There is fungus among'us

Lately we've been seeing an amazing variety of mushrooms.

Some are bland (see above), some are showy (see below).

But I tell ya, when we went walking last week higher in the mountains, we saw mushrooms galore. As the old wordplay goes, there is fungus among'us.

I don't have any clue what any of these mushrooms are. All I know is there has been an amazing variety on display this fall, both here at home and elsewhere (such as in the mountains). Without further ado, enjoy the photo journal.

These little pale pink button-sized things were growing on the side of the road.

Older Daughter poked one with the end of a pine needle, and it oozed a gelatinous goo.

This mushroom looked almost like a dandelion.

Here we are, up in the mountains. We were probably at 5,000 feet in elevation.

These were fascinating mushrooms. They looked like little cities.

This one looked like coral. Someone had plucked this sample and balanced it on top a fence post, presumably for closer examination.

Here is some more, growing at the base of a log.

Other interesting varieties:

What a wondrous world we live in.

A new walking trail

Older Daughter has been slowly learning what kinds of walking trails are in the region. Now that her busy season is over, we all decided to celebrate by taking a nice walk in the woods.

We brought Darcy, of course. I made sure to walk him before we left so he could, well, do his doo-doo duty ahead of time. When he learned he was going with us on this adventure, he was thrilled.

In fact, he was so thrilled that he barely made it out of the car before making another huge pile, despite having done so earlier. Oh well, at least this meant we could leave it next to the car instead of toting it with us through the woods.

The trail was largely flat and easy, formed in a loop a bit over a mile in length. There were additional trails, but dogs weren't permitted on them, so we contented ourselves by looping twice.

We saw lots and lots of mushrooms ... so many, in fact, that I'll make a separate post on them.

This photo came out blurry because I was walking (instead of standing still) when I took it. Still, I think it's kinda artistic. Very impressionistic, no?

A chickaree with its mouth full chattered angrily at us as we passed.

It was simply a beautiful path, sun-dappled and deeply forested.

A tree draped in lichen.

Darcy was in his element.

We saw this bunch grass everywhere.

Many had the dried remains of a tall flowering stalk. Anyone know what kind of grass this is?

A large tree that came down, splintered dramatically at its base.

Beautiful forest scene.

The larches are just starting to turn yellow.

Evidently this trail is widely used by horse riders.

Darcy got himself a good drink before we got back into the car.

A very satisfying morning's amble.

Definitely a place to explore some more.

Mushrooms of mystery

Ahh, a day off. After an intense two-week bout of work, I celebrated the evening with a glass of wine and a book in the rocking chair on the porch.

I noticed some mushrooms in the yard. This is just one of several examples of these white mushrooms popping up, in the nature of mushrooms, everywhere...

...including pushing through rock in the driveway.

I don't know my mushrooms, so perhaps someone can help identify them.

Then this morning while walking Darcy, I was startled to see these beauties. Pink mushrooms?

They were growing in a semi-shaded slope of the roadside ditch.

I'd never seen such a thing. They were beautiful.

As I finished snapping pictures, I glanced down the ditch and saw a whole bunch more. Go figure.

Mushrooms of mystery. Anyone know their fungi? Who can identify the species?