Here in Boyne City, Michigan, mushroom hunting is a big thing. In the spring when the woods are just beginning to wake up from winter, using a mesh bag (to keep from crushing the delicate fungi, and also to allow spores to escape) you wander through the woods. When you first glimpse one it looks like an oddly shaped leaf. As you walk closer thing start to take a more distinct shape. Some people have trouble seeing them even when they're standing right on top of them. I think its a matter of how fast your eyes focus when you move your head from side to side. The first ones out in the spring are the black morels (another view). The false cap is not a true morel, although it may look like one at first glance. The cap is separated from the stem and the interior of the stem is filled with fuzzy matter. People tend to be more allergic of false caps than to true morels, and so it is usually suggested to eat with caution. The beefsteak mushroom also is not a morel, and great care should be taken, as ingestion may be fatal. When the black morels are starting to disappear from the woods, the white morel is just beginning to start. They tend to be larger and meatier than the blacks, with a slightly different flavor. Another side benefit of mushroom hunting is the wild leek. This wild onion is at its best in the spring during the same time as morels are out. Sweeter (and stronger smelling) than regular onions, they are a delicacy that goes with that wonderful time of year. Once you have returned home with your find slice the mushrooms in two (top to bottom) and let soak overnight in salt water to kill any bugs that might be hidden inside. After a final washing, they are wonderful sauteed, rolled in flour and fried, or even dipped in batter and then fried.
