Snowberry

They are everywhere in the Pacific Northwest, but especially on the banks of rivers and streams.

By this time of year, snowberry plants have dropped their leaves but hang on to their fruit indefinitely. They give a strange, skeletal look to the sides of rivers and streams. Might as well call them ghost berries… The branches are gray and blend in against the sand and silt beside the Carbon River. The berries seem to float if you squint your eyes just the right way…

Shot with Sony α1 camera and Otus 100mm f/1.4 lens. A closer look:

They are not safely edible, although the plant was used to make a healing poultice once upon a time.