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Here are some of the most popular questions asked about picking huckleberries and mushrooms.
Beginning in 2017, a free use permit is required for harvesting huckleberries for personal consumption. Free use is defined as collecting less than 1 gallon per day; up to a total of 3 gallons per year.
The new online free use permit is the only way to get a permit. There is no cost for the permit. Complete the online application at https://apps.fs.usda.gov/gp and print the permit and harvest area map to take with you while harvesting. Forest Service offices will not issue these permits so you must get the permit online prior to harvesting huckleberries.
You will be given a card with instructions on how to obtain a permit online.
Our intent is for everyone to learn about the program during the 2017 harvest season and to ensure everyone has information on how to get a free online permit.
Bring it with you when you go out to harvest! You are required to have both your permit and Special Forest Products Map while in the forest. Record the date and amount of berries you've picked before leaving your picking area.
Berries: 1 gallon per day for a maximum of 3 gallons per calendar year. Mushrooms: 3 gallons per day for 10 days per calendar year.
It is weather dependent, but usually by August. The season goes until the first hard freeze in the fall, which is usually the end of September.
Big huckleberries are ripe when the berries are plump, deep purple, and sweet to the taste.
A commercial permit is required. Commercial permits are sold only at Forest Service District offices and there is a fee associated with the permit.
No. Free Use products cannot be sold or traded. A commercial permit will need to be purchased to sell or trade any quantity of berries or mushrooms.
Refer to the Special Forest Products Map for locations opened to harvesting. Big huckleberries (the most popular) grow best above 3,500 feet in elevation. Mushrooms…it depends on the variety. The Forest Service suggests referring to a mushroom field guide book to keep you safe. MANY MUSHROOMS ARE POISONOUS. Pick only the mushrooms that you can identify as safe to consume.
Raking and digging for mushrooms is not allowed. Matsutake mushrooms (pine mushrooms) shall be cut in half if harvested under a Free-Use Permit. Mushrooms can only be harvested in areas indicated as open to harvest on the Special Forest Products Map. Refer to your mushroom permit for more information.
The use of berry rakes to harvest berries is strictly prohibited. The rakes strip the bushes of their leaves and damage branches. This harms the bush and reduces their berry yields for the following year. Huckleberries may be only harvested from areas indicated as open to harvest on the Special Forest Products Map.
The forest needs to know how much huckleberry harvest is occurring. Requiring permits for all huckleberry harvesting will help the forest manage huckleberry habitat to maintain a sustainable crop of huckleberries in the future.
Mandated by federal law, a person must be 18 years of age or older to be a permit holder.
Most huckleberry harvest areas on the Gifford Pinchot National Forest are Native American lands that were ceded through a treaty that reserved tribal hunting, fishing, and gathering rights. The forest recognizes and supports the cultural importance of huckleberries as a food source to native peoples and is working with local tribes and others to ensure a sustainable source of food for the future.
Contact a Forest Service office or visit the Gifford Pinchot National Forest website at www.fs.usda.gov/main/giffordpinchot/passes-permits/forestproducts
The Free-Use Edible Berry Permit provided by this website will allow you to harvest all edible berries within the confines of the permit conditions.
Region:Pacific N-West | FOREST PRODUCTS FREE USE PERMIT | Permit FS-2400-8 (04/2012) |
National Forest:Gifford Pinchot | PERSONAL USE ONLY (Not For Resale) | OMB No. 0596-0085 |
Ranger District: | (Ref. FSM 2460 and FSH 2409.18) | |
  | U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE - FOREST SERVICE |
Permittee's Name and Complete Address | Permit No. | Preparation Date | ||
Name: | ||||
Address: | Effective Date | Termination Date | Load Ticket Numbers | |
Thru | ||||
City/State: | Product Plan | Thru | ||
Zip Code: | EDIBLE BERRY (Free Use) |
Permittee Identification | Type | Permit Area Description | ||||
Open areas of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest | ||||||
Vehicle(s) Information | ||||||
Year: | Year: | |||||
Make: | Make: | |||||
Model: | Model: | |||||
Color: | Color: | |||||
License: | License: | |||||
State: | State: | |||||
Remarks: |
PRODUCT DESIGNATION | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Product | Species | Unit of Measure (UOM) | Quantity | Rate Per Products (UOM) | Total Value (Free) |
Frts/Berys | Huckleberry | Gal | 3.00 | $1.00 | $3.00 |
Total Permit Value | 3.00 |
PRODUCT QUANTITY REMOVAL RECORD | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Date | Time | Quantity Removed | Date | Time | Quantity Removed | Date | Time | Quantity Removed | Date | Time | Quantity Removed |
SIGNATURES | |||
---|---|---|---|
PERMITTEE | Date | FOREST OFFICER | Date |
PRIVACY ACT NOTICE |
The following information is provided to comply with the Privacy Act of 1974 (PL-579). 5 U.S.C. 552a authorizes acceptance of the information requested on this form. The Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management use this information to maintain an inventory of forest product information and to adjudicate your rights to forest products. The information required by this form may be disclosed pursuant to the regulations in 7 CFR 1.5 or 43 CFR 2.56. If you do not furnish all the information required by this form, your application may be rejected. |
BURDEN AND NONDISCRIMINATION STATEMENTS |
According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0596-0085. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 5 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual's income is derived from any public assistance. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call toll free (866) 632-9992 (voice). TDD users can contact USDA through local relay or the Federal relay at (800) 877-8339 (TDD) or (866) 377-8642 (relay voice). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. |
Region:Pacific N-West | FOREST PRODUCTS FREE USE PERMIT | Permit FS-2400-8 (04/2012) |
National Forest:Gifford Pinchot | PERSONAL USE ONLY (Not For Resale) | OMB No. 0596-0085 |
Ranger District: | (Ref. FSM 2460 and FSH 2409.18) | |
  | U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE - FOREST SERVICE | Page 2 |
GENERAL CONDITIONS |
Subject to, and in strict compliance with, all the following conditions (both General and Other) and those listed above, the Permittee named herein is authorized to harvest and remove the forest product described above.
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OTHER CONDITIONS |
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