[Regionnaire]

Aspens, poplar and cottonwood are trees that I’d target for blacks. Admittedly tho, I haven’t bothered much with black morels because, in my limited experience with them, they don’t grow in mass clusters like greys and blondes do so I always end up walking all day for a dozen or so. When I find greys and blondes, I can hit a couple trees for several dozen or more.

When looking for blacks down here (NW IN), ash trees are definitely my favorite. I might be crazy, but I think it's because they wake up before the poplars and elms. With last year's weather, I had a lot of spots pop dozens in a relatively small area, then do it again just west (or north) of the first spot. Never clusters, but easy pickins. It was the yellows that were spaced out.

Not so this season...I'm probably down at least 500 true blacks compared to last year and it's early start. With this upcoming weather, I'll find some, but I'll be lucky to break 150 for the year (and I hunt blacks regularly). Now, I need to remember where my late season yellow spots are, considering it's been almost 4 years since we had such a late start.

 

[Regionnaire]

Hey Glenn, here in NW IN, they're still popping. I'm posting this here for you instead of replying to the IN thread cuz I don't want a lot of weekend duffers and non-members down here to know....

One of my favorite forests (Porter Co.) just handed me my first finds today, and many were blacks or grey/yellow tulips. I do have a couple of forests farther away from the lake that are winding down, but even there I'm still finding blacks, black half-free, greys, and only a few yellows. The average forest canopy around here is still just slightly less than 50% full, and the yellows are just waiting for the shade at this point. I'm taking a new member to Potato Creek State Park on Thursday (near South Bend), and I think I'm timing it right.

The forests closer to the lake are going to start by this weekend, both around here, and in Berrien Co. (which I visited yesterday). Next week's temps are supposed to be around normal, so you still have a season coming...patience, grasshopper!

Edit:
Forgot to mention, I found 174 today.

 

[Regionnaire]

What size forest did you find those in (roughly)?

 

[Regionnaire]

Mushrooms love warm, humid nights...I had the same thing happen with a spot I checked yesterday, and had a few other morels double in size

 

[Regionnaire]

Glenn,
I went out briefly mid-morning to check a couple Porter Co. spots down here. I just had another forest provide me with my first finds, and most were blacks once again. 23 in one, and another 8 where I stopped yesterday afternoon...almost all black. I can't believe how much heat these places needed. I though I was going to completely lose out on my early spots, but here they come!

Be patient up there, guys...it's taking longer to flush than even I thought.

 

[Regionnaire]

Started to find yellows down here in NW IN with some regularity today. They're hiding in the ground cover, or getting sunburned after 1 day. Once this front passes, I think next week is actually going to be pretty solid down here. Shhh...don't tell anybody!

 

[Regionnaire]

If you guys haven't already, you might want to hop on over to the Indiana thread and read Wade's post.

 

[Regionnaire]

Still finding some here and there in NW IN...and still on the east side of the forests. My late spots haven't shown any signs, and my end of season indicators haven't popped yet. If we get some rain, we might have one more flush coming. I may take a couple days off because of my knee, but I'll hopefully get out again by mid-week to check around here, and give Berrien Co. another look.

 

[Regionnaire]

Anybody finding anything in Ottawa?

 

[Regionnaire]

Savage! New growth is a great sign.
What a nice pile of perfect Pure Michigan morchella!

SW MI got 0.10" today with a little more in the mail.
If we get it, I'm gonna be ALL BUSINESS this week!

Please let me know if you get more rain in the SW...especially tonight. It might spur me into taking a drive.

 

[Regionnaire]

I think based on all factors, you should try Berrien Co sometime this week.

That's where I'd be heading. I really want to go to Ottawa, but don't think I'll make it that far this year. Berrien has some nice looking forests and I have yet to catch them in stride. I may have 1 all-day hike left in me if they pop

Thanks for the info

 

[Regionnaire]

Think I might give Berrien a go tomorrow...closer to the lake.

 

[Regionnaire]

This is yesterdays picking 3 pounds. Emmet County. Picked 6 pounds this weekend.

Go get 'em, Glenn! Make up for the mediocre (at best) seasons we had down here

 

[Regionnaire]

View attachment 43484 View attachment 43476 View attachment 43477 View attachment 43478 View attachment 43479 View attachment 43480 View attachment 43481 View attachment 43482 View attachment 43483 View attachment 43484 View attachment 43485

Another large forest I assume? How far in? East side or have they moved west/north?

 

[Regionnaire]

.

Alright, dammit! Goin' out at dawn. If I don't find much by 8am down here, I'm headed north. Think I'll stay closer to Union Pier to start, and maybe work up to Sawyer if there's time. Just a fraction of what Bung found would make me really happy. My total # of finds in Michigan over my life stands at 2. lol

As many of you know, I'm seasoned. That said, any advice on what's going on up there is greatly appreciated.

 

[Regionnaire]

Yo bro! Everything is in peak season here in Oakland County (NNW of Detroit). If you target the proper trees for this area, you will be successful like me…..🤣
Oddly enough, most of my hundred-some haul today was in places where someone else had picked. I too am seasoned and I suspect that a lot of hunters went out last week when the majority of the morels in my area were still small and they simply didn’t see them. After the heat wave and rain, they’ve grown to sizes that are easy to see even in tall undergrowth.

I have to constantly adjust down here. This year, most of my finds have been around east-side poplars, whereas last year it was all ash and hillsides/bottoms. 2019 was elms, cottonwood and hilltops.

Sometimes timing is difficult with the lake effect. I love my 100+ morel days, but I'll be happy just finding a new hole or two up there. Gonna hit a bigger forest, figuring there's less traffic and trampled ground. I'll probably go where I ran into the big 'ol blue racer a week-and-a-half ago

 

[Regionnaire]

I was in a conversation with someone else, and this old mushroom came up. I know it's not a sponge, but it was the biggest morel I ever found...

 

[Regionnaire]

Well, I found 8 down here in La Porte Co. before 8am, but went up to MI and didn't find anything before my knee gave out. It's pretty bad this time so I doubt I do any more searching this year.

I looked near Union Pier and Sawyer, Michigan, but being so close to the lake is always tricky. The places I walked looked promising enough to try again in the future, and the canopy still had some filling in to do. The ground cover was tall, but more manageable than around me.

I probably should've gone a little further inland...I had a park picked out to go as the next stop, but the knee said "no". If I had gone there first, I think my chances would've been pretty good. Oh well.

 

[Regionnaire]

We’ll my Dad was with me so it was MOSTLY business 😂 he moves slower these days, which means I do too when he’s with me, but I’m not complaining, he’s the one that got me into mushroom hunting, something I’m extremely grateful for. Anyway I’m in western washtenaw county

Holy S#!t! You're that far south? Now I really think if I had gone inland I would've done well. I almost hate to hear that cuz you might make me put my knee to the test

 

[Regionnaire]

Looks like the E/SE side of the state really benefited from that passing storm over the weekend! We got a touch in SW, but not like you guys.
I saw the storms get more organized mid state and East to Detroit. Nice!

Supposed to have a little rain tomorrow and a 1 day warm-up...maybe it'll help. The trees were looking great in Berrien, but not much to be seen. There were more oaks than I usually like to see, but one forest had a crazy amount of mature poplars on the east side.
I think I was just too close to the lake. 15-20 miles more inland, and things might've been different cuz I searched pretty hard for the amount of time I was out.,,probably put in a good 6-7 miles off-path.