Berry Picking on Sauvie Island: Kids Activities in Portland, Oregon

Shortly after I met my wife, I found out that she was 'raised underneath a blueberry bush' as she put it. Her family had a summer tradition of heading out to Sauvie Island (NW Sauvie Island Rd, Portland, OR 97231) which is about 10 miles northwest of Portland towards Scappoose on Highway 30.

Sauvie Island is known for it's fruit and vegetable farms. Many of these farms allow you to come in and bring a container (or rent one for a buck) and pick and eat as many berries as you can carry. We have since made this a family tradition with our kids, who have a great time when we head out to the island to go berry picking.

One of the great things about picking your own berries is the price. As a family activity - you can't get any less expensive. When you consider you might pay 5 dollars in the grocery store for a pint of blueberries - picking a pound of blueberries on the island usually runs right in the range of $1 or $2 dollars a pound. And what my wife and kids love, is that while you're picking you can eat as many berries as you want - as they say on the farms they've already included that in the cost of picking.

Berry picking with the kids is great because you get to be outside on a beautiful island with plenty of places to run and hide in the bushes, all the while eating fresh berries. Our freezer is literally stocked full of frozen berries that we use all year for various things like ice cream and snacks.

And depending on what time you and the kids head out to Sauvie Island, will determine the types of berries you can pick. At various times of the spring and summer, you can pick strawberries, raspberries, marionberries, blackberries, and blueberries. And besides the berries there are always a whole host of different fruit and vegetable options from peaches to cherries.

During October, the island is also a popular place to go to pumpkin patches where you can go on hay rides, drink hot cider, and spend time lost in corn mazes as well.

There generally isn't any cost to pick fruit besides the weight of the berries you pick. On an average outing our family will pick between 20 and 30 pounds of berries - which works out to 30 or 40 bucks. A fortune in savings for fresh picked fruit as compared with the cost of getting these berries at the grocery store. Of course, we might be a little more serious than most when it comes to berry picking. Even if you're not planning on storing berries for the whole winter - you can still have fun with the kids on a cheap outing to a berry farm. Sauvie Island near Portland, Oregon will offer you just that - good cheap fun.