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Spring Morel Mushroom Hunting in the Canadian Prairies

close up of Spring Morel Mushroom
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Spring Morel Mushroom Hunting

Hunting the elusive morel mushroom in the Canadian prairie during the springtime is a family tradition that is as imprinted in my memory as my own name. The only memory that can hold a close second to mushroom hunting is fishing, as I outlined in my recent post My First Authentic Canadian Food Memory: Wild Caught Fish.

While we have foraged various types of mushrooms growing up the Morel remains the most sought after one, a true family favorite. Morels grow for a mere few weeks in the springtime, if they grow at all. Finding any mushroom is hard enough for a forager but Morels take the cake for elusiveness.

Morel mushrooms grow when they want, where they want and it’s never the same year to year. You may be lucky enough to find your lucky morel picking patch, but even that won’t guarantee that those brown beauties will be there next year. Morels depend on so many magic factors all happening at one time that even having a patch means that you have to check them almost bi-weekly in the spring. They will grow once and be done with it for another year.

Morel mushroom hunting is one tradition that didn’t fall by the wayside as much when I had my children. I’ve still managed to get out every second year or so to hunt them, sometimes in Alberta and sometimes in Manitoba on trips back to see family.

I never stop looking down at the ground in the springtime, even walking in the River Valley here in Edmonton, there’s always something to be found.

Plus my own feet to trip over, of course. Looking down and to the side has its disadvantages when you are clutzy like I am.

The family tradition of picking morels has been passed on to my children without intention. It’s simply what I do, just as it’s simply what my mother did and my grandma, and so on down the family lines. Spring comes, you forage morels. Teaching children to fish has more intention to it, more planning involved. Foraging mushrooms happens on a simple walk to the park, or a quick stop at the side of the road because the time of year and natural area is just right.

My sister and I took the my kids back to visit my Grandma in Dauphin when my daughter was a few months old and my son just over 2. It was a beautiful Manitoba spring and we managed to fit in some morel hunting along the way.

This would be my son picking his very first morel, simply because we knew that the time was right in Manitoba and my sister and I saw plant habitat on the side of the road that was just right for morels.

It almost cannot be taught, but ingrained into you.

a kid picking up spring morel mushroom with his mom

Mr K with his first haul of morels. His sister was napping the car seat as we foraged the side of the ditch in rural Pine River area in southern Manitoba.

little kid holding a pack of morel mushroom, a baby beside him

The year we went back to Manitoba for my Grandma’s funeral, we went out morel picking with my Aunt and cousin Cody as well. It’s just what my family does in the springtime. If you get us all together and in one place during morel season – even if it’s for a funeral-  you can bet that a group of us will most certainly be going out mushrooming.

Oh, be still my breaking Mama’s heart, he’s so little here. I want my too-tall nine-year old boy to be this little again, a sweet little three-year old angel.

two boys in the forest holding white buckets

Why put mushrooms in buckets when you can wear them?

two little boys walking while wearing the buckets in their heads

It’s official. My heart just can’t take it. I’m going to now go and dig in the bins of baby clothes, hug and smell their baby blankets and try to ignore the fact that I want a baby.

little kid's bucket with some pieces of morel mushrooms

Oh, but if they are babies they can’t go hunting Morels. I need to remind myself every now and then why having children that are through and done with their toddler years is wonderful.

My beautiful seven-year old morel hunting girlie was out kicking butt and taking ‘shroom numbers this past weekend. Those morels didn’t stand a chance. How beautiful it is to see another generation of children in my family learning the ways of the spring Morel hunt, and that I get to be the one guiding my children in this journey is a gift beyond measure.

She can stay this size now.  This is just right.

little girl picking up morel mushroom

Tomorrow I will be posting some insight on how to find those elusive morels, not that I am an expert by any means. However I found that when I was sharing pictures on my Facebook page that I received many questions on where to find them.

Don’t expect that I’ll be giving away my secret spots, however I did take a lot of photos in the hopes of helping others learn what to look for when picking areas to search for those elusive beauties known as Morels.

Does your family have any foraging traditions? Any mushrooms that you pick every year?

I’m now off to smell those baby blankets and convince myself that I don’t need another child.

Love,

Karlynn

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Karlynn Johnston

Iā€™m a busy mom of two, wife & cookbook author who loves creating fast, fresh meals for my little family on the Canadian prairies. Karlynn Facts: I'm allergic to broccoli. I've never met a cocktail that I didn't like. I would rather burn down my house than clean it. Most of all, I love helping YOU get dinner ready because there's nothing more important than connecting with our loved ones around the dinner table!

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  1. Margaret or Marg for short.... says

    Yes morels grow in Manitoba- but NOT in the NORTHERN edge- more like Mid-province or closer to the southern edge……I know- I grew up in Manitoba- about 30-35 mi south of Dauphin.
    You will not find morels in the Northern edge- to cool there and most certainly more like the mid- province by now northern Manitoba is too cold for sprouting morels……especially over night!

    • Stephanie Freeman/Howell says

      I use to pick morels a few years ago around The Pas and towards Flin Flon,mb and Thompson,mb they do grow up north but usually later , maybe a couple weeks later. I now live around Brandon, and Iā€™m wondering where to even look here?

  2. JOSEPH Lewis says

    i have nephew who lives in ottawa what are the dates he should be looking for morels there

    • Jeanine says

      After the middle of May, typically. I take a week off every year just for the pleasure of hunting morels, and the third week in May has been my best bet!

  3. Frank Furter says

    So when Karlynn Johnston do we get to drink wine?

  4. Genevieve Olivier says

    We are just learning about foraging here. So I don’t know yet. Was gonna take a peek through the trails around here this week.

  5. The Kitchen Magpie says

    If Australia has morels you can bet that they will be the largest, most poisonous mushrooms every created, with 8 legs and a mouth full of teeth that eat you, instead of you eating them.

  6. Frank Furter says

    Will you teach me?
    I forage Pinot Noirs, Gris & Sauvignon Blanc. Surely we can help each other out?

  7. Karlynn Johnston says

    Try a morel, they can be found fresh this time of year. Make them into a cream sauce, it will change your life!

  8. Rambling Tart says

    I love this post. šŸ™‚ I dream of hunting for mushrooms and cooking with mushrooms and photographing mushrooms but there’s just one hitch – I can’t abide mushrooms. šŸ™‚ I keep trying and trying to like them, to find some redeeming quality in their texture and flavor, but alas, it just hasn’t happened for me. I do have hope though, for I once felt the same way about olives and now I LOVE them. šŸ™‚ I shall keep trying.

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