What better way to welcome the first true weekend of summer than doing what we enjoy the most, collecting mushrooms?  The winds will be warm, the wildflowers will be in bloom, and if rain is abundant, mushrooms will be found in great numbers.  Ha Ha Tonka State Park is a beautiful place and a great place for mushrooming, so we’ve decided to go back again to see what we can find this year.  Last year’s foray was a great success with too many mushrooms collected and eaten to remember--just ask any of the twenty or so members that made it to the first Ha Ha Tonka foray.  We hope that chanterelles, black trumpets, various Russula and Lactarius species will be abundant as last year, plus we might find some of the interesting false truffles (Elaphomyces) that are undescribed and currently being named.  I will tell you more about that at the foray!

We will be camping at the Scout Camp within the park which is big enough to accommodate a large army of mushroom hunters.  It is a primitive camp which means that you must bring what you need to be comfortable, everything you need.  The camp does have restrooms (pit latrines), fire rings, picnic tables, and plenty of space to spread out.  Water is available within the park, but not at the campsite, so bring your jugs and water bottles filled.

The meals will be potluck for the most part, but as with last year’s outing, we will be providing venison burgers for our Saturday evening meal, and who knows what else might be prepared around the campfire by our culinary masters.  I hear Shannon is bringing out the “monster pan.”  Let’s all try to bring our own cookware and utensils; we are not only an eclectic mushroom society, but an environmentally conscious group as well.