# St. Charles County



## smguffer

I think im going to try some Island hunting this year. I had some luck around the katy trail last year but I've been thinking more and more about island hunting. 

I'm hoping there is less pressure since it takes a boat to get to it. I also have a place in warren county I'm thinking about. There was some logging that took place in the spot I want to hunt, I hear woods that have recently been burned or logged can be good producers.

I might go out this weekend, with these 2 heavy rains we've had (april 2 and april 3) I think the ground MIGHT be warm enough to produce something. Maybe just wishful thinking, might still be too soon. 

I'll keep everyone updated! Happy hunting!


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## morelmaniac96

Smguffer, I hunt the St. Charles area bottoms and have wanted to hit the islands on the Missouri river for a couple years. If you would like some company exploring the river let me know. Maybe we can exchange some knowledge about the environment we hunt.


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## smguffer

Definitely. keep in touch and maybe we can get together for a hunt soon


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## smguffer

morelmaniac (or anyone else): I think im going to hit a spot i found ~25 last year tomorrow morning around 9 or 10am. It's near Busch wildlife in the bottoms.

I've always heard once the ground temp gets ~50 degrees is when they start popping. according to this website our ground temps are around 55 and have been close to 3 days. http://www.mushroomfarm.com/mushroom-hunting-info/hunting-morel-mushrooms/soil-temperature-map.html

It's probably still too early but i just want to check it out, maybe get lucky.. maybe just spend an hour or two looking around. 

if you're interested in hunting tomorrow morning let me know


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## morelmaniac96

Definitely smguffer, I was going to check that area tomorrow also. Sounds like we already hunt some of the same land. My number is 314-280-0969. You can instant message me with where and when.


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## smguffer

morelmaniac and me went out in the woods today just to check things out, neither of us really expecting to find anything this early and it turns out our suspicions were correct. no morels, yet haha.

One of the big reasons I also wanted to get out was to attempt to identify the trees that seemed to be producing small amounts of morels in an area I was hunting last year. I'm pretty confident now that they were Ash trees. The way I am able to easiest recognize them is the trunk or more mature branches of the tree have rough bark with fairly deep grooves, but the less mature (while still old) branches are almost entirely smooth. and on the newly developing branches its obvious they are opposite of one another, rather than alternating 

I'm still working on tree identification (im new at this) but any other tips i can come up with i'll be trying to share with others.

I wasnt able to positively identify any elm trees, just a couple hunches on what i thought might be an elm... but i feel pretty confident with the Ash, and am 100% sure those trees was where i was finding small clusters last year. Not quite the motherload I'm hoping for this year, but still decent morel producers.

thanks for comin out morelmaniac. look forward to doing some morel hunting with you this year.


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## smguffer

Just looked at the 10 day forecast.. I think Sunday the 13th might produce if wed-sat is as warm as they say it will be. looks like good temperatures and rain in the forecast.


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## sustainable forager

check them burns and logged areas for sure, and yeah ash is a great tree...if you can find it. be careful on the big river, usually during the picking season, water is high/flooding so it can be a bit treacherous. elms are commonly found in washes or going up hillsides or along field edges, imho they are more of a hilly tree for our area but not at the tops of the hills. morelmaniac any luck w/ those blacks!?


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## smguffer

yea those rivers are nothing to play with. i like taking my dog out (lab pitt mix) and he LOVES water. we're both strong swimmers but its not always possible to compete with mother nature and i have no desire to try, so i gotta keep a real close eye on him around the big rivers. 

i'll probably scout a different area tomorrow where i know logging has occured (im just not sure how long ago yet). I know they did it a couple years in a row so hopefully i can find a more recent patch.

anyone have any idea when is a good time frame to go to the logging sites? the following year? wait about 2 years? .. will it stop producing so heavily after 3-4 years has gone by?


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## smguffer

ahhh. the 10 day forecast is already starting to cool off! nooooo


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## morrel huntin 77

BET ITS GOING TO BE A SHORT MESSED UP SEASON IF THIS WEATHER DOESNT CHANGE .


