Rainy and cool in the Sangre de Cristo mountains for the past 2 weeks. Early foraging today between 10,200 and 10,800 feet yielded these few pounds of porcini, chanterelles, and hawk wings. If warmer weather comes it should be a terrific season. The porcini were pristine.
I keep saying that when I retire, I’m going to learn mushrooms! While Grouse hunting last Fall, I came across some crazy orange ones and looked them up later that are “Chicken of the woods”. I will surely be stopping by there again this year to harvest some. The flourescent orange colors really scared me off.
I went out yesterday outside of Telluride and picked up a few porcini and chanterelles. Nothing like last year and we need more rain.
Side note: The Telluride Mushroom Festival starts today.
what a great variety there!
The Mushroom Festival picture on your link is awesome. I swear that is Jerry Garcia!!!
Believe me, he’s just an average looking shroomer around here.
Around the Mushroom Festival Telluride turns into hippie heaven.
Here in WA, we got some decent rain this week. Maybe enough to start the fall boletes in the mountains, maybe not. I aim to find out.
Kept these few after giving some away. The boletes are perfect showing no worms or decay and it’s obvious most have erupted in the past day as evidenced by the dirt on top. Lots of pressure by many foragers. Didn’t find a single chanterelle today. Hawk wings were abundant. I have never seen that number before. My foraging friend picked a huge sack full to the point where he couldn’t carry anymore. Dries them like boletes and uses in soups, stews and scrambled eggs.
Still seems early in the season, possibly due to cooler temps (it was 47 degrees in that region at 8am). Very damp up high.
Finding a few Boletes every time I go out.
anyone know when boletes are plentiful on the east coast?
I really gotta find someone that can teach me about this hobby!
Boletes are absolutely delicious. Sauteed with a little oil and garlic. OMG! I would try to find a local mushrooming group and go with them - I see them in my local reservation on their excursions when I walk the dog with by brown bag and knife hoping to find boletes, OR find a good Russian friend, as a lot of Russians - who grew up there or passed down the knowledge - know how to pick mushrooms.
Any East Coast Shroomers?
We had some great oyster shrooms last two nights.
A year or two ago some Russian immigrants from Sacramento poisoned themselfs as one of the local poisonous varieties of mushrooms looks very similar a safe variety from their home region. Look up a local mycological society and take a class from them.
A great way to start is get a copy of the Audubon mushroom guide.
Chicken mushrooms actually do taste like chicken when pan fried. They are also fluorescent and around oak trees all over the midwest.
of course a local mycological society is the better way to go. Sad to hear about those people who got poisoned. You have to be 150% certain.
Todays haul.
Very pretty. Good work.
Do you saute those hawk wings like the boletes? In butter and garlic? And, will you slice and dry them for the future?
There are more hawk wings here than I’ve ever seen before. Literally more than you can pack out.
The hawk wings are just great in a cream sauce with long pasta, in fact my son and I like them more than porchini’s in that dish. Butter, garlic shrooms, pasta over a bed of arugula. Saute first.