Fall is a mushroom hunter’s dream in the Pacific Northwest. Despite the assurances of Alexander Schwab’s “Mushrooming Without Fear,” or those of a friend who learned to forage at her grandfather’s knee, the cautious person approaches hunting wild mushrooms with a healthy dose of skepticism about what is edible. Nevertheless, on the Olympic Peninsula, it is a hard person indeed who can resist the lure of deep forest trails and the promise of culinary treasure.

Armed with an omnivore’s openness and a habit of talking with strangers about food, this reporter started where anyone might begin: at the Port Townsend Farmers’ Market. At first, it did not go well. One vendor scoffed at the suggestion that he offer a mushroom foray to clients. “Why reveal my secret spots?” he asked.

Overhearing this exchange, Jason Maloney of Brinnon’s Duckabush Mushrooms offered an idea: why not join a foray organized through his wife’s outfit, Hood Canal Adventures?

Hood Canal Adventures is an ecotourism company based in Brinnon. Fisheries and marine biologist Christina Maloney founded a small kayak rental business in 2008. The business grew. Maloney now offers a menu of educational excursions in the forest, on the beaches and along estuaries and tide pools. The spring and summer months offer kayak and forest foraging tours, and waterfall excursions can be booked in winter. Wild mushroom field tours take place from October through December.

Maloney works with a team of foraging experts, naturalists and biologists. One of those enthusiasts is Jerry Novak.

Novak led a group of about a dozen foragers (and one happy dog) along a trail of old second-growth forest one autumnal day. He described himself as a mushroom hunter of many years, having become “hooked” as a kid of 14. Novak’s dedication to the pursuit of fungi seemed genuine: he reported that he had returned from a multi-day hunt in the Cascades the previous night with a few specimens new to him.

Beginning with a basket of mushrooms he had brought, Novak demonstrated the features of various types, from shaggy Lion’s Mane to golden, trumpet-shaped Chanterelle. He pointed out how to proceed when evaluating the characteristics of a mushroom: its form, texture, and how it breaks apart. It was clear that the business of identifying a mushroom requires fine-tuned discernment. Novak made it clear that even the experts differ on what procedures are sufficient to conclusively identify a mushroom.

“There are six genetically distinct honey mushrooms that all share the same attributes,” Novak said, “So if you are, you know, going through your field guide trying to figure this out, you may not have the edible one, and there’s really no way to know. . . unless you’ve got the genetic profile or whatever.”

Still, Novak pointed out, “You can’t die by handling a mushroom.” He added that there are “less than half a dozen truly toxic, potentially life-threatening species. . . really only three for our area.” He added, “It is a lot easier to learn those three or four rather than the 300 edible ones you are looking to find.”

Novak was clear: given the huge number of mushroom species and their different effects on different people, it is important to verify in multiple ways, and never to eat something without certainty. In some case, even the fiber content of a mushroom is intolerable. He acknowledged that in spite of his years of experience, he approaches an unfamiliar mushroom with caution, and plans for a “sick day,” just in case. That was enough caution to put this reporter on notice.

As Novak led the foraging group along a trail through the damp forest, it became apparent that  the hunt would yield a wide variety of fungi for examination. Members of the group, some experienced foragers, discovered at least a dozen different varieties near the trail, some edible, some toxic. Most took photographs. Others, armed with baskets and books purchased at Hood Canal Adventures’ base camp store, spread out to collect specimens. Novak was enthusiastic about the breadth of the haul: “This is the best year I’ve seen in a while,” he said.

As the group gathered to compare finds, Novak found a moment to reflect on the importance of ethical mushroom hunting. Holding a large, heavy mushroom he had found discarded by some previous passerby at the side of the trail, he grew serious. Pointing out the age of the woody specimen, he described the network of information that exists between mushrooms and trees and how they depend upon each other.

Returning to the trailhead, the group fell silent, perhaps reflective. It had become clear that it takes a mind for precision to peer into the world of mushrooms, and to learn what is edible. But beyond the hunt for delicious morsels, the day’s foray had also yielded food for thought.