Morel-picking season is upon us! Where to find them in the Boise National Forest

Fresh-picked morels 

Wendy was excited about our haul last year ... we picked in the Teepee Springs fire zone

Hi all,

Finally, a really nice weekend is coming our way weather-wise! Highs are predicted to be in the 70-degree range in Boise and in the lower elevations in the mountains! Blue sky and perfect weather for just about anything!

I've been seeing some pictures of morel mushrooms on Facebook, so clearly the morel-picking season has begun in the lower elevations. Now we'll have some sunshine in the forest for morels and other forest-dwelling fungi, plants and wildflowers to pop! Bring it on!

Morel-picking for private use is legal without a permit in the national forests in Idaho. Consumption is limited to 5 gallons per day. Commercial pickers are required to pay a fee. In the wake of the Pioneer Fire, the Boise National Forest is asking people who are picking for personal use to carry a brochure and map with them. The map details the locations where people can pick in the fire zone for personal use and for commercial use. There are many areas in the fire zone that will be closed to morel picking as well. Check out the map.

Blue hash marks are for person use, green for commercial pickers. 

Word has it that morels are sprouting around the Lowman area, according to the Boise National Forest. Lowman has an elevation of 3,750 feet. As things warm up, and the snow melts, morels will popping up at higher elevations. They haven't been seen too much around Idaho City yet, but it's still early.

It's also fine to pick morels anywhere else in the Boise National Forest, Payette National Forest or other forests in Idaho.

What's so special about morels? If you like to eat mushrooms, morels are a delicacy. They are positively delicious, especially sauteed in butter and garlic, and mixed with eggs or served with steak, mixed into soups -- there's just all kinds of applications.

Basidiospores at a microscopic level. The spores
fly from one mushroom to start a new fruiting
body nearby in the forest floor. I have a chapter
about the wonders of mycelia and morels in my
book, "Idaho Microbes."    

Morels are fun to pick because they're very distinctive ... they have a conical shape, kind of like a Christmas tree, but with honeycombs inside. My suggestion is to walk very slow through the woods, and stare at the ground, looking for morels. Once you see some, you'll find more. The grow prolifically the spring after a forest fire, but you can get into quite a few of them even several years after a fire.

I seem to find them more under fir trees than pine trees on open ground. If there's a lot of beargrass growing on the slope, it's not a good site for morels. Sometimes you'll find groups of morels popping up underneath the brush. Once you find a fertile area for morels, you'll keep coming back to those spots for more.

This also should be a great weekend for spring camping. Here's a previous post about some spring camping spots I'd recommend. Pick up a copy of my Owyhee Canyonlands - An Outdoor Adventure Guide for tips on 55 hikes and mountain bike rides in the Big Wide Open, plus a guide to the Owyhee Uplands Backcountry Byway.

Have fun!
-SS

May is Prime Time for Morel hunting!

Wendy was really happy to find so many morels! 

This was round one last Saturday morning 

Morels are very distinctive looking, so easy to identify

Chris Florence foraging foraging for morels.
He's a professional who sells morels at Farmer's Markets

Hi all,

For me, it's often hit and miss as to whether I carve out enough time to go morel hunting in May. Timing is everything when it comes to morel hunting, and based on my experience last weekend, I can tell you that morel season is hitting prime time right now.

Looking ahead in the next 10 days, it's supposed to stay kind of wet and cool, which hopefully will prolong the morel hunting season even more.

Wendy and I decided we wanted to get away to our Cozy Cabin in McCall last weekend -- just to get a much-needed change of scenery -- but instead of morel hunting close to town, as we often do, we headed to the burn zone of the Teepee Springs fire, a 95,709-acre blaze that ran from New Meadows to the Salmon River last August.

It's well-known that morels, the fruiting body of the morchella species, love to bloom upon disturbance, particularly from wildfires. "They like areas of disturbance -- that's what causes them to bloom," says Chris Florence, a professional wild food forager whom I wrote about in "Idaho Microbes: How tiny single-celled creatures can harm, and save our world."

"Fires can destroy the root structure of the soil, depending on how hot it burns, and that's when the mycorrhizal layer puts all of its energy into kicking out as many spores as possible to survive," he says.

And from those spores, morels are born.

Teepee Springs fire zone

I checked with the New Meadows Ranger District, asking how best to access the fire zone, and they suggested the Hazard Creek Road. One also could try to access it from the French Creek Road or the Goose Lake Road after more snow melts. The great thing about Hazard is that they'd been logging in there all week, so it wasn't open to the public until the weekend. We were one of the first people in there.

Wendy and I picked around 20 pounds of morels all around burned tree stumps, burned holes in the ground and under burned alderbrush. Some of them were just growing in the fir needles on some moist east slopes.

How to find morels? 

Try to get some intel on what elevation are the morels sprouting? Last week, it seemed to be in the 4,500-5,000 foot range. That means you could go to that elevation above Idaho City, Garden Valley or Cascade in the Boise National Forest. As time goes on, morels will be popping in the Payette National Forest above 5,000 feet. If you see a trillium growing on the forest floor, that's an indication that you might be in the right elevation for morels.

