In today’s Outing section of The Bulletin, you can read about my trip into the woods near Bend to hunt mushrooms with Bend-based rapper and mycophile — and recent addition to the Kottonmouth Kings — The Dirtball, aka David Alexander. Here’s an excerpt:
The Dirtball shows off a king bolete mushroom he found last weekend in the Swampy Lakes area near Bend. Photo by Ben.
Alexander has been hunting mushrooms for 15 years. He was introduced to the pursuit by his mother, Marlene. At one time, he sold morels to local stores and restaurants to make ends meet.
These days, he hunts mushrooms mostly for the fun of it. He dries his mushrooms and eats them throughout the year. He also sends bags to friends in the music industry.
For Alexander, though, it’s all about the joy of the hunt, which he calls a “chaotic art” for a reason.
“There are so many factors going into finding mushrooms. You’ve got time of season, temperatures, elevation, direction of growth and, you know, luck,” he said. “They grow at different areas and different times, so when you think you know where they are, you really might not.
“It’s a chase,” he continued. “It’s a mind game!”
We didn’t find a lot of mushrooms, but it’s more about the journey than the destination, right? In this case, I think that old adage applies, because I had a good time despite coming up empty.
I hope you’ll read the whole article by clicking here.
Recent Comments