Mushroom Hunting In Muscatine.

Someplace with less Poison Ivy!

As Mother's Day approaches,  I have been itching to go to new areas for the Search For Morels... and any other edible Mushrooms.   And when I say, "itchin'",  I really mean it... This Poison Ivy is killing me!   And the place where we found Morels near the Trueblood Trail is literally covered with Poison Ivy.   I'm surprised we got off with as little of an outbreak as we have.

Muscatine Cool. 

But all that aside,  Time to recon some new territory.  We have known of the Wildcat Caves State Park for a while now, and thought we might give it a go after we ran in Mushcatine. ( Er,  I mean Musc-atine...)

Sunny day.  Windy! 

7 Miles Complete!

The air have been much cooler these last few days.  With a stiff breeze along the river, Cheryl managed to cap off the week with a final 7 miles.     The water of the river is down still, despite the predictions of  heavy Spring Flooding.   Cheryl says that the best way to look stupid is to try to predict the future.  Good thing I never think that far ahead....

Dryad saddle/pheasant back.

While running along the Mississippi,  We stumbled upon a large outcropping of Dryad Saddle Mushrooms.   I grabbed a couple of the smaller/tender ones and brought them back to the car.  At least I would have one type of Mushroom to claim for the trip!

By the time we made it to the State Park,  I was pleasantly surprised to see that it was still open.  ALL of the Iowa Parks SHOULD be open now, but a few of the riverside parks still had barriers and orange webbing around the entrances.   This weekend the Governor said the entire state should be open for camping and outdoor recreation...  We shall see.

Our Treasures for the day! 

Cheryl finds these two 

But once at the trail,  we had no clue where to begin searching.   Both of us just followed a trail into the woods...   And that is when Cheryl found them.

I found this one... 

We were just about to turn back, and she spots two next to a tree!  Of course we had to continue searching at that point.   However,  after about an hour,  I found only one more.

Elm Trees? 

It is possible that that place is hit fairly often by the locals.   Easy to find,  lots of Elm trees. ( At least I think they were Elm trees.)

Beefsteak False Morels.  

 We found another small Dryad Saddle and a couple of Beefsteak false Morels. ( Not going to eat the Beefsteaks!)     But with the large Mushrooms we found along the river, and three Morels,  I would say this was an acceptable hunting expedition.  ( Hey!  At least we did not get skunked!  As Dad used to say...)

Peel off the top layer.

Today's find! 

The Dryad Saddle (Also called  "Pheasant Back" )  has to be prepped a little more than simply throwing them in a pan and eating them.  I looked up on You Tube and apparently,  you have to peel off the top layer and scrap off the spore section.

Remove the Pores on underside.

Remove the Stem/stump.

  Then you have to cut off the hard stumpy area because it is too tough.   HOWEVER!  ( Da Dum!)  We now have a dehydrator!  And the thick stalk/stem can be cleaned up as well and cut into small strips.   It can then be dried and ground up to add for flavor.   I actually had some right out of the dehydrator and it taste like a Funyun. Or Pork rind. Mushroom flavored! 

Dryad Saddle from the Dehydrator.

Tender strips ready for frying.

I have tried this mushroom before, and did not think much about it.   However,  after watching several other videos,  I think that if you cook the tender parts down to a crispy strip, they will taste like bacon.

Like Bacon or Pork Rinds?

 I also watched people deep fry the strips of the tender part like Chicken Strips.   I'm sure it is not like "Chicken of the Woods,"  but maybe something similar.   I shall investigate.

See the Deer?

Find the Oriole. 

Other than that,   We saw a snake,  a red headed woodpecker, an Oriole, and a few deer.    And,  on our way out of the wood, we passed several couples going out.  They carried the "tell-tale" walking sticks that suggests they were going to look for Mushrooms as well.   So... Secret spot is not so secret it seems.

Red-headed Woodpecker. 

Garter snake.

Did he just stick his tongue out at me?

I'm just happy we confirmed that the Morels are, in fact, there!   I was beginning to think they were NOT anywhere here in Iowa. ( No matter what the "locals" tell me...  will they show us their secret spot?  No!   So how can I possibly believe them!?)

 

We also found a few "places of Interest" for the future of Summer Mushroom Hunting. I'm guessing there is a high probability EVERYONE knows about Morels, but few people know or can identify the Summer Mushrooms.  At least I hope so... Summer Mushrooms are more predictable, easier to find, and just as Tasty!   And even if Morels do rank highly on the "choice chart" of edibles,  I think the irritability of NOT FINDING THEM takes them down a Notch or two in my book.    Chanterelles,  Oysters, and Boletes overlap and make a great mushroom medley.

Other than that,  Muscatine is usually a full day.   We rarely have much energy after visiting there.   But there was lots to blog about, as demonstrated by the length of this posting.   So, with that, I shall sign off and wish everyone a safe and fun filled weekend.   Thanks  for stopping in!  And if you have mushrooms in your neck of the woods,  Mother's day is a great time to go find em..  As long as the other Locals have not found them first.