The Clearwater Complex fire zone might be another great place to look for morels.

Forest type: Florence recommends forested areas with fir trees in cooler, moister areas. I've found that east slopes can be better than south and west slopes. Ponderosa pine areas don't seem very productive for morels, in my experience. Look around rotten stumps, old logs, things like that.

Stop and stare: I find that you really have to get low to the ground and look hard for morels. Once you find some, you'll find more. It takes a lot of patience to really go slow and stare at every square yard of soil, but patience and persistence will pay off.

Go with an experienced morel picker: It always helps to go with someone who has a favorite morel-picking spot(s). They can get you started.

How to cook? 

Once you've picked some morels, I recommend sauteing them with butter and garlic and serving on steak, burger, or mixing up a morel and swiss omelette. It's totally deluxe!

Here are some good tips on cleaning and cooking morels.

Have fun!
- SS

Last-minute ideas for Memorial Day weekend - Campers: dress warm and bring firewood!

Dress warm for camping this weekend ... and you'll be fine. 

Middle Fork Boise River 

The Morel picking has been hit and miss so far ... 

Wind River pack bridge, trailhead for the Wind River Trail on the Salmon River 

Rapid River Trail in Riggins is a dandy hiking and backpacking destination 

Hi all,

It's expected to be fairly chilly this weekend, particularly in the mountains. But at least there isn't much rain in the forecast. Last year, Memorial Day was pretty soggy in the mountains, and that definitely puts a damper on things. But this year, it should be dry, with temperatures in the low 60s by the afternoon in the mountains, which is nice weather for hiking and biking. Just bring a few extra layers.

[Here is the audio from Steve's outdoor tips re: Memorial Day weekend on the the River Mornings show]

Roger Phillips from the Idaho Statesman Outdoors pulled together a nice summary of the camping, road and trail conditions in the Boise, Payette and Sawtooth national forests in today's paper. The upshot seems to be that trails, roads and campgrounds below 6,000-foot elevation are open for Memorial Day weekend activities, and sites above that elevation are more iffy or closed by snow. Bull Trout Lake is closed by snow, for example, and so are Deadwood Reservoir and the Trinity Mountains.

Here are some ideas for Memorial Day camping and outings:

• With these cool temperatures, camping in the Owyhees will be warmer than heading into the national forest. See my spring camping blog post from March ... places like Bruneau Dunes State Park, Leslie Gulch, Succor Creek State Park or the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area would all be good bets. 
• Camping near Idaho City should be great. Take the Rabbit Creek Road into the North Fork of the Boise River or the Middle Fork of the Boise River. There are tons of places to camp along both river corridors.
• Camping near Stanley should be fine, too, just a little colder. Highs are forecast in the 60s in the afternoons but in the 20s at night. Campgrounds are open at the ever-popular Redfish Lake and vicinity. Can't beat the view!   
• The Edna Creek road is clear of snow and freshly graded, according to the Forest Service, if you'd like to head up to Atlanta and do some camping or hiking.
• Morel mushrooms appear to be sprouting (I'm seeing pics of morels on my Facebook friends' pages ... people who live in Valley County), so it might be a good time to check areas that got burned last summer for morels. The Trinity Ridge fire area near Pine and Featherville comes to mind, so would the forest north of Stanley. Some forest roads are closed because of fire rehabilitation, but hopefully you can get into some of the burn areas on foot or bike to pick morels. David Olson from the Boise National Forest reports that as of June 1, no permits will be needed for commercial or private morel picking in the Trinity Ridge fire zone. Apparently so far, the morel crop is a dud. Hopefully, that'll change? Be aware that certain forest roads are closed in the vicinity to work on post-fire rehab.
• The trails and roads in the Idaho City Park n' Ski Areas are snow-free and open to the public. The yurts are all rented for the weekend, according to the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation, but you can find other spots for car-camping in the vicinity and go hiking and biking on Park n Ski trails. 
• Another cool spring camping location is along the Salmon River, upstream of Riggins. There are numerous HUGE white sandy beaches up there where you can set up a great camp, hang out by the river, do some floating on the Salmon and/or go hiking. The hike on the Wind River Trail via the Wind River Pack Bridge about 25 miles upstream of Riggins has a number of switchbacks as you climb higher and higher up the Salmon River canyon. The trail eventually leads into the Gospel Hump Wilderness, but you probably won't get that far. That'd be a great hike right now.
• If you're in the Riggins area, the hike up Rapid River is a sweet one, too. The trailhead is about two miles south of Riggins. I just saw some beautiful photos from some folks who went backpacking in the Rapid River last weekend. 
• Camping in Lake Cascade State Park should be dandy as well. If you go to Cascade, the Crown Point Trail is a great family friendly hike or bike ride for all abilities and ages. It's about 3 miles one-way to a temporary dead-end, and 3 miles back. You also can go biking or hiking on the The Strand, a two-mile trail along the North Fork of the Payette River in Cascade. Very pretty spot, and it's next to Kelly's Whitewater Park. 

