In Their Footsteps: Mysterious Mushrooms of Clatsop County

Lewis and Clark National Historical Park, Fort Clatsop has announced the autumn 2017 In Their Footsteps free speakers series. The first program in this monthly series is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. Sunday, September 17 with Dane Osis presenting Mysterious Mushrooms of Clatsop County.

An amazing variety of fungi thrive in Clatsop County due to the area’s high precipitation and humidity. This illustrated talk will cover the rules and regulations for mushroom foraging as well as the equipment needed to collect fungi. The audience will also learn about some of the common species of both edible and poisonous mushrooms found in this area.

Dane Osis is a state park ranger at Fort Stevens State Park. After gaining a foundation in mushroom identification through several college courses, he commercially picked mushrooms in the Siskiyou and Deschutes National Forests. He has been teaching mushroom identification for the past 14 years at Fort Stevens State Park and has shared similar training at several Oregon State Parks and the Tillamook Forestry Center.

Other upcoming In Their Footsteps speaker series programs include:

-Sunday, October 15 – America’s Master Park Maker: Frederick Law Olmsted by Laurence Cotton.

-Sunday, November 19 – A Town Called Seaside by Gloria Linkey.

-Sunday, December 17 – Channeling Your Inner Lewis & Clark by Richard Brenne.

This third Sunday of the month forum is sponsored by the Lewis and Clark National Park Association and the park. These programs are held in the Netul River Room of Fort Clatsop’s visitor center and are free of charge.

For more information, call the park at (503) 861-2471.