The after I arrived from the Lower 48, I went berry picking with Heather (1-2) teacher and Elvina (Native of Koyuk). I thought I was all prepared: bear spray, camel back, some snacks, camera, lots of mosquito spray, hiking boots, sweatshirt, and a small medical kit...just in case we got bitten by a bear. I jokes! So Heather comes to the door and says do you have rubber boots and a heavy coat? I was a little confused because I never wore rubber boots and a coat to berry picking before. Then Heather finally said, "We're going upriver in Elvina's boat. I was so excited because I never went upriver to pick Salmon Berries. So we went into this narrow slough but it was so so deep. On the way there I was wishing we were going to see a bear. Elvina put the boat on the bank and we climbed out in water and mud and mosied onto the tundra. As we were searching for berry patches Elvina who is a basketball court away starts running back. There was a grizzly bear in the distance. So we booked it back to the boat and Elvina called Koyuk with a cell phone because she wanted the bear taken care of because there were awesome berry patches. It was great to watch Elvina tell us and other people what the bear did. She thought it was a tundra plant. I told Elvina, "I won't wish for bears only for berries." I also said, "Next time I'll save us with my bear spray!" By the way we did have a pistol with to protect us. We then went to four or five other berry spots and picked lots of berries and no bears. By the fourth stop I was so tired and content with the berries I had but didn't say anything. We ate dinner in the boat: fresh canned chum, bagels and peanut butter. I got a gallon of Salmon berries. They are the consistency of a raspberry, more tart than sweet. I learned something new about Salmon berries; they have 3 times the amount of vitamin C than what you need in a day.
I hope to go berry picking again tomorrow with Mandy and Kemper. (Myra and Jason's dog)
Blueberries are next in a couple of weeks.
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