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## smguffer

yeah its looking like we got another couple weeks before they start poppin


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## sustainable forager

honestly if your not sure when to go look, just watch the internet! people cant help but brag about their first finds, and i will admit, it does take restraint to not blab about it. usually about a week before i would get in the woods, someone in STL is reporting finds.


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## thrill

It will be here before we know it. The waiting is whats maddening, I've had the upcoming season on my mind since the last day I found nothing last year!


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## shroomkiller

Hitting an island myself Saturday with some fellow hunters for the first time ever.Hoping for good luck with temps warming up some next few days.


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## smguffer

i just talked to some old time shroomers... they said islands are the worst possible place to go. better to stick to the creek beds :wink:


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## smguffer

im just kiddin. i might be checking an island too this weekend. for me it's a lot of work though. i have to throw a 17' coleman scanoe on top of my little ford ranger. it's about the most hoosier ******* anyone would ever see but i gotta do what i gotta do lol. 

i have a couple places in mind i'd like to look saturday that *should* be early producers.. if they dont turn anything up i'll probably wait for the next warm front to hassle with the scanoe.


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## sustainable forager

i like hunting hills cause thats where you get all the dead elm, also be careful of high water/flash flooding w the rains we get sometimes


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## smguffer

indeed. find a couple of those dead elms up in the hills and you're on morel gold!


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## morelmaniac96

Sustainableforager, I pm u on morelhunters.com from the handle of Sloth.


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## shroomkiller

I will be hunting a lot in St.Charles county between this weekend and next weekend.Afternoons during the week and anytime on weekends.If anyone wants to join me my cell # is in my profile.Just call and leave a message and I will get back asap to plan something.


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## smguffer

do you text? i'll send you a text. my name is spencer.

edit: i cant see a cell in your profile, maybe im not looking in the right spot. =/


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## woodsman1

Shroomkiller im always up for a good hunt with some fellow shroomers. I to can not locate your number. Once again checked a few of my early spots today an still nothing not even any false ones. Hope there up by this weekend. Im down to my last diner serving of dehydrated morels from last years hunts


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## smguffer

hey woodsman... how do you go about dehydrating your finds? .. ive been thinking about getting a food dehydrator but wasnt sure if that was the preferred or even acceptable method


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## shroomkiller

Sorry my cell # is 636-295-5747. Shoot me a text and we can make a plan to meet somewhere.


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## woodsman1

I use a food dehydrater. You just have to mmake sure you dont over dry them. I rotate the trays as they dry. Once dried put them in mason jars an they will last for ever. Ive had some for at least 2 yrs. Also u can thread sewing string thru the stems an hang them upside down outside to naturally dry


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## smguffer

Gonna go looking tomorrow... A friend who isn't able to register a name on this site wanted me to let everyone know if they would like a hunting buddy in the st. charles area, feel free to add him to facebook. feel free to add me as well

Him: Joshua A. Taylor from Lake St. Louis
Me: Spencer Guffey


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## thrill

I'm going to try my luck today. I do not expect to find anything, but i am wishful. Worst case scenario I'll go fishing after the hunt!


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## smguffer

Took my 8 year old son out with me. We found a turtle that was literally crawling out of his hole for the first time in months (you can still see the dirt on his shell.. i wish i took a picture of him in his hole). Found 2 morels, and picked some flowers for the wife. 

Not much activity as far as morels goes (we got a little lucky) but another two weeks or so and they should be out in full force!


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## turick

I was out for a couple hours on the border of Lincoln County and didn't find anything. Almost nothing growing... Saw Mayne 3 little baby may flowers working there way out of the ground.


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## smguffer

i didnt really expect to find much today but was glad i did.. i really did get lucky. i stopped by a river bank to explain to the boy how dangerous the river was and to keep a safe distance away.. i turned around and there was a morel... then saw the 2nd one pretty close. both were close to a dead elm i believe


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## vibrantenergies

Guffer - Awesome shot of Mr. Turtle there!  It's great to get lucky like that huh? They are starting to come up, but we're still several days from any big flushes, IMO.


