Chanterelle time for MOTW, and discussing the difference between hunting chanterelles and morels

Time is right for a mid-summer Mushroom of the Week.

“It’s late July and it’s chanterelle time,” Jay Damm emailed Saturday. “Last week’s abundant rainfall told me it was time to check my usual spot in Will County. Sure enough, I found plenty to eat. It hasn’t been a banner year so far, but more than enough for the table.”

He made an important distinction, “I do enjoy the slower, more relaxed pace of chanterelle hunting compared to the fevered competitiveness of morel hunting. When chanterelles are out, they’re often plentiful and one can afford to be picky with regards to size and quality, plus there’s not nearly as many people hunting them as there are hunting morels.”

MOTW, the celebration of celebration of mushrooms around Chicago outdoors, and their stories (the stories matter, as this one shows), run as apt in the paper Sun-Times. The online posting here at chicago.suntimes.com/outdoors goes up when apt.

To make submissions, email (BowmanOutside@gmail.com) or contact me on Facebook (Dale Bowman), Twitter (@BowmanOutside) or Instagram (@BowmanOutside).