Devil’s Club is common in some wet areas in the Olympics (and the Cascades). It can form nearly impenetrable thickets … that may not seem too dense, until you notice the large needle-like thorns covering the stems of the plant. The red berries at the top center are distinctive.
These two plants were growing fairly close to each other in the upper North Fork of the Dosewallips valley in the Olympic National Park. The elderberry has been used for wine … I don’t know of any such use for devil’s club, although native peoples are said to have used the bark and roots medicinally. The thorns on the stems are a major deterrent to making any effort to force one’s way through a patch. Cross-country travel through devil’s club is virtually impossible.
The plant with the red berries is Devil’s Club. At this distance, you cannot see the numerous spiky stickers on the leafs and stems … hence the name.
Below is the North Fork Skokomish River … photo taken from the bridge at the Six Ridge trail junction.
Devils Club (Oplopanax horridus) is aptly named if you ever have had to scramble through some. There are needles all over the trunk and along the leaves too.
It likes wet conditions and usually is about 6-8 feet tall, but this specimen was pushing 14 feet. I was amazed.
Camera: Nikon D850 Lens: Nikon 24-85mm set at 24mm ISO 2000 1/400 sec f/10