Learn how to forage for Fort Stevens mushrooms
Oregon State Park Ranger Dane Osis helps visitors identify mushrooms. A mushroom field guide is a must-have if you plan to eat your harvest. If you’re not sure a mushroom is edible, don’t eat it.
State Park Ranger Dane Osis knows his mushrooms. For the past eight years, he has helped Fort Stevens State Park visitors identify fungi that grow in the park. Fall is prime mushroom season and you can join Ranger Dane on guided mushroom hikes and programs in October and November.
Friday Wild Mushroom Hikes begin with a brief introduction at Battery Russell, but then you’re off on an
1 1/2-hour mushroom forage. Ranger Dane can help you identify edible mushrooms and steer you away from ones that you don’t want to eat. On Saturdays, meet at Picnic Shelter A at Coffenbury Lake for a more in-depth program on wild mushrooms followed by a short mushroom hunt. Both Friday and Saturday programs begin at 1 p.m. Visit the Oregon State Park event calendar for dates.
What makes Fort Stevens a good place to find mushrooms? Ranger Dane says it’s a combination of climate and vegetation. He added that the 4,000-acre park has a coastal Sitka spruce forest that helps King Bolete and lobster mushrooms grow.
If you can’t attend a program at Fort Stevens, you can catch Ranger Dane at the Tillamook Forest Center Oct. 14 from 1-3 p.m. and Tryon Creek State Natural Area Nov. 11 from 1-3 p.m.
What you need to know about mushrooms:
- Don’t eat it if you don’t know what it is.
- Use a reliable field guide to identify mushrooms you intend to eat.
- Harvesting small quantities of mushrooms at Fort Stevens is allowed for personal use. Picking in the campground is prohibited. Search in the day-use areas.
- Mushroom gathering regulations vary by state park. Always check with park staff before you harvest mushrooms.
Fort Stevens State Park (park information, maps and driving directions)
Ranger Dane Osis holds a King Bolete, a very large mushroom that grows in the fall after the first heavy rains. Considered a choice edible, the mushroom is sold in stores under its Italian name porcini.
Posted on September 27, 2012, in event, state parks and tagged Fort Stevens, mushrooms. Bookmark the permalink. 8 Comments.
Do you need a mushroom gathering permit?
Fort Stevens State Park doesn’t require a permit for visitors gathering mushrooms for personal use. Commercial harvesting isn’t allowed. Talk to park staff at other Oregon state parks for mushroom gathering rules specific to that park.
Federal lands (such as Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service) and other state lands (such as Oregon Department of Forestry) may or may not require permits. Always check with the land manager before you gather mushrooms.
Compliment you, that is a good answer. Thank you.
I used to live in Astoria….Ft. Stevens was my favorite place….my daughter used to love riding her bike on the path out to the jeddy…..mushroom hikes sound fun!
How about truffles? Do you need a permit for truffle hunting (assuming of course that you will be using a dog on lead and not a rake or shovel)?
Check with each state park or federal land manager before you hunt. The rules for permits vary.
October 14?
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No hikes or programs on Oct. 14. Oct. 12 — Fort Stevens Wild Mushroom Hikes; Oct. 13 — Mysterious Mushrooms of Fort Stevens