Dudes, if you’ve never gone mushroom hunting in Kentucky, you’re missing out.

Every spring, when the woods start waking up, I grab a small bag and start walking the hardwood ridges. I’m mostly looking for Morel mushroom, which is basically the holy grail of spring mushrooms around here.

Once you find your first one, you’re hooked.

Most days I start on south-facing slopes where the ground warms up first. I look around dead or dying trees, especially old elms and ash, and I’ll work my way down toward creek bottoms.

You’re not just wandering the woods.

You’re scanning the ground like a metal detector.

When you finally spot that weird little honeycomb cap sticking out of the leaves, it feels like you just found buried treasure.

The funny thing about mushroom hunting is how it changes the way you move through the woods.

You start noticing everything.

Old deer trails. Bedding cover. Terrain funnels. Places you might never have paid attention to before.

Half the time I feel like I’m accidentally scouting for deer season while I’m looking for mushrooms.

I also cheat a little.

I use Picture Mushroom to help identify species and log where I find them. It’s basically a cheat code for learning different mushrooms without guessing.

Morels usually start popping when:

In other words, the same time everything else in Kentucky starts waking up.

When the woods hit that sweet spot, it’s game on.

Morels get all the attention, but they’re not the only mushrooms people chase. Around Kentucky, foragers commonly look for:

Some are better eating than others, but they’re all part of the fun.

Truthfully, mushroom hunting isn’t really about the mushrooms.

It’s just a good excuse to walk the woods when everything starts turning green again.

And every once in a while… you get dinner out of it.