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Why I Mushroom Hunt: A Scientist’s Perspective on Foraging
Fungi are amazing. Not only are they an incredibly diverse kingdom of organisms, but many are also very delicious. And you don't have to cultivate them in your garden to enjoy these scrumtuous morsels -- you simply have to get outside and have keen eyes. You can even find edible mushrooms in your backyard! For many foragers, the possibility of a fungi-filled dinner is what motivates them to get out in the woods. But for me, even though I do get excited about discovering a patch of chanterelles (my favorite), its something different.
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Amazing Health Benefits of Eating Wild Mushrooms
Many people love mushrooms. Others don't. Regardless of where you fall on the spectrum, there are compelling reasons to add wild mushrooms to your diet because of their unique nutritional and medicinal benefits. In this post, we will introduce you to the health benefits of eating wild mushrooms.
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Sustainable Mushroom Foraging, and Why it’s so Important
When confronted with a patch of edible mushrooms in the woods, especially rare and delicious ones, we are often overcome with excitement. As foragers, we often pick each and every delicious mushroom in sight, not out of greed, but out of glee. However, these tendencies are detrimental not only to the local ecosystem but to our future foraging prospects as well. As mycophiles, it behooves us to be sustainable foragers.
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Ozark Trail Current River Section: A Surprisingly Dry Excursion
Over Memorial Day Weekend, my cousins, John, Alex, and Phillip, and I decided we wanted to hike the Current River Section of the Ozark Trail: an ambitious, 30-mile excursion through true Ozark wilderness. This noteworthy section of the trail provides several opportunities for adventure and recreation along the way. Although the maps on the Ozark Trail Association website and other sources say this is a 30-mile trail, the mileage is understated. If you decide to hike this section, you can reasonably expect to walk 35 miles or more even if you skip out on side adventures, such as the half-mile spur trail to Rocky Falls. In other words, this should…
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Three Creeks Conservation Area: A Columbia Favorite
Located just south of Columbia, Three Creeks Conservation Area offers a nice escape from the city without a long drive. Three Creeks is comparable to the nearby Rock Bridge State Park, but with the benefit of significantly fewer visitors. If you visit Three Creeks on a Monday after the weekend rush, you're liable to have the area to yourself. Despite the proximity to Columbia, MO, it is a beautiful natural area with an abundance of wildlife, unique stream ecosystems, and (our favorite) prime mushroom foraging areas.
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How to Safely Forage for Mushrooms
Mushrooms are mysterious lifeforms. Many are edible. Many contain dangerous, or even deadly, toxins. There is much we don't know about a lot of these toxins. The Destroying Angel (below) is a prime example of why it is crucial to educate yourself and be certain of what you have harvested before deciding whether or not to consume any mushroom.
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4 Things You Need to Start Mushroom Hunting
Interested in mushroom hunting but not quite sure how to get started? The Trails for Two Mushroom Hunting Starter Guide will walk you through how to become a successful mushroom hunter and stay safe while enjoying the nutritious bounty of the earth. This section will cover what you need in order to start mushroom hunting. The good news is that you need very little!
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Brushy Creek Loop: (Probably) the Most Remote Trail in Missouri
The end-of-the-week forecast advised us to head to the woods. This particular middle-of-nowhere patch of forest is one of, if not the, largest contiguous areas of forest in Missouri. It just might be the most remote area Missouri has to offer. Mollie and I cut our Friday workdays a bit short, arriving at the Himont Campground in the Roger Pryor Pioneer Backcountry by 7 PM. Our sights were set on the Brushy Creek Trail, an ambitious, 16-mile loop (AllTrails says 14 miles) that starts at the Himont Campground. Little did we know, due to the pandemic, we had entered a closed county and all state campgrounds had been temporarily closed.…
