A Year in the Forest

When I started into the woods this afternoon, I was immediately confronted with a big new mushroom right next to my trail.  It was bright orange and looked just like a big batch of morels.  Since I had just started my hike I left them.  I planned on coming back and picking them when my wife got home from work and having them for dinner.  I was elated looking forward to the good meal.  I looked around a little, tried to find some hickory nuts to harvest but found very little of interest.  Besides my mind was filled with visions of chanterelle mushrooms.

When I had almost finished my hike I found a beautiful Amanita mushroom.  Maybe its because they are poisonous, I don’t know but they are always so perfect and unspoiled.  A beauty to behold.

I went in the house and waited for Karen to get home.  When she did I eagerly took her out to harvest the chanterelle and was in for a big disappointment.  When I picked it I noticed that it had gills and was not chanterelle after all.  It was a Jack O Lantern mushroom.   What a disappointment, there was at least a pound of mushroom.

Trying to redeem the situation, I decided to try an experiment.  Jack O Lantern mushrooms are said to glow green in the dark.  I have seen foxfire many times in the woods and thought I would try this.  My son and I went into the basement, closed the doors and waited.  Sure enough after about ten minutes we could both see the green glow.  It was not near as bright as foxfire though.  There are stories of how early settlers found there way by the light of Jack O Lantern mushrooms – the mushrooms would have to be a lot brighter than these to be of any use.  So at least I got to see the green glow of Jack O Lantern mushrooms.