There are a few ideas to chew on ... Have fun!
- SS  

10 reasons to head for McCall this weekend - hiking, biking, boating, beaching, hanging out

The good ship "Idaho," the new tour boat provided by Payette Lake Cruises. (Courtesy Ellen Ganz)

Bike racing at Jug Mountain Ranch. (Courtesy JMR)

Hi all,

I'm heading for McCall this weekend, and you should too!

In this week's outdoor tip, I'll give you at least 10 reasons to visit McCall. I'll start with Reason #1 -- Beat the Heat! When it hits 90 degrees in Boise, I automatically think about migrating to the lush, shady forests of McCall, where the wildflowers are beginning to bloom, and it will be at least 15 degrees cooler than it is in Boise.

Here's Reason #2: Payette Lake Cruises, a brand new tour boat service in McCall just started operation this year. The cruise service has a 65-foot, two-level tour boat named "Idaho" with daily tours of the lake at 1:30 and 3:30 p.m., a Sunday brunch tour, private dinner tours and more. Daily 90-minute tours cost $20 for adults and $12 for kids. The Sunday brunch tour includes food for $39 for adults. Sounds like a lot of fun! Not everyone has their own power boat or sail boat to cruise around on Payette Lake.

Reason #3: The Wild Rockies series moves to Jug Mountain Ranch in Lake Fork this weekend. It's the 5th annual Jug Mountain Ranch cross-country race and Super D. The cross-country course is 12 miles long on mostly singletrack with a few two-track sections. That's on Saturday. It's a national qualifying event. The downhill is on Sunday. Plus, there's a trail-running event on Saturday. I've been riding a lot at Jug the last few years. The riding out there keeps getting better as Jug Mountain Ranch, CIMBA and others enhance the trail system by building new xc trails and freeride trails. See the Wild Rockies web site for details about the race this weekend. 

Mountain biking in McCall is totally fab!  

Reason #4: I just reprinted and updated my guide Mountain Biking in McCall with new singletrack at Jug Mountain Ranch, the latest routes and map for Bear Basin Trails, a new meadow loop at Tamarack Resort, and other important updates to reflect logging impacts on trails or washouts (Teapot Mountain Loop in the South Fork Salmon River area is now an out-and-back ride). Some good bets for mountain biking this weekend include Bear Basin (can't go wrong), Tamarack meadow loop (great for all abilities), North Valley Rail-Trail (easy), and Loon Lake (advanced).  All of the local outdoor stores are stocked up on my guidebook, including Gravity Sports, Hometown Sports, McCall Drug, May Hardware, Shore Lodge gift shop, Paul's, Ridley's, the McCall gift shop and Ponderosa State Park. 

Morel mushroom

Reason #5: It's still possible to hunt for tasty morel mushrooms in the forests around McCall. I would look for them above 6,000 feet elevation. Make sure you know how to identify morels. 


Reason #6: Reilly Coyote will be playing Saturday night at the Salmon River Brewery, a very popular hangout in McCall with great food on Colorado Street. 


Reason #7: The snow is melting fast, but according to the McCall Ranger District, the snow level is hovering at approximately 6,700 feet elevation. That means the forest road to Lick Creek Summit is snow-bound at the summit, but you may be able to reach lower elevation trails. Some good bets for hiking would include the Huckleberry Trail at Ponderosa State Park, 20-Mile Trail near Upper Payette Lake, Bear Basin Trails and the North Valley Rail-Trail. 


Reason #8: It'd be a sweet weekend to paddle the Meanders on the north end of Payette Lake with your sweetheart. Start and finish at North Beach. If you have your own canoe, inflatable kayak or sit-on-top kayak, any of those crafts would work great for the Meanders. It's about 3-4 miles out and back. There also are rental boats available in McCall at North Beach, at The Hub, and Gravity Sports. The trip is featured in my guidebook "Paddling the Payette." 


Reason #9: It's always a good time to lounge on the beach in McCall. Bring your lawn chairs, some beverages and find some beach space to hang out on the south end of the lake (two public beaches), the north end by North Beach, or dispersed sites on the east side of the lake. 


Reason #10: All of the local golf courses are open and ready for play. The McCall city course is really fun and challenging to play ... it has 3 different nines. You also could play Meadow Creek in New Meadows, Osprey Meadows at Tamarack (closed temporarily until June 30), Whitetail by Shore Lodge or Jug Mountain Ranch. 


Hopefully this gives you a few ideas. I didn't even mention road biking to Secesh Summit,  circumnavigating Payette Lake on your bike (some dirt involved on the east side road) or soaking in the wonderful pool at Burgdorf. I could go on and on. 


If you don't have a place to stay in McCall, try to snag a hotel room, or check with InIdaho.com or vrbo.com for a condo or rental home. You can always pitch a tent in the national forest nearby, too! 


Don't forget your bug juice. The mosquitoes will be a factor ... at least in the evenings. 
Have fun! 
-- SS
Steve shares his weekly outdoor tips with Ken and Tim on 94.9 FM The River each Friday morning in Boise at approximately 7:10 a.m. You can hear archived audio segments on River Interactive.com. Detailed descriptions and color maps of Steve's hikes, bike rides and paddling trips are available for 99 cents each at www.stevestuebner.com, plus the full ebooks and hard-copy guidebooks.