Few other secrets in nature bring out the territorial instincts of an outdoorsman as asking him about where his favorite mushroom hunting grounds are located. If he offers to take you with him mushroom hunting he is either taking you to unexplored territory and he wants to employ another set of eyes or you are in the inner circle of the tight-lipped and trusted hunting buddies who would never reveal the location of his secret mushroom beds. Either way, it is an exciting hunting trip that can produce some of the most delicious morsels that Mother Nature has to offer. For me personally, morels are the only things that can derail a spring turkey hunt right in the middle of the chase.
Many years ago my son Jason and I were quickly sneaking down an old fence-line while spring turkey hunting. We had heard some turkeys and Jason wanted me to call one in for him. As we slipped along the fence I was moving at a fairly quick pace trying to find a spot from which to call. As I slipped along I was glancing here and there. All of a sudden something subconsciously triggered in my mind. I was not looking at it but I realized I had walked right past a large morel mushroom. I stood straight up and stopped in my tracks. Jason said, “What’s wrong? Do you see a turkey?” I didn’t say a word but immediately backed up and started looking at all the places along the fence that I had just passed. Then I found it and man was it a nice one. As I zoned in on the area I realized there were several right there in front of us. I dropped everything and started picking mushrooms. Jason stared on in complete disbelief.
Jason said, “There are turkeys gobbling and you are picking mushrooms? You have got to be kidding me!” I didn’t say a word but just kept picking. He urgently kept on whispering some mumbo jumbo and I kept on ignoring him until he said something a little more urgently than before. “There are turkeys right in front of us!” Ok, now I started paying attention. Sure enough, about fifty yards in front of us a group of young gobblers had been coming to the calling we had done before finding the mushrooms. I had been in the mushroom zone and hadn’t been listening. With hands and pockets full of morels I dropped to the ground right under the fence and began calling. Jason sat down in his tracks. Within 5 minutes the turkeys were twenty steps out and Jason laid into one. Jackpot! Now that was a hunting trip to remember – mushrooms and turkeys, what a combination!
Morel appearance is influenced by weather more than any other factor. Ground temperature, air temperature, and ground moisture are the main factors. Warm spring days with highs in the 60’s to 70’s and ground temperatures in the 50’s to 60’s are ideal conditions. Morels are found in many areas but there are some places more productive than others. Under certain types of trees, such as elm, ash, sycamore, and apples trees, there are great opportunities. There is a ‘look’ that goes with ideal morel hotspots. After you learn the ‘look’, as you walk through the woods you instinctively lock-up and survey the area. As you get more adept to the experience you will spend much less time hunting and more time finding mushrooms. To help you identify the many different types of trees I suggest you visit a local Missouri Department of Conservation Office and pick up some the various publications available to the public. A personal favorite spot for me is a well drained but moist area containing dead and dying elm trees with bark slipping from the tree trunks and amassing on the ground around the base of the tree. If there are some clumps of green grass growing in the leaves or moss growing on surrounding rocks, all the better. This describes an area with the ‘look’ of a morel hotspot.
After mastering morel hunting, next comes morel cooking. My favorite two ways to fix morels are the old reliable egg and flour battered and fried in butter in a cast iron skillet and cooked in wine sauce. Morels cooked in wine sauce and served with a thick ribeye steak fresh from the grill is second to none! For more delicious morel recipes and morel hunting information, visit The Great Morel website at thegreatmorel.com . There is more information on the web about this wonderful pastime than you would ever imagine.
Morel hunting is an opportunity for the whole family to learn tree identification, mushroom identification, and outdoor savvy. You can start a young outdoorsman on the path of living within the boundaries of Mother Nature’s Economy while spending valuable time with your children and grandchildren. So says the One-Eyed Hillbilly. Good luck, be safe, and get a big one.
Link - thegreatmorel.com
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