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## smguffer

thank ya! yeah that's one of the awesome things about morel hunting, you get to see the forest come alive every spring


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## smguffer

Anyone interested in going morel hunting in augusta area around 2pm today? 

It's gonna be a rainy sloppy mess so a good pair of waterproof boots/rain jacket is a necessity!

e-mail or facebook me.. or just respond here and ill probably check it before 1pm.

spencer guffey
[email protected]


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## smguffer

no luck today  ... went out for couple hours.


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## smguffer

Hosed again.. walked 4 1/2 miles along river bottom and nothing. i think we still have some waiting to do


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## morelking

Have you been looking on the south facing hillsides smguffer? That's where I've been finding mine. So far I found 55 in Franklin county Missouri. Today was the first day I've found some on the bottoms and was 5 very small ones. Bout the size of a pinky finger tip.


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## brainthang

Me too! Been out at my early spots and nothing yet. This cold weather is no good for the brain. I can't wait!! Many old timers have predicted that due to the weather here in STL that it's building up to be a seriously quick and large flush season. Has anyone been worried about the tick disease that's all over the news?!


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## smguffer

i found a handfull of ticks on me in the last week or so.. went out and got a big bottle of bug spray with highest deet% i could find


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## kccatfish

If you don't want ticks go out and get some Sawyer Permethrin Insect Repellent. I treated my hunting clothes last season and never got any ticks at all, and lasts through 6 washings. http://sawyer.com/products/permethrin-premium-insect-repellent/


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## smguffer

right on kccatfish. thanks for the info.


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## adrenaline

Hey Everyone- 
First time poster, long time viewer- been watching this place for years. Great place to keep up with what's going on in the area and find out when the first shrooms start poppin. I was introduced to morels 25+ years ago when I was a little kid and have looked forward to the joy of spring every year since... I hunt Weldon springs mostly- lots of walking not a lot of shrooms, but nothing like that moment you find the first one! Wouldn't mind tagging along with anyone that's open to company- I have a flexible schedule and can really hunt anytime during the week.


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## texayers

I hunt the Missouri River Bottoms and have had no luck this year yet, and as for trees I always find great bunches under the Cottonwood trees when they drop their seeds. Any other advice for a Texan stuck in Mid-Missouri finding these delicious shrooms would be appreciated. Do I wait until I see the farmers planting corn to know the ground temperature is warm enough? Thanks for any help my fellow mushroom hunters!


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## moorhsum lerom

Looked arounda hot spot where I've always found good numbers on lindenwoods campus. Nothing yet. I'm getting tired of waiting!!!


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## smguffer

I've found a couple dozen the last week 1/2 .. but they are few and far between. it definitely takes a lot of time in the woods.

i finally feel like i'm getting the hang of identifying elm trees which should help in my search 

does anyone know what type of tree i'm seeing that has "typical" looking bark, but all of the newly developed juvenile branches are like a smooth emerald green? been seeing a lot of those on the bottoms but have no clue what they are.

here are a couple i found yesterday. the bigger two are the biggest yellows i've seen so far this year:


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## seismic744

Nice yellows. Wife and I checked our St. Charles County spots on Friday with no luck but Monday should be a good day. Happy Easter!


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## smguffer

you too sir. im sure hoping something pops soon cus this hunting for hours on end stuff is getting old


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## jyoung

Hey guys, Im new to morel hunting. Would anyone be willing to meet up and let me learn?


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## smguffer

i left my contact info on page 2 of this thread if you wanna msg me


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## bowfisher

They are here st chuck! Found thirty two yesterday evening mostly small greys but a few decent yellows as well along the Missouri river bottoms


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## smguffer

nice!


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## joeblow

two nights ago I found TWO greys at my "barometer" spot (between a white and red oak) that has always provided early greys on a south facing slope... Tonight I went to a new location and found 41, many small greys... I think it is early and a good rain will get things moving along...

