Best places to pick blueberries in West Virginia

CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) — West Virginia is in peak blueberry season, and although there are several varieties that grow across the state, berry picking is much easier if you know when and where to look.

According to the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources (WVDNR), there are six types of blueberries that can be picked in West Virginia between June and August, but the best ones to eat grow in the higher elevations of the Allegheny Mountains.

Places like the Dolly Sods Wilderness are perfect for collecting blueberries in July and August. According to the U.S. Forest Service , the open part of the Dolly Sods plateau has thousands of acres of native blueberries as well as huckleberries.

Because blueberries prefer full sun, varieties like the Late Low (early sweet) Blueberry and Early Low (lowbush) Blueberry can be found primarily in open woods and heath barrens at higher elevation—think Dolly Sods, Canaan Valley and Spruce Knob. According to the WVDNR , there are fewer than 3,000 acres of heath barrens in the state.

The late low and early low blueberry bushes in the mountains usually only get 2-3 feet tall. You will find them in the same area as huckleberries, which look similar and are also edible but have larger seeds.

Blueberries can be collected without a permit in the Monongahela National Forest, including in wilderness areas like Dolly Sods.

For lower elevation gatherers, you’re more likely to encounter a highbush blueberry—the type you normally see in stores—which can get as tall as 12 feet. Compared to the dense colonies of bushes in the mountains, highbush blueberry bushes can vary a lot in appearance, and the fruit is covered in what the WVDNR describes as a “whiteish powder,” compared higher elevation blueberries which are a brighter blue.

Berry collecting in the New River Gorge National Park & Preserve is limited to one gallon per day, and in Harpers Ferry National Historic Park, collectors are limited to one quart per day.

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