Searching for Champignons

I set the alarm for 6AM and arose in the deep dark to stumble about and dress for today’s adventure. John decided it was not for him so he rolled over for another few of hours sleep. Downstairs Claude and Myriam were just getting the coffee ready and with a quick caffeine and a few fresh figs & yoghurt we were ready for Nicole to arrive. She would be our guide today in searching the forest for edible mushrooms, a delicacy highly sought after in this country. The three of us drove through twisting and narrow roads to Montesquieu Volvestre where we picked up Didier, another member of the Champignon Club whose members are devoted to the art of identification and ecological gathering of these delicious forest fungi. Into the hills we drove in the early dawn with a pink and coral streaked sky on the horizon. Beyond the village of Fabas we arrived at a public forest where foraging is permitted. A single black cat met us in the parking lot and carrying baskets & knives for cutting, wearing good boots for the terrain and coats against the chill we enjoyed a tailgate coffee courtesy of Nicole, a wonderful woman, so organized as to provide us a hot drink and a delicious anise pastry with origins Espagne. 

The Early Morning Greeter

The Professor Checks Basket Contents

Nicole, our guide with the delicious Cepe

A very large Cepe found to envy by Didier

The wnderful loaned boots and trusty baton

Searching for champignons is challenging due to the terrain (steep) the undergrowth (tangled underfoot) and their colour...which blends with the forest floor. The stick or baton is especially helpful in lifting underbrush and popping open the chestnuts that have fallen, still in their bristled coats, which we were also gathering. Fungi finds came quickly...Nicole and Didier are sharp-eyed and experienced searchers as is Myriam. Being a country girl I to adjusted to the search and we found some excellent specimens. Some very large, weighing 200grams or possibly more. There is much to learn about what will kill you or make you very ill. The knife is used for cutting the bottom of the stem to determine if it is yellow followed by a blue stain or another colour. Some stems are white, some undersides are yellow, tops speckled with wart-like pebbling. We saw red veined stems, silky brown tops, rounded chapeaus and many flat-topped. All these indictors and many more mean something important. I will never trust myself to be an expert, so it was confidence inspiring when we met 3 other gatherers known to Nicole one being a Professor of Botany and a true expert on champignons. He carefully explained to all of us, in French, good indictors of safety and examined each of our baskets to see if we would live or die. Having thrown away all those that were deadly or tasted of soap we proceeded onward fanning out between the trees to find more. I came upon several good eating ones including a beautiful cepe which is highly favoured. Four hours plus passed swiftly and a wonderful array of mushrooms and chestnuts were collected by our little group. Thank you to Nicole for a great experience and the most comfortable pair of boots loaned and gratefully worn by me.