Went up for our first mushroom hunt of the year in spite of dry conditions. The forest floor was almost absent of any kind of fungus. I did see a couple of defunct Lobster mushrooms. Our dependable "Chicken of the Woods" log was shriveled and dried from an earlier bloom during a brief damp period. Even the seeps and low areas were devoid of mushrooms. The air was thick with smoke from a forest fire south and east on the Cascade Crest. Unfortunately the smoke is headed west and north to where I live. Should be there all this weekend. We headed out early because the smoke was so irritating. We had to "Thread the Needle" through a fallen tree on a high pass on a shortcut to the main highways. Wish I had all the firewood even from just the cut away portion! We badly need rain for the fire danger as well as the mushrooms! Smoke so bad we could barely see Mt. Rainier!
Man, I'd want some of that wood too! Limits on cutting activities I take it? Any chance for scrounging later on? Smoky but beautiful!
Thats a nice size tree... .... almost manageable .... .... Thanks for taking the pictures, even though smokey still beautiful....
You are correct. No work in the woods right now and severe restrictions on camping with hunting season coming up. I imagine I could eventually get a cutting permit for that area when it is wetter but way to far to go and a lot of wood is available close in right now.
Not to mention the competition! I bet everyone taking that route is drooling over that tree! Just looking at all that straight grain I can imagine the "pop" as you split it.
Ugg, sorry about the smoke, we were smoky here yesterday and the day before from CA, WA, MT and UT fires.
