Written By: Hugh Smith of Yuba City
They changed the name now. Now it’s the McCloud Mushroom, Wine + Music + Art Festival. Not enough people interested in mushrooms I suppose.
Coulda fooled me! The festival was twice as big as last year.
Lots and lots of vendors; mushroom buyers, mushroom sellers, shirts, food, jewelry, wood craft and music. There’s also a contest for the biggest Morel and the biggest Bolete.
All of the street bands were excellent. I danced(!). There were vendors from far and wide, even some that attend the Fungus Federation’s Fungus Fair. The buyer from Ft. Bragg (actually the only buyer that lives there) was there. And there were plenty of other fungibles from far and wide.
Morels is a genus of edible sac fungi closely related to anatomically simpler cup fungi in the order Pezizales. These distinctive fungi have a honeycomb appearance due to the network of ridges with pits composing their caps.
Hey, I know him, I know her! wow, you traveled far!
It’s only 3 hours 20 minutes for us.
Strange, knowing so many from so far away.
For two days McCloud closes some of their streets.
It’s such a large town. No traffic lights.
You can walk anywhere… to the ranger station to get your mushroom permit, to the Legionnaire’s Hall for a drink and music and some Billiards, the supermarket, museum, candy store (remember all of that candy you grew up on? It’s probably here), and home.
In case you’re interested, here are just some of the mushrooms you can find around Mount Shasta. Don’t bother asking anyone where, it’s all hearsay. Someone tells you 4000 feet or 6500 feet, maybe it is.
Maybe it was but they got them all. Maybe they have no idea how high they are, or were, or are.
How high are you?
(We hit a little snow above 4000 feet but there were big patches on the road at 4400 feet.
Maybe YOU’LL get lucky.
Won’t know unless you get out of the car.
Phalluscybe nuda
Hugh Smith
