The 17th Annual BAMS /
Point Reyes National Seashore
Fungus Fair
Sunday, January 7, 2024
10 am to 4 pm
Fungi Collecting Day on Saturday, January 6, 2024
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 6, 2024
10 am to 2 pm
10 am: Park visitors and the mushroom curious are invited to gather at 10 am on Saturday, January 6, 2024 at the Bear Valley Visitor Center for 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.
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 7, 2024
10 am to 4 pm
During the 17th Annual Fungus Fair on Sunday, January 7, 2024, 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 2024, the following talks are scheduled:
11 am "Underground Fungal Connections" by David Rust
12:30 pm "Amanitarita's Freaky and Fabulous Fungi" by Debbie Viess
2 pm "Pyrophilous pioneers: how fungi survive and thrive after fire" by Monika Fischer
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 (i.e., 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.
