Spring mushrooms

A few weeks ago I got the urge to hunt morels.  People were posting pictures on Facebook left and right, raving about their delicious, meaty un-meat meals.  I wanted to find a morel.  A few friends wanted to go disc golfing at a local course a few days later, and one had seen morels on his last trip there. 

I was going to find a morel.

While they played, I tromped through the woods, determined to find some glorious mushrooms.  Let's be honest, I had no idea what I was doing.  (Something about looking for dead trees, I think?)  Needless to say, I wound up with mosquito bites, and no mushrooms. 

I joined back up with my group and shortly after, my friend Molly spotted a morel, in plain view, directly off a path near a fairway.  It was kind of like a scene from a movie where a beam of light lands on a treasure chest- just a mushroom popping out of the green in plain view of anyone who'd walk by. 

We investigated the area with our group of five and scrounged up over twenty mushrooms!  Behold:

We looked around through the rest of walk, but only found one more mushroom.  At the end of it all, we split the morels two ways (one of our friends already had a bunch at home that needed to be eaten) between two couples.  Mark and I cooked them up with butter and garlic.  OMG.  One of the best things I've ever eaten.  I get it.  I get the hunt (for vegetarians!), the scarcity... the free (delicious!) food!!  I think our morel season is over now, but I'm anxious to try again next year!

Weekend exploring

I haven't been posting much lately.  Things have been busy, more on that another time.  But anyways, this weekend we went for a bike ride to the farmer's market and saw this:

 

I've seen lots of yarn-bombing, but never anything quite as intricate (except in pictures).  It was tucked away off a bike trail in the woods, near a little rest area.  It made my heart smile.  I hope I see more great work like this over the summer!

<3

Etsy Weekly Wants #5: Autumn Camping

We're leaving for one of our last camping trips of the season after work today. It makes me sad, but it's also getting chilly pretty quickly, so I'll be more than happy to stay in the house this winter curled up under a blanket. After a summer of HOT camping, I forget what it's like to be in the woods in the autumn, so I'm under-prepared... and under-dressed. 

Here are some things I'd love to have in the forest when it's cooler out: 

A poncho! I'd love a soft, comfy knitted one to wear for hiking or sitting around the fire. This one by Mychicaccessories looks cozy and comfy for a camping trip!

A Thermos for early morning hikes and coffee. Sitting in the woods with a big cup of warm coffee sounds perfect! This one is from vintageretros. Plus, those metal camping mugs aren't exactly functional; I seem to burn myself every time I use them!

I really like this wool blanket from aneedleinthehay. It looks warm, comfortable, and good for spreading out on the ground while drinking that hot coffee!

A camera case by janinekingdesigns. Because who needs to lug around a whole purse while hiking? Not me! BTW, I love owls.

Travel Scrabble!! I'm a Scrabble fanatic, so sometimes it's hard to get people to play with me... but if it rains and you're stuck in a tent, this is perfect! Hours of fun (at least in my opinion). This one's from LaneEndVintage.

Alright, off to finish my last hours of work, and then away for the weekend! 

PS It's the last day of summer today!

Thrift find: owl wall hanging

Last weekend we went to the social event of the town: an antique car show.  After our brief venture and a beer, we went into an antique shop that had stayed open late for the evening.  I haven't spent much time in the many shops downtown yet, despite them being a few blocks away.  I guess I miss my favorite thrifting spot in my old neighborhood. 

Anyways, we stopped at this new place and saw the best picture ever.  Owls, tree silhouette, olive green.  I'm so glad we snagged it because it's just perfect.

My favorite owl is the top one- he looks like my Dexter:

Eh, eh?  See the resemblance?  Big, spazzy eyes and pointy ears.  Anyways, I love this piece and seeing it on our wall.  Looks like I'll have to give these new antique shops a chance, even if they're not the one I used to frequent and love.  I can still go back and visit... just not every week.

Road trip 2012, part 6: Backpacking (the flowers)

Mushroom yard

I was outside the other day, trimming hedges so the sidewalk in front of the house would be walkable for our neighbors, and noticed some cute things around the yard.  It had been so hot most of the summer, that outdoor exploring time has been pretty limited.  Now that it's been cooler, I feel like I can leisurely stroll around and discover those little details.

When I looked down in the grass, I realized there were mushrooms everywhere!

I started picking them since the lawn mowing company was coming the next day, and then they'd all be smushed.  

I like the red and white ones best, but they'd crumble apart really easily when I'd try to pull them out of the ground.

Some were so tiny you can barely see them in the pictures.

It (finally!) rained today, so I'm hoping that means a fresh batch of mushrooms will be popping up this week!

Road trip 2012, part 5: Backpacking (the descent)

After our evening in the mountains, it was time to head back to the gravel lot we hiked from.  We were expecting it to go pretty quickly (and easily) since most of the hike would be downhill and shorter than the path up, but it didn't quite work out like that.

We started off rather leisurely, posing for pictures with mountains in the background, taking our time to enjoy the scenery, sun, and moderate temperatures.

We used a log as the mount for this picture.

As we continued, we realized that this trail (which was described as "not appropriate for horse travel") was difficult, even (especially?) downhill.  There were narrow trails, loose rock, and steep inclines.

We crossed this creek many times throughout the hike.  An easy and enjoyable task.

And enjoyed breathtaking views, completely unique from those on the hike up the previous day.  As we made our way down, we saw a lot of people.  It was pretty scarce initially, but a few hours into the walk, we were seeing families, couples, and large groups of kids from local summer camps, making the hike up.  There were not, however, other backpackers.

The common destination seemed to be this:

We didn't linger like the other hikers, we were ready to get back to our car and be on the way.  After the waterfall, the terrain got smoother, but then we were up and down smaller hills.  Totally energy sucking at this point.  

After five or six hours we'd made it!  Back to the car, down the road, and to Mark's boss's house for showers, laundry, and a real bed.  <3

Road trip 2012, part 4: Backpacking (the campsite)

Once we got to the end of the trail, it was time to find a spot to camp.  The conditions were: 200+ feet from water (the requirements for having a campfire), a flat spot for the tent, and away from people.  Despite the fact that we only encountered three people on the hike up, there were two other camps set up by the lake when we got there.  Really, not so bad, but we wanted to have a little privacy. 

And we found a lovely spot!  It came complete with an established fire pit, flat area for the tent, and that view!  I mean, really, what is better than that?!

Once we got set up, we realized how chilly it was, so we got ready to start a fire.  I'd been collecting this stuff on our hike up:

Mark said Bear Grylls from Man vs. Wild suggested it for a fire starter, so I filled my pockets with it as we hiked.  I was so proud of how much I gathered, but collecting wood proved much more challenging.  Turns out, we could have fires because there had been so much rain recently, so dry wood was tough to find.  Once we'd collected enough (which took a lot of effort because we would get so winded from the altitude) it started raining.  Seriously.  Rain and hail.  Not a lot, but enough to soak any wood we didn't cover with our bodies or put under the trees. 

Despite that, Mark started a fire.  I was so proud of him.  I nearly cried after it rained because I've never seen a fire start after that sort of weather, but he did it and it saved the evening.  It was cold and that was what we needed.  

The sun barely set by the time we were bundled up in our sleeping bags, ready to rest our cold, exhausted bodies.  We wanted to look at the stars, but our eyes barely allowed it, minus a mid-eve wake-up to (sorry for this) pee on a tree. 

And this was our morning site.  The sun coming over the mountains, reflecting oh-so-perfectly on the still lake. 

We ate some breakfast, and then were on our way!  Pictures of the hike down to come soon.