Mushroom Obsession

was created to help parents get their kids out from behind the screen and into nature to safely explore the mystical and magnificent world of exotic edible mushrooms: how to safely hunt them in the woods, cultivate them in your own back yard, and even how to make them taste magnificent in the kitchen! If you consider yourself "mushroom obsessed," this site is the place for you!

October Forays in the Gifford Pinchot

Two hunters and their guide show off their mushroom haul on a rainy Saturday foray in October, 2024.

October 2024 saw some truly fantastic group forays in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest! We foraged large quantities of Golden Chanterelles, Lobsters, Admirable and other Boletes, Puffballs, Wood Hedgehogs (and two Giant White Hedgehogs), Apricot and White Jellies, Black Western Elfin Saddles, Shaggy Mane (Ink Caps) … and more!

We enjoyed getting to know the families and various other foragers who spent their time hunting with us, and also cooking mushrooms with us around the campfire.

Despite dumping rain last weekend (which will probably be our last public foray depending on weather), everyone left happy and satisfied.

Attached are some photos for you to enjoy! Until we meet again next year!

Mushroom Obsession’s Larry Short gives a pre-foray briefing to a group of expectant foragers.

Eli collects a treasure trove of Angel Wings.

The first Black Western Elfin Saddle is found by a happy 4-year-old … and it’s a nice one!

With no frost yet, Golden Chanterelles are plentiful even this late in the season.

A tasty Lycoperdon (“wolf fart”) makes its presence known.

Numerous species of coral fungus can be found (and even harvested, if you care for them) this time of year. We saw golden, beige, red, even this lavender-tinted species.

“We see you, you sneaky Lobster mushroom!” Yes, even though most Lobsters are now past their prime, there are still a few nice, firm ones to be found. Just watch out for ground wasps, who sometimes decide to build their nests right beneath these mushrooms they apparently love!

Larry returns with two companions (Jay at left, Dr. Cal in the center) from a very damp but enjoyable foray.

Ryan and Allen sort and clean their mushroom haul.

Here are just a few of the delectable edibles found a few weeks ago … Boletes (top and bottom), Angel Wings (right), and Black Western Elfin Saddles (left and center).

Black Western Elfin Saddles in butter over an open campfire go very nice with brats.

Our research associate, Dr. David Lingenfelter, prepares some of the choice edible mushrooms collected. Talk about fresh!

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Larry Short

Larry Short is an author and novelist with three decades of experience in Christian communications, digital innovation, and nonprofit management. A graduate of Biola University, he created WorldVision.org, won the Evangelical Press Association’s Best Personality Feature of the Year award in 1981, and published his historical fantasy novel, Fountains of the Deep, on Amazon Kindle. He is currently writing Apocalypse, his first science fiction novel. Now that he’s formally retired he spends his time leading ministry directors at his church, feeding his mushroom obsession, working for the local school district part-time, and traveling. He has served as a young adults pastor, elder, prayer ministry coordinator, community groups coordinator, and deacon of welcome and assimilation at an Evangelical Free church in the Northwest, as well as a grandfather, exotic mushroom hunter and hobby cyclist.

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