The West Virginia Mushroom Club was founded to promote fellowship and communication among people who are interested in mushrooms and fungi. No matter what level of interest you may have - from curious observer to expert - you are invited to particpate in all Club activities.
Saturday, JULY 28 & Sunday July 29, 2012We are proud to announce that our first annual joint Mid-Summer Foray will feature Gary Lincoff, Donna Mitchell and Bill Roody. Gary Lincoff is the author of The National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms, The Complete Mushroom Hunter, and (coming out in June): The Joy of Foraging, which you can buy and have autographed at our foray. Our good friends, Donna Mitchell and Bill Roody, author of Mushrooms of West Virginia and the Central Appalachians will also be there. Bill's book is beautifully illustrated, easy to understand, and it was written specifically for our area. No more looking up a mushroom and finding a photo that looks just like it, except it occurs only under aspen trees in New Mexico.
Canaan Valley State Park is located off highway 32 between Elkins and Thomas, WV. It is about 3 hours southwest of Washington DC (route 66 South to 81 South, to 55 West, through the beautiful scenic Appalachian mountains to Route 32 north to Davis).
SATURDAY: We'll meet you at Canaan Valley Lodge at 9 am for registration followed by:
* A brief talk about the fundamentals of wild mushroom collecting
* Car pooling to guided walks along gentle terrain where we will collect mushrooms and other fungi
* A cooking demonstration on how to dry and rehydrate mushrooms
* Wild mushroom tasting: comparing fresh, frozen, and rehydrated mushrooms. Depending on what we find that morning and how many volunteers we recruit, our tasting can turn out to be a spectacular feast. Email marthachopper@gmail.com to volunteer for KP.
* Gary will present a program about, "Mushrooms and Wildflowers - the Unseen Connection," which should provide a nice segue between our mushroom activities on Saturday and our wild food foraging on Sunday.
* Paul Goland will host a question and answer session about growing shitakes on innoculated logs and he'll be selling them so you can try one!
* Gary will lead us around the tables for a show and tell about the mushrooms collected that day. Learn which are edible and which to avoid.
SUNDAY: We will meet you at 8 am in the Canaan Conference Room, where Gary will present "Foraging 101" - an introduction to the basics of foraging for wild edibles. We will then break up into groups and carpool to nearby spots for a food foraging foray. If we find any interesting edibles and, again, if we are able to recruit enough volunteers, we will prepare them for a tasting that afternoon.
FORAY FEE: The foray fee per person is $35 for Saturday, $25 for Sunday, and $50 for both days if you pay before July 1st. After that, add $5 per day and $10 for the weekend. Foray fees do not include meals or lodging. To register for the foray, please email czdurnan1@verizon.net.
LODGING AND CAMPING: Canaan Valley Lodge has set aside a block of 25 rooms with double beds for our event at the rate of $79.00 per room per night. If you would like to reserve a room at the lodge or a campsite in Canaan Valley State Park, mention the West Virginia Mushroom Club in order to receive discounted rates for Friday, Saturday and/or Sunday. Visit http://canaanresort.com, (GPS address: 230 Main Lodge Road, Davis, WV) or call 800 622-4121 or 304 866-4121. Please register early, before they sell out! But, if they do sell out, visit http://canaanvalley.org/Visit/travel-tools/lodging/ for more options. "From a quaint bed and breakfast in a historic mountain town to a slopeside vacation home with a hot-tub and all the “creature comforts,” the choice is yours. Resort accommodations include hotel/motel rooms, lodge rooms, cabins, and cottages to call home while enjoying the mountain splendor of the region. Although accommodations in the area mainly consist of cabins, rental vacation homes and condominiums — there are rooms and inns for everyone at every budget!"
THE SUCCESS OF THIS FORAY DEPENDS ON YOU! Please email marthachopper@gmail.com if you can volunteer to help in any way at all, for example: with registration paperwork, making change at the sales table, leading a foray walk, sorting and labeling mushrooms, food preparation, setting up for tastings and clean-up. Be a part of the team that makes it all happen!
For photos of last year's foray, visit the Shotgun Shack blog http://www.hollowdweller.com/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=2174