28 were on one stump...


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## micus

28 yellows found in St. Charles County on a flat wooded area.


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## smguffer

how far from a large water source micus? just wondering if they're starting to move up towards hills etc


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## adrenaline

trying to get the grass mowed before the rain came in tonight and I found 2 nice sized Yellows by an old stump in my back yard- Im in St. Peters- pretty funny considering Ive spent about 10 hours hiking deep in the woods checking my spots and my first finds come from my own backyard! I left them in the ground and I plan on taking my little guy out tomorrow to "HUNT" for his first morels!


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## smguffer

lol right on. i found 6 in st. peters today just scouting one of those large creeks off mid rivers mall drive.


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## smguffer

Here's a little teaser of how my morel hunting has been going.. this is just a little taste. 3.5 pounds in this pic. this is one of my honey holes from last year. i pulled these out in 2 hours cus i was short on time that day


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## seismic744

Here are a few mixed half free, yellow and grey morels my wife found yesterday in St. Charles County. The season is still producing and will be for at least the next week with the cooler temps and rain coming!


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## smguffer

good stuff seismic! .. here are a few other pics from my morel hunting adventures from this season.


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## cleverhunter

Very nice!! I found 2 morels yesterday, a copperhead coiled up, and a turtle. 

Today. No morels, 5 turtles, a dead turtle, a dead deer, and a black snake.


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## smguffer

ive been wanting to find a copperhead! i've only ever caught one and a picture of a copperhead in my hands would be pretty awesome


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## seismic744

Cool pics smguffer! We haven't come across any snakes yet, but my wife and I have found a TON of ticks!


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## micus

My son went out and picked 6 lb. of morels this am. Flat wooded area not close to water. Caught crappie over the weekend so my daughter is making morel/crappie casserole.


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## cleverhunter




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## smguffer

@Seismic i hear ya with the ticks. my wife keeps nagging me because she find a couple around the place from time to time. I guess i need to do a better job with bug spray/cleaning the dog/throwing the clothes in the wash asap 

@micus tell your son i want to be his best friend

@clever the picture didnt upload.. i cant see it


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## mozeta

I went out for about an hour today in South County area and found 2lbs. Mostly large blacks, but also a few very large yellows. I usually load up on the bug spray before hand and change cloths when I get out of the woods before I get back in my truck. I throw the dirty cloths in a plastic bag, throw them in the bed and then put them in the garage or the washer when I get home then straight to the shower. The wife said she still found 3 ticks in the bed the other day and had one on her when she got home from work today. She has never even been in the woods with me and hates nature. Needless to say she hates mushroom season now more than ever. Oh well, she only has to deal with it another week or two.


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## cleverhunter

How do you upload pics on this site?


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## smguffer

@CleverHunter it's more complicated than it should be.. but after you do it once it's pretty simple.

First you have to upload the picture to an image hosting website. I use photobucket

After you upload the picture to photobucket, you click on the picture you just uploaded and photobucket will give you a "direct link" address. You copy that address (or just click it while in photobucket and it should automatically copy it)

so once the link to the picture is copied.. you can come back to the forums and click the little "image" icon above the box that i'm typing in right now (right next to the "" icon) 

paste the link to the picture you want to post in the box provided, and click "apply image" ... it sounds like a lot just for one little picture, huh =/


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## smguffer

@ mozeta i just sent this message to a friend the other day:

"i got the shit down to a science i wear basket ball shorts and a light t-shirt on the way.. and then have another shirt and long pants in my truck. when i get outta the truck i spray my boots/socks then spray the shirt/pants that im gonna wear before i put them on.as soon as i get back to the truck i take the shirt pants off and throw them in the wash as soon as i get home then shower immediately just to be safe lol"

and not unlike you, my wife still finds ticks from time to time. i blame it on the dog. :twisted:


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## smguffer

Looked for an hour after work today at a new spot and got 17. The grass was too tall for me so I started "tree hunting", just going from one dead elm tree to another. About 4 of the dead elms ended up producing several morels each. 

