Gunflint Trail’s Biggest Blueberry Contest
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Blueberries, Raspberries and More
Where can you find blueberries, strawberries, chokecherries, pin cherries, raspberries, and thimbleberries growing wild? Cook County, Minnesota is your place! Berry picking is a fun afternoon adventure, and one of the best things to do with kids when you need to slow down for a while. Find, identify and pick wild berries — and just try to save a few for your favorite berry recipe.
June is the month for strawberries. Sweet, tiny, prolific – don’t miss out! Then comes July, with the middle two weeks typically being the best time to gather blueberries. In August, it’s time for chokecherries, pin cherries, raspberries and thimbleberries. When you’re here, just ask your hosts to point you in the right direction, then arm yourself with a pail and enjoy the sweet harvest.
Never eat anything you are unsure of. Always taste test one berry before you toss down a mouthful. Although berry picking is one of many great things to do with kids, NEVER let children pick berries unsupervised. They are more likely to make mistakes in identification and ingest berries they shouldn’t.
Blueberries
Blueberries are the forest fruit that people associate most often with canoe country, and they’re plentiful throughout the region. They like dry, well-drained, rocky soil with good sun and are often found under jack or red pine stands and in recent burns. The plants are a woody shrub, usually less than two feet tall and resemble miniature trees. Blueberries almost always grow in patches from a few individual plants to many square yards in size. If you find one plant, you’ll probably find more.
Raspberries
Next on the list for most folks is raspberries, which are also found throughout canoe country. They like disturbed soil and lots of sunshine. Recent burns and openings in the forest are likely places to look. Along portage trails and around the edge of campsites are good habitats, too.
Thimbleberries
Thimbleberry, also called salmonberry, is a close cousin to the raspberry. Look for the huge, maple-like leaves that are from 4-8 inches in diameter. The plants are almost always about three feet tall and very bushy. Earlier in the summer, thimbleberry has beautiful white flowers that are very similar to wild rose.
Strawberries
Wild strawberries are a passion for some and the best pickin’ patches are closely guarded secrets. They like well-drained soils and lots of sunshine. You’ll find them in forest openings, along portage trails and around some open campsites. The plants are very small, low to the ground and the berries like to hide beneath the leaves.
These are a few of the fruits and berries you are likely to encounter on your next trip to Cook County. There are many other berries and fruits in the forest – some edible, some not. It is always best to be sure of what you are eating and taste test even if you feel sure. Remember to be a good forest grazer and leave more than you take.
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DOWNLOAD THE BLUEBERRY PICKING GUIDE
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Contest now through August 13th!
Blueberries in the Gunflint Trail area ripen late July and in full bloom early August. Wild blueberries are easy to identify, looking much like the grocery store variety, only smaller. The plants are woody shrubs, usually less than two feet tall and resemble miniature trees. They grow best in dry, well drained, rocky soil with good sun and are often found in recent burn areas. Now through August 13th
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FIND LODGING ON THE GUNFLINT TRAIL
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by Artist Joanne Kollman
Gunflint Trail Minnesota Loon & Chick Giclee Archival Canvas Print Wall Art Décor for Home & Office
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Blueberries will be measured by weight, and must be picked fresh and not store bought.
2022 WINNERS & WEIGHTS:
1st Place: Mark | 1.9 grams weighed at Chik-Wauk Nature Center
2nd Place: Paul | 1.85 grams weighed at Voyageur Canoe Outfitters
3rd Place: Lynne | 1.82 grams weighed at Chik-Wauk Nature Center
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Weigh Stations
Weigh stations will be designated by large road signs at various resorts and locations along the Gunflint Trail.
Golden Eagle Lodge
Bearskin Lodge(opens
Hungry Jack Canoe Outfitters
Nor’Wester Lodge and Outfitters
Poplar Haus
Loon Lake Lodge
Gunflint Lodge
Gunflint Pines Resort and Campground
Tuscarora Lodge and Canoe Outfitters
Voyageur Canoe Outfitters
Chik-Wauk Museum and Nature Center
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