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Don't give up morel hunting despite slow season

Usually, around this time of year during the time spring turkey season opens, the morels are being harvested by the sackful. Not this year. Why?
Charlie Litchfield | The Register

What has happened to the morels this spring? That is a question I have heard dozens of times this week, as I really have no answer. Every sign points to near perfect conditions for those tasty fungi to pop, but so far the results are mixed.

Plenty of moisture, Mayapples are up and the redbuds are blooming — all signs that morels should be there for the picking, although I have only talked to a few lucky morel hunters that have found more than one or two.

Usually, around this time of year during the time spring turkey season opens, the morels are being harvested by the sackful. Not this year. Why? There are a few theories, but nothing certain. Several people say we need a warm rain to get them started, while others say it's too late now, so just wait until next year.

Fred Avery, Jefferson City, has found morels in the same spot for more than 20 years but has come home emptyhanded so far this season. "I took my GPS and marked the spot where we found lots of morels last year, but never found a one so far this year," he said. "I have talked to other hunters who usually find lots of golden morels in early April, but all say the mushrooms just aren't up. I thought my eyesight was slipping, but when I heard all the morel hunters say the same thing, I know it isn't just me."

However, while waiting for a trailer tire to be repaired, the girl at the desk was bragging about having plenty of morels for dinner. Of course, I wanted to know when and where she found them. She casually said, "They were growing in my backyard like they do every spring." Since I told her I was going crappie fishing instead of morel hunting, she offered to trade me morels for crappie. I told her we had a deal.

Non-morel hunters ask, "What's the big deal about morels, anyway?" It's obvious they had never eaten them. Morels are among the most prized of all the wild mushrooms. The reason is simple: Their taste is superb! Their popularity is due to these facts: they are delicious to eat, have around five weeks in the spring to find them and are easy to identify.

We usually start the mushroom hunting season by finding the black morels in late March, but this year there were none to be found. Last week we started to hear about morels popping up in southern Missouri, and one turkey hunter near Sarcoxie found a bagful, so we know they are on the way.

Ever since 1960, when the first modern-day turkey season opened, I have always run into morels. On one hunt in north Missouri in late April, I had a big gobbler sail down from his roost, and I fired my 20 gauge and it fell. When I went over to pick him up, I saw he was lying in a bunch of morel mushrooms. I never had a double since. Another story worth repeating was in Cedar County when my wife, Donna, started out in our nearby wood and heard a gobbler sound off. She put on her face mask and got ready, but the tom never sounded off again, so she started moving toward the earlier sound when she saw a bunch of morels in front of her. She took off the mask and filled it with mushrooms. That’s when the gobbler sounded off again close by. She emptied the mask, got ready and when the big bird came within easy gun range, she shot. It was a sight to see as she headed up the path with a mask full of morels and a turkey over her shoulder.

Over the years, we have found spots where we usually find morels, but there are many places that look like good places to find these fungi that not a single one can be found. You may enjoy the looking as much as the picking, or you won’t last long as a true morel hunter. Once they find a good spot, few hunters ever reveal where they were found — just like a fisherman who catches a lot of fish in a certain spot usually doesn’t disclose exactly where he caught them.

The morel is widely appreciated by gourmets. They are marvelously flavorful and in need of little embellishment — coat with flour, add salt or garlic if needed, really, the choice is yours, sauté in butter or light oil, delicious.

If you attempt to find morels, or any mushrooms, do so with a guide and experienced mushroom hunter. Once you see what a morel looks like, you are on your way to some great eating.

Funny thing about morels. One of my most memorable morel hunts was in Carroll County when my parents and sister scoured the place where we usually had found some morels. After nearly an hour of hunting and finding only a few mushrooms, a sudden rainstorm hit the area, so we headed back to the car. However, on the way back, in an area we had been looking, we started seeing lots of mushrooms, and in about 15 minutes, we had all filled up our mesh bags and gone back to the vehicle to get more bags. Back home, we counted more than 200 big golden morels.

That hunt taught me to never give up. You might not find a single morel after hours of hunting, but under that next tree or next to a small stream, you might hit the mother lode. So, like experienced morel hunters will tell you ... keep on looking, because when should you start finding those great tasting fungi, it is worth all the time and effort.

Good hunting.

Ken White writes about hunting and fishing for the News-Leader. Contact him at kdwhite7@windstream.net.

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