One of the most delicious treats of Muskoka summers is the wild blueberry. Bursting with flavour, these tiny berries are best eaten right off the bush but are equally yummy sprinkled over vanilla ice cream or folded into a batch of pancakes. And while you can find them at roadside stands and local farmers’ markets, there’s nothing quite like foraging for them yourself. Popping just as many into your mouth as you gather to take away is part of the fun.
Lowbush blueberries are native to Ontario and are perfectly suited to Muskoka’s conditions. The plants are small but mighty: they grow only 6 to 18 inches tall, but an acre will produce up to 4000 pounds of blueberries. That’s a lot of pancakes.
A favourite place to pick blueberries is along the Old Railway Bike Trail in Algonquin Park. The trail is an easy ride for all ages and passes through an abandoned airfield that’s full of blueberries. It’s a fun day trip from Colonial Bay and if you don’t have a bike with you, they can be rented in the park. Just remember to keep an eye out for bears. They love those berries even more than we do.
The long weekend is fast-approaching. We hope you’re coming to visit us, but if not, there’s still lots of summer left. It’s been a beautiful, hot summer (perfect lake weather!) and we’d like nothing more than to share it with you.
The Howell Family
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