I saw another guy looking through the tall grass, got to talking to him and i ended up showing him some pictures from my phone (same pictures i have here) .. he was like "hey, do you post on that morel webpage!" 

there are eyes all around us


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## cleverhunter

Lets try this out!


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## smguffer

right on cleverhunter! beautiful snake!


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## joeblow

145 tonight around the same cottonwood stumps that were EMPTY last Wednesday, about 20 of the ones I found tonight should have been picked two days ago or so... Mixture of greys and large white/yellows...


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## smguffer

right on joe.

i was able to hunt for an hour after work today. I was planning on hunting a stretch of a creek around here. I parked, walked into the woods, and not 2 minutes later walked right into a patch of 20 yellows about 30 ft away from the creek huddled pretty close to a bunch of maple trees. 

I picked them and went in the direction I originally planned, found 1 or 2 but realized i was on private ground and turned back around.. I went back to where i found the 20 yellows, then started looking back behind where i found them and ended coming up with another 8 or 9. 

total was 31 in about an hour. pretty much all were close to maple trees just poking out of the dried up maple leaves from last year

I got a tip from a buddy about where he hit a honey hole a few years back. he said he doesnt have time to hunt this year and told me to go check it out.. He claims he pulled 200 big yellows out of the area. He said they were just everywhere, so im going to look first thing after work tomorrow. I got my finger's crossed


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## mike h

Cleverhunter, ugh..... man do I not like snakes... especially poisonous ones. WOW I think that I would have crapped my pants. LOL I went out Monday and harvested about 6lbs worth. Mostly greys which is good cause we might still have a little time. I did find 9 or so large yellow ones, which means that area is about done with them. It should be a good week for them with the rain and temps. Heading back out tomorrow morning checking my spot to see if some have come up. Good luck everyone!


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## smguffer

looked for about 40 mins and found about 20 morels at the "honey hole" my friend found a few years back. i think i was about a week too late though. it was obvious they were getting ready to shrivel up and fade back into the leaves. some were completely brown, others with brown tops, others just hints of brown on the ridges.

if he gives me the green light to hunt it next year im pretty sure i can time it right.. if not i'll just tell him when to go


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## joeblow

Follow up to my post from two nights ago, the 29th... The big whites/yellows are up and fresh in the creek bottoms ON cotton wood stumps... Cottonwood stumps wont host the morels for more than a few years... From two nights ago I found some that I had missed two nights ago and they were starting to rot, i found some bigges that are a day or two old AND I found LOTS of fresh ones... I dont know the total count yet but it is well over 100 and nearly fills a five gallon bucket...

Get em while they are fresh, I typically REcheck my spots ever 3 days...

I'm afraid I'm done for the year, well over 250 which is a record year for me... I will post up pics of all three outings when I find a photo host that I like...


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## smguffer

im with ya joeblow.. i've got an insane amount already. i'll go out the next week or whatever and track their patterns to watch how/where the move, but im definitely starting to get burnt out


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## joeblow

Ever consider this:

Just think of the MILLLLLLLLIONS of unfound/unpicked morels that will grow and rot this spring along the missouri/mississippi rivers and in the woodlands of Missouri... 

Ashes to ashes, back to the earth they go, spreading their mycelium for next year...

The morels really are a freak of nature...

I am thinking of starting a group that focuses on the OTHER midwest edibles (buck horn, chanterelles, hen of the woods, boletus)... 

Midwest Mycological Misfits... :twisted:


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## smguffer

i think about that all the time.. i'll be driving down a back road and just imagine all of the morels that im driving by and will never see to just lift up out of the earth and show themselves while im driving past them 

im sure it would be a sight to see


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## micus

My spots are done for the year. I would be looking in Northern Mo now.


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## smguffer

i was gonna look today, pulled off the side of the road and heard "psssssssss" .. tire popped. had to throw the spare on and it took all my hunting time away. i'll look around tomorrow, but that's probably gonna be my last hunt for the season


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