries in her yard. She said she did encounter some people picking wild blackberries a few days ago around 8 miles north and she gave me directions to Wild Cat Canyon in the Richmond area, off highway 80. I decided to scout around a little more before driving all the way over there. I found some patches only a few yards from where I spoke to the hiker, a few berries, then a few more, and then started some spare picking. My technique and luck improved as the afternoon went on. After maybe 2 hours of picking I'd accumulated almost 3 pounds, and I came home and made blackberry jam. I now have almost 2 quarts of it in 4 jars, enough to last me probably a couple of years. And now I know where I can get more. :awe:

 

[Dirigible]

Woah! I've lived in Berkeley for around 40 years and never heard of Berkeley Bulb. What is it?

I beleive he was referring to the Albany bulb. Near Golden Gate Fields. A little piece of land jutting out into the bay. Lots of artwork made from stuff washed up on shore. It's a nice place to walk if you haven't been there before.

 

[skim milk]

Oh, go back to Hell, Shorty. It's about blackberries, damn it!

I decided to go see what I could find in the hills of Berkeley before making a longer treck to Marin or something. At first I found little, and was passed in the opposite direction by what appeared to be a seasoned hiker with 3 dogs, and I asked her if she knew where I could find a lot of wild blackberries. She replied that she hadn't been seeing any, that it's late for them, she grows her own olallieberries in her yard. She said she did encounter some people picking wild blackberries a few days ago around 8 miles north and she gave me directions to Wild Cat Canyon in the Richmond area, off highway 80. I decided to scout around a little more before driving all the way over there. I found some patches only a few yards from where I spoke to the hiker, a few berries, then a few more, and then started some spare picking. My technique and luck improved as the afternoon went on. After maybe 2 hours of picking I'd accumulated almost 3 pounds, and I came home and made blackberry jam. I now have almost 2 quarts of it in 4 jars, enough to last me probably a couple of years. And now I know where I can get more. :awe:

I live in the bay area and looking for the same. I am planning to go tomorrow or Monday. Any details on the specific area where you were that I can GPS?

 

[Schadenfroh]

Am I the only one that came into this thread thinking that the OP was looking for a store that was selling / demonstrating a new product from RIM called a Wild Blackberry?

 

[Muse]

Am I the only one that came into this thread thinking that the OP was looking for a store that was selling / demonstrating a new product from RIM called a Wild Blackberry?

LOL! :biggrin:

 

[Muse]

I live in the bay area and looking for the same. I am planning to go tomorrow or Monday. Any details on the specific area where you were that I can GPS?

Let me tell you, I picked that fairly extensive plot pretty damn clean. I'm pretty good at it now, having personally picked several gallons of wild blackberries over the years.

I'm confident that there are many many other patches with similar amounts in Tilden Park, in the Oakland hills, along Wild Cat Canyon Road in the Berkeley/Oakland hills.

I'll tell you what the woman told me today, a place where she said she saw people picking a few days ago:

She said to drive up highway 80 toward Richmond from Berkeley and get off on Solano (after Central Avenue, not the one in Albany). When you get to the stop sign at the end of the exit, turn left and go past Solano and to the next stop sign, where you turn right. You should see a sign or signs telling you you are going to Wild Cat Canyon and proceed there, where you will find the bushes.

I was told by a guy I met a few weeks ago that there are loads of blackberries near the San Geronimo Golf Course in San Rafael. I remember seeing massive growths of blackberry bushes along a highway I was biking some years ago in Marin County, north of San Rafael. I was going to trek to Marin about now, but decided to try Berkeley first.

Some hints:

1. Take a picking container, have it hung in a harness around your neck so it will be hands free. I tied a shoe lace around a quart yogurt container and pinned it to a piece of nylon webbing with safety pins.

2. Have a glove on your non-picking hand, light leather is ideal. Blackberry bushes are covered with sharp thorns which besides puncturing you can leave little slivers in your hands. Today, I had the idea that I should have brought a tweezers with me. I needed one a few times, but got by using my finger nails. However, you should not have a glove on your picking hand. There are two ways to differentiate ripe berries from immature berries. The first and foremost is how they look, the second is how they feel. A glove would not permit your picking hand to detect whether a berry is ripe or not, and it would not permit you to have the necessary tactile sensations to pick well.

3. Wear a long sleeve shirt.

4. Don't pick where a lot of cars pass close to the bushes. You don't need contamination from exhaust. I did rinse my berries this afternoon before making jam.

I had a large backpack on, in which I kept containers I could dump my picking container into repeatedly, plus water and food if needed. I also had a pruning shears with me. I used it only a couple of times, didn't want to make a mess of things or leave a legacy of my picking foray.

Picking wild blackberries is IMO very zen. You have to be patient and thoughtful or you will keep getting punctured by thorns. You also have to contort your body in new ways to get at berries without getting poked, so it's like a free form yoga session. If you aren't in very good shape, you'll find out pretty soon!

Good luck.

 

[paulney]

First thought: Berkeley Bowl. Second thought: do blackberries even grow in NorCal? I'd imagine closest wild preserver would be somewhere around Fort Ross...

 

[Muse]

First thought: Berkeley Bowl. Second thought: do blackberries even grow in NorCal? I'd imagine closest wild preserver would be somewhere around Fort Ross...

They are very expensive at the Berkeley Bowl. To buy what I collected yesterday would cost me, guessing here, close to $50.

Wild blackberries are seemingly everywhere around here, just read my posts in this thread.