#fungifriday; The Last Song

I didn’t set out this morning planning on looking for mushrooms, taking pictures, or even writing about them. I was actually going to do a post about my lawn mower, lame!

Yet, here we are so get ready for my #FungiFriday fun challenge by @ewkaw.

It was still dark out this morning after I dropped the kids off at kindergarten at 7:45, and I had my dog along with me. He normally rides along it’s my way of getting him used to strangers as we live alone in the country.

Pulling out of the parking lot and heading towards home something stopped me. There was an inward push for me to head out the the town forest were I usually walk foraging for mushrooms.

I guess I have a little time, I thought as I turned the car around.

Now the sun was slowly coming up and smothered by a dense patch of fog turning the forest atmosphere into an orange tinted hue with underlying mossy green tones.

My dog and I walked out to my normal spot but I could already sense my magical friends (Amanita muscaria) had left, it was an empty hall.

There was still a feeling of energy there, however it was different. The was a resonate echo in the air, but the source of energy had left.

The feeling reminded me of when I used to visit Civil War battlefields in the in United States. You could just feel that something significant had taken place.

I wasn’t searching for mushrooms, I was just walking and noticing the sensations around me. I thought about the first Amanita I found this season (only a short few weeks ago) and the childish glee I felt popping around the forest filled with energy and curiosity, the forest still fresh and filled with summer.

Now I had the mentality of a wise old man. Slowly perusing the autumn wood. No expectations, no excitement, just there to take it all in.

There were still fungi specimens to be seen like this very interesting circle of mushrooms. It is a species that I cannot identify and I am hoping someone here can.

Here is a close up of one of them. I think it’s a spotted toughshank, but I am think you would need to see the spores to be certain.

After a while it was time to go. The obligations of everyday life were calling me home and even though I was really enjoying listening to the silent forest, I knew it was time to leave.

On the way back to my car I came to a path that I know, but rarely venture down. I took it.

I laughed to myself and thought that there must be an Amanita down there calling me, why else would I take this way?

As the path narrowed, I went deeper and deeper into the woods. A beacon was directing me pulsating more and more intense with each step I took.

Soon, I found my self entirely off the path and wandering down a random row of trees.

There it was. A solitary, red beacon growing up through the brown forest floor. The last Amanita.

It is rare to see them alone and here it was, calling to me from miles away. It had so many things to teach me.

-@balticbadger