One of the great things about mushrooming is how little equipment you need. A basket, a knife, a few guidebooks – that’s about it – or is it?

That makes mushrooming a great hobby compared to fishing for example. You can fully outfit yourself for less than the price of a half decent rod and reel.

Take a look at the things that I take with me when I go into the forest in the company of my friends, and the other things I carry when I am alone.

Your Basket

There’s no point going mushrooming if you don’t have something to put your mushrooms in. Even in January and Feburary, when there isn’t much about, I carry a basket – the one time I didn’t, I found about 1kg of Oyster mushrooms – that taught me a good lesson!

You shouldn’t, under any circumstances, use a plastic bag. The mushrooms that you find will need to breath – in a plastic bag, some might go off (or start to ferment) which might make them dangerous to eat. Besides, being stuffed in a bag isn’t going to do much for the condition of any but the hardiest of mushrooms. I do meet people in the forest who use open string bags. Their mushrooms tend to be cooked as soon as they get home and then frozen as the basis for a sauce – thus the physical condition doesn’t matter too much.

I spent about 15 Euros on my basket. The handle came off after about 1 year’s hard use. I attached a bit of rope and it works fine for me. You can spend an awful lot on a basket – one day, I shall. I think that the ideal basket would be kidney shaped with pockets on the outside to hold the notebook, compass, field guides etc.

Your Knife

A good knife will make your mushrooming trips a pleasure. If possible, it should have a brush on the end so that you can clean the mushrooms before putting them into your basket – this will help keep the other mushrooms clean, as well. I spent 28 Euros on a beautiful knife (seen here, not quite as clean as it should be).

Whether you spend as much, you should ensure that it is a foldable knife (there’s no excuse for carrying a hunting knife), that the blade is sharp and thicker near the handle (but thin at the tip) – mushrooms come in an assortment of shapes and sizes and your knife shold be able to handle them all.

I suppose that I should say that your knife will last longer if you keep it clean and sharp but, looking at that photo, it might sound like hypocrisy.

If your knife doesn’t have a brush, you can make one from a small paintbrush – just cut the bristles to about an inch long.

Your Compass

You really should carry a compass if you go into a forest. I have been going into the Forest of Lanouee on an almost weekly basis for the last three years and I still get lost. I have an ex-militray compass which cost about 3 pounds at a car boot sale but generally use the Silva (shown in the first photo) – I found that in the forest on a day when I didn’t find any mushrooms – it seemed like it was meant to be. Please don’t use a toy compass. I used to have one and, on a very hot day in September 2005, it stopped working. I ended going round in circles and getting very dehydrated. Eventually, when I exited the forest, I had no idea where I was and couldn’t even make an informed guess as to which direction to go in, in order to get home. Eventually I found a small cottage, knocked on the door and was astounded by the kindness from the old couple who lived there. Not only did they give me a glass of water (and then a glass, or two, of something stronger) but they got their car out of the barn and gave me a lift, right to my door. Now I carry both compasses!

Your Notebook

It is worth carrying a notebook. Mine gets used to record details of finds (where, when and what) and to note down any ideas I have (the Forest is a great place for thinking). If I go into the interior of the forest (in other words, off the main tracks) I note down where I think am when I leave the track – this makes getting home for tea just that little bit easier. My notebooks seem to be full of little maps and weird comments – probably undecipherable to anyone other than me. That’s good – I don’t want anyone else knowing my secret mushrooming spots!

Your Boots

I wear wellington boots. I have tried walking boots but, even in the summer, there are parts of the forest that stay wet. What you wear is up to you; you should be aware, however, that the going might be harder than you think – it would be a shame to spoil a good mushrooming day just because you have sore feet.

Nice thick socks help, as well. I wear two pairs, a thick pair on the outside and a thinner pair on the inside – this is almost guaranteed to banish the dreaded blister.

Field Guides

I carry two field guides. As you can see from the photo, I have a few to choose from. The two I take with me answer about 80% of my questions. Both of my regular field guides are French – one is a magazine that comes out once a year, I buy a new one every year but carry the old, tatty one with me when I go into the forest. The other book is the first one that I bought, shortly after I started mushrooming. I have got to know it well and don’t even have to think about which page to look for an answer (I know, for example, the section on Russulas starts on page 87 – I have problems identifying Russulas).

I would suggest that you too, carry 2 guides but they should be small enough (and light enough) so that they don’t become a burden. Of course, if they are cheap, it won’t hurt so much when you stumble and drop them into that muddy puddle (you will, sooner or later).

The place for the heavier books and encyclopedias is at home, for you to do a second, more detailed check on any mushrooms that you are not 100% sure about.

Most of my field guides are organised by species. This is useful if you know that you have a Bolet but want to be sure which one. They are not so useful if you find a mushroom and you are not too sure which family it belongs to. I do have one encyclopedia that identifies mushrooms by colour. This is too heavy to take with me, although I often bring it along and leave it in the car. Another interesting guide, identifies mushrooms by location (i.e. what are you likely to find near Oak trees?). This hasn’t, I have to admit, been too accurate – perhaps the mushrooms in the Forest of Lanouee haven’t read the book.

The one guide that I haven’t got and that I would really like is the one that identifies mushrooms by season. In otherwords, what should you look for (and what are you likely to find) in May or June. I suppose that that guide eventually comes from your notebooks and experience – anyway, it is likely to be different for me here than it would be for you at your local mushroom heaven.

A Camera

I carry a small (and cheap) digital camera. This allows me to photograph mushrooms that I’m not too sure about, so that I can try to identify them later.

It will also come in handy when the Ceps finally arrive. The preserved memories of those dozen mushrooms, around the base of that oak tree will be a handy tonic during the sparse days of February and March when the Ceps have all been eaten

I would suggest that you don’t take an expensive camera into the forest with you (unless you’re as interested in photography as you are in mushrooms) – you’ll only drop it into that muddy puddle (or worry about doing so).

Other Things

I cart everything arond in a shoulder bag. Rucksacks don’t work for me, they tend to overbalance me and it is too fiddly to get things out when you need them. Also, because they tend to be bigger than a shoulder bag, I tend to carry too much in them.

With a shoulder bag on one side and a basket on the other, I am reasonably well balanced and can, thus, enjoy my mushrooming trips that much more.

A good cane or stick is vital. It will help you keep you balance, is vital for working your way through thick undergrowth and you won’t find much unless you have a stick to turn over leaves and poke around in the thick layer of camouflage on the forest floor. Also (and this might not be an issue for you), in the Forest of Lanouee there are snakes – I am much happier disturbing a viper sunning itself on a nice warm rock if it is a good stick’s length away!

My stick was just a branch that I found on the forest floor. I took it home, cleaned it up and cut it down to the right size (your height to your belly-button plus 6 inches). Over the last three years, the stick has grown to fit me (or have I grown to fit it?)

Going In Alone

I normally go mushrooming on my own. So, I always carry the following…
A referee’s whistle (5 Euros),
A Space Blanket (which I hope I never to have to use),
Some boiled sweets (in case I ever end up using the space blanket),
A length of thin rope (I’m not really sure why but I do know that the first time I leave it at home, I’ll find a desperate use for it),
A torch,
Toilet paper (I’m not going to go into that one!)

To sum up

I hope that you have found this article about my mushrooming equipment useful (and interesting, as well?)

If I lost it all, I could put together a similar package for about 80 Euros – it’s the books that cost the most. In other words, cost should never be a barrier to people who want to go mushrooming.

All the best

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