Mushroom hunting in the mountains of Santa Fe can be a fun and rewarding experience. The best time to go mushroom hunting in Santa Fe is typically in the late summer and early fall, when the weather is cooler and damper. Some of the most common mushrooms found in the area include chanterelles, morels, and boletes.
The mushrooms were a plenty in the mountains this season because it was a wet year. Mushroom hunting is not a nonchalant endeavor, one has to be careful on what they pick, mushrooms range from cuisine delicacy to hallucinants to deadly.
Our friend and guide Jivan advised us to use a stick when probing something we were not sure of- never to touch it- and each time to get a new stick- because of the contaminate factor. Most deadly varieties grow under pine trees, except for oyster mushrooms and porcini/ boletes. The oyster mushroom grows right out of the bark of the pine tree. The chanterelle’s gather under the aspens usually as well as the hedge hogs. The day was a success, we did find chanterelle’s and my favorite, hedge hogs.
However, it’s important to note that mushroom hunting can be dangerous if you’re not properly educated on how to identify safe mushrooms. Some mushrooms are toxic and can cause serious illness or death if ingested. It’s always best to go mushroom hunting with an experienced guide or to thoroughly research the mushrooms you plan to hunt before consuming them.
There is a saying, ‘There are old mushroom hunters and there are bold mushroom hunters but there are no old, bold mushroom hunters! It was a gentle warning on the power of mushrooms.
