Another trip to Westham Island today. It is such a lovely place to pick because there is a constant breeze off the ocean and it never gets really opressively hot like when I have picked further inland.

I was convinced to try Tayberries by an enthusiastic fellow picker. I think I got just enough for a batch of jam. The fruit was much easier to pick than raspberries because the shrubs have fewer leaves and the fruit is very exposed. Also procured was a flat of raspberries, another half bucket of strawberries, a bucket of shelling peas and some new potoatoes. The strawberries are almost done but the picking is very easy right now with lots of smaller berries very close together. Westham Island is having a bit of trouble with their raspberries right now so if you are super keen on them maybe head to Abbotsford. Apparently the high water table causes poor drainage and root rot. One lovely farm owner we chatted with told us she was only growing them to keep pickers happy, not because they are profitable.

We stopped at a farmer’s market on the way home and I picked up some sinful cheddar from Little Qualicum Cheeseworks and a variety of other baked goods and some gorgeous (but pricey) cherries. Behold the resulting snackplate:

I am now totally exhausted from spending all day driving and being in the sun but the strawberries will not wait. They are a hair on the mushy side already. I may cook up more strawberry and mint jam because I was so happy with it last week. Just throw a stick of mint in when you are cooking up the jam and remove it before full boil. Or maybe some raspberry and almond… The madness is just beginning.