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Autumn: the best time to go mushroom hunting in Guara
Guara is taking on an autumnal air; the much-needed rains are returning, temperatures are dropping, and life is slowing down as the intense summer fades away. This is the time when mushroom enthusiasts take to the forests of Guara to fill their baskets with delicious mushrooms.
There are as many species of fungi and mushrooms as there are different types of landscape in Guara. If mycology is your thing, you’ll already know that every species and variety has its ideal habitat. There are mushrooms in the pine forests, which are different from those found in the kermes oak forests, oak groves or riverside woodlands.
And the great news is that in Guara we have all these types of woodland, which means there is a huge variety of mushrooms to be found.
What mushrooms can you find in the Sierra de Guara?
Autumn is the best time for mushroom picking, although Guara also has a wide variety available in spring.
Fly agaric or porcini mushrooms in pine forests; Amanita caesarea in oak, holm oak and kermes oak woods, where you can also find the famous Tuber melanosporum or black truffle (later in the winter) and even mushrooms that grow in riverside woods such as Agrocybe aegerita, better known to the general public as the poplar mushroom.
Rules for mushroom picking in the Sierra de Guara
Not only are we in a protected area where a set of rules regarding respect for the environment must be observed, but local councils such as Colungo’s require a permit to be presented in order to pick mushrooms within their municipal boundaries. The aim is to curb the excesses of some foragers who were depleting the woodland.
So, before you go mushroom picking, make sure you’re following the rules for your chosen area. To pick mushrooms there, in Colungo, all you need to do is get a ticket from the machine next to the municipal weighbridge; if you’d like more information, here’s the link: here.
The best mushroom-picking routes in the Sierra de Guara
The Cunarda-Colungo Mushroom Trail offers a great opportunity to go mushroom picking and enjoy a wonderful walk in a truly special setting. The route is just over 15 kilometres long and, apart from other attractions along the way, its main destination is the La Cunarda pine forest.
The pine forest was reforested in the 1950s and there, provided you get up early (which is essential), you’ll find porcini, yellow trumpet mushrooms, black trumpet mushrooms… But I must stress, it’s essential to get up early because you can be sure that if there’s an established mushroom-hunting route, it’ll be full of other mushroom enthusiasts looking for the same thing. If you fancy giving the route a go, you can find the details here.
In San Pelegrín, on the way to the Sierra de Sevil, you’ll find another well-known mushroom-hunting trail, covering a distance of just under 14 kilometres, during which you’ll pass through three pine forests teeming with familiar mushroom species, as well as black and white slugs, amongst others.
What’s more, where the pine and kermes oak forests meet, you might come across some magnificent chanterelles. For more information about the mushroom-hunting trail between San Pelegrín and the Sierra de Sevil, take a look here.
Tips for picking mushrooms safely
Often, when we go mushroom picking, we risk forgetting that we’re actually out in the countryside, and so we need to bear in mind a number of safety precautions. It’s exactly the same as when we go for a hike or a bike ride.
If we go mushroom picking in autumn, we need to bear several factors in mind, such as the shorter days, the possibility of sudden changes in the weather (for the worse) and the fact that, in order to fill our basket with delicious mushrooms, we will no doubt stray from the paths on quite a few occasions. And we all know that when you stray from the path in a dense forest, it’s much easier to lose your bearings and end up needing help to get back to where you started.
When it comes to mushroom picking, a pocket knife and a basket aren’t enough. You need to make sure you’re wearing proper hiking boots and have the right clothing for an outing in the great outdoors. Bear in mind that it’s more likely to rain in autumn and, as the days are getting shorter, it’s possible that night will fall before you realise it.
Therefore, in addition to the same clothing and footwear you would wear for a hike, you’ll need to bring extra warm and waterproof clothing, food in case the trip takes longer than expected, and a torch – either a handheld one or a head torch – in case you’re caught out by nightfall. Montaña Segura has produced a short guide to help you avoid getting lost or, should it happen, to ensure the situation doesn’t escalate. You can find the safety information here.
Enjoy the mushroom season in Guara
I know that the best mushroom spots are a closely guarded secret, but I’ll ask you anyway: what about you? Do you know any good places to go mushroom picking in Guara? Which ones are your favourites?
