August 5

Swamp land, Big Lake: Tried to pick every kind of berry around. Picked tons of wild raspberries. Also picked quite a few red currants and very ripe watermelon berries (almost too squishy to get.) Picked many perfect trailing black currants from one spot. Picked a few ripe crowberries, cloudberries, and rosehips here and there. Snacked on ripe timberberries. Lowbush cranberries are large and green and highbush are turning red. Huge, interesting mushrooms are everywhere as well as a ton of mourning cloak caterpillars in feeding frenzies.

July 3

Swamp land, Big Lake: Bog blueberries are big and green. Red currants are beginning to look pink. (Berries on other currants here are greener still.) Most elderberry flowers have dropped off their green berries. Watermelon plants are flowering or have small green berries. Raspberries small and green. Bog cranberry flowering. Cloudberry has small, hard berries.

June 22

Palmer Hay Flats State Game Refuge, Wasilla: Picked lots of perfect, huge rose petals. A few rosehips are ready. Northern black currants are big and green. Raspberries and nagoonberries are small and green, a few beginning to redden.

June 2

Woods, Wasilla: Roses have been blooming around the Valley. Watermelon berries and high and lowbush cranberries are all flowering. Most red currants have small green berries forming, some are still flowering. Raspberry flowers are generally buds. Spruce tips are super good this year so we’ve been eating a lot.