BY MIKE TERRELL
Outdoor columnist
May 09, 2008 04:00 am Morels are up and appear to be more plentiful than in the past couple of years, which one Mesick resident described as "miserable pickings last season." "One of our guests checked in about 7 p.m. Sunday night and promptly went out mushroom hunting with about an hour of good sunlight left," said Mushroom Cap Motel clerk Mary Howell. "He came back with over 100 morels. "After that recent rain they really seem to be coming up all around the area. I've heard in the last couple of days (morel hunters) are finding quite a few." Just about everybody I spoke with on Monday around the Mesick area -- locals and out-of-towners -- had about the same tale to tell, and most were saying it's already been much better than last year. The Moore brothers, who were camping in the Manistee National Forest tall hills that rise above Yuma, were in a little disagreement, but finally concluded that this year has been better. The brothers who come all the way from Arizona each spring to hunt the elusive morel in the hills and forests around Mesick, said they are finding "lots of 'caps' so far; more than usual." Caps are what some call "early" morels, but they actually belong to the lorchels family of mushrooms, not the Morchella family of true morels. There is some question about eating them because they can cause mild discomfort in some. I've eaten them in the past with no ill effects. So have many others, but caution is advised if you haven't. They do look like a morel, but the cap isn't attached to the stem at the bottom. It hangs like an umbrella. The cap is all I save discarding the pithy stem. Avoid at all cost the "beefsteak" morel, a normally large, irregular shaped reddish-brown cap that looks somewhat like a brain. It is highly poisonous and has caused death in some areas of the world. "We eat the caps along with the regular morels we find," said Mike Moore. "I've never had a reaction to them, and our family has been coming to this area for over 50 years hunting morels. "We like to tell people that we drive all the way from Yuma, Arizona, to Yuma, Michigan, to hunt for morels," he laughed. "We do live out there now, but we grew up around the Monroe area. So we got the morel hunting bug long before moving out west." They come for about 10 days each spring, and some years have found well over 50 pounds of the edible woodland sprouts. I tried some hunting up in those hills after talking with the Moore family and found a nice bunch of morels. There were quite a few people scattered around the area hunting for the woodland fungi so I took a side forest road and headed into the hills. I went three to four miles back, passing three or four parked vehicles along the two-track. Finding an area that looked likely, I spent a couple of hours foraging through the forest, poking at leaves and downed logs, which yielded 80-some shrooms -- the early black and gray morels along with some of the caps. I didn't find many more than that all of last year. It's a good year, and the rain should keep them coming. Stands of young aspen and ash trees, dead elms, and old abandoned orchards are among some of the more likely spots you will uncover morels. And please use a mesh bag to carry your spoils. It helps spread the spores as you walk along. Using a paper sack or a plastic bag prevents the spreading of spores, which will result in fewer morels in future years. It's nice to get out in the woods this time of year with the budding trees and early wildflowers. Finding a stash of morels is icing on the cake.
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Mike Terrell