HUCKLEBERRY TRAILS
In late July and August, as the region’s high country trails hit their peak, Mother Nature provides another enticement to get into the mountains: huckleberries. These purple-colored cousins to the blueberry have resisted any attempts at cultivation, so the only place to get them is in the wild. And while some pickers are fiercely protective of their spots, we’re happy to share a couple of the best-known—and bike-friendly—huckleberry trails in the Inland Northwest.
Look, you’re not going to be setting any Strava PRs on these rides. But it’s hot and dusty anyway. You may as well grab that other PR (that stands for “pie recipe”). Bring an extra water bottle to store your haul, and a bike bell to alert other huckleberry pickers—whether two- or four-legged—of your presence. And pick a little off trail (within reason—see that warning above about bears) unless you like your berries with a crunchy coating of trail dust.
MOUNT SPOKANE - TRAIL 140
In addition to being one of the area’s most beloved trails—the six-mile, 3,000-foot descent traverses talus fields, enters the trees for smooth, high-speed turns and then finishes with steep root drops and the narrow, knuckle-shredding Jedi Trees—Mount Spokane’s Trail 140 is one of the best for berries. The best picking spots, above Saddle Junction, should be hard to miss; in peak huckleberry season, hikers will be lining the length of the trail like World Cup spectators.
SCHWEITZER MOUNTAIN – HIGH POINT TRAIL
Like Mount Spokane, Schweitzer attracts huckleberry pickers en masse. Unlike at Mount Spokane, riders can pretty quickly get to less-traveled—and higher-quality—huckleberry patches on the alpine High Point trail. The 4.4-mile, nearly 1700-foot climb/descent can be accessed from the top of the Great Escape Quad, or climbed from its lower trailhead on Schweitzer Mountain Road. The best berries line the middle stretch of trail, well out of reach of all but the most dedicated pickers.
GRANDMOTHER MOUNTAIN
High in the St. Joe River drainage southeast of Lake Coeur d’Alene, the rounded alpine ridgeline of Grandmother Mountain is part of a lightly used backcountry epic, a 16-mile loop with nearly 3,000 feet of descending. Fortunately, it boasts plenty of trail snacks en route. The best picking is right by the Marks Butte trailhead, which means a reward for a long ride or an excuse for a short one. In a good year, huckleberries will last until at least Labor Day weekend.
