The 18th Annual BAMS /
Point Reyes National Seashore
Fungus Fair
Sunday, January 12, 2025
10 am to 4 pm
Ever wonder about all those mushrooms you've seen in the grasslands and forests at Point Reyes National Seashore? The Fungus Fair is a perfect opportunity to see them up close and learn more about them.
Since 2005, fungi have been gathered by volunteers who collect, identify, and catalog mushrooms for an ongoing study at the Point Reyes National Seashore.
Fungi Collecting Foray
Saturday, January 11, 2025
10 am to 3 pm
10 am: Park visitors and the mushroom curious are invited to gather at 10 am on Saturday, January 11, 2025, at the Bear Valley Visitor Center. Please arrive well before 10 am so that you are in attendance for when coordinators provide instructions on how to collect fungi for Sunday's Fungus Fair. Bring bags or baskets and ways to keep collections separate (wax-paper works best). A pocket knife or trowel can help you to get entire mushrooms. Please document your collections, by noting habitat and location. Collecting labels will be provided. We cannot promise guided forays, and this is NOT about collecting edibles. In fact, we'd like to see any mushrooms, edible or not, donated for displays in our Fair. Please leave pets at home.
1 pm to 3 pm: Bring your mushrooms to the Red Barn. We will ID your finds, and select the most beautiful and interesting and unusual examples for our Fair the next day.
Experienced collectors are welcome to go out on their own at any time—just be sure and bring your collections to the Red Barn before 3 pm.
Fungus Fair
Sunday, January 12, 2025
10 am to 4 pm
During the 18th Annual Fungus Fair on Sunday, January 12, 2025, wild mushrooms collected in the park will be on display on the south porch of the Bear Valley Visitor Center with several mushroom-related exhibits inside the visitor center. We will also have presentations in the auditorium throughout the day. Roving Mushroom Ambassadors will be available to answer your questions, both indoors and out. Bring mushrooms you've found and are curious about. This is a free event, open to all.
Presentations
For 2025, the following talks are scheduled:
11 am "Try it and See: The Story Behind the Discovery of Mushroom Dyes."
This beautiful film showcases the early work of two well known Mendocino mycologists, the pioneering mushroom dyer Mirium Rice, and her watercolor artist partner, Dorothy Beebee, as they explore, document, illustrate and publish groundbreaking information on using mushrooms for dying wool and silk. Produced by Dorothy's children Myra and Martin BeeBee. Premiered at the 2024 Mendocino Mushroom Festival.
12:30 pm "Zen and the Art of Mushroom Hunting" by Debbie Viess
A lighthearted look at the beauty and wonder of the fungi that surrounds us, illustrated with spectacular photos and peppered with first hand stories. Expect to be amazed and amused!
2 pm "Fungi through Time" by Cat Adams, PhD
Cat will present tantalizing vignettes about the role of fungi in historically important moments. Was Roman Emperor Claudius really taken down by a death cap mushroom? How did 17th century people first start growing button mushrooms in the catacombs under Paris? Was a fungal contaminant really to blame for the Salem Witch Trials? Find out all this and more in this fun, photo-filled lecture!
Directions
For directions and a map to help you get to the Bear Valley Visitor Center, visit our Directions page.
Parking
To help reduce traffic congestion in the paved parking lot adjacent to the Bear Valley Visitor Center, please park your vehicle(s) in the gravel, trailhead/picnic area parking lot on the left (east) side of the access road close to the Bear Valley Trailhead. Parking is free. Download the Bear Valley Area Map (504 KB PDF), which shows the location of the trailhead parking lot relative to the Bear Valley Visitor Center.
There are specific legal guidelines for mushroom collecting. Please visit the Collecting section on the Park Regulations page.
Please note: employee housing as well as park administrative, maintenance, operations, and storage facilities, including, but not limited, to access roads, outbuildings, grounds, and docks, are closed to public use.
Mushroom Poisonings
No mushroom should be eaten unless it can first be positively identified as edible. Learning to identify mushrooms in their many guises takes time, and reliable resources. The best way to learn about mushrooms is through local field guides and mushroom societies. Visit the Bay Area Mycological Society's Mushroom Poisonings page for more information on identifying the three most deadly mushrooms in California.
415-464-5100
This number will initially be answered by an automated attendant, from which one can opt to access a name directory, listen to recorded information about the park (e.g., directions to the park; visitor center hours of operation; fire danger information; wildlife updates; ranger-led programs; seasonal events; etc.), or speak with a ranger. Please note that if you are calling between 4:30 pm and 10 am, park staff may not be available to answer your call.
