From the ashes

by Ari LeVaux

Morel hunting and elk hunting have a lot in common. Namely “hunting.” Both pursuits take place in the mountains, in places that are inconvenient to access, require enormous effort and can take a toll on body, spirit, clothing, relationships and anything else of value. But we do it anyway.

We do it, because both morel and meat hunting offer edible rewards of the highest quality if you succeed, and success depends on reading the landscape. It helps to not get lost or run out of water or get trampled by a moose. Even if you don’t succeed, all you have to do is survive in order to experience some amazing moments and walk away stronger.

Whatever your prey, you find it by finding its habitat. Elk tend to prefer being as far away as possible from humans. The best morel habitat, meanwhile, is a burnt-out forest, the year after a fire.

We don’t know how or why morels appear after a fire, where the spores come from or how they survive the inferno if they were already there. Wilderness-dependent industries don’t attract much research money. Much of the knowledge of morel ecology is held by the pickers themselves, who are not always inclined to share what they know.

Like elk hunters, morel hunters will be loath to share information. Accurate information, anyway. When two pickers bump into each other in the woods, it can be an awkward, mutually disappointing encounter. You both have the right to be there, but each nonetheless feels protective of their spot.

Unlike elk or deer, which can be raised in captivity, morels have stubbornly refused all efforts at domestication, and they live only where they choose. This means that every single morel you’ll ever eat was hunted and harvested by hand, in the wild. They have a rich, forestal flavor and can hold so much sauce in their nooks and crannies. So easy to prepare and so easy to store, morels are truly the wild mushroom of choice.

I’ve gone after these freaky fungal fruits, plodding up and down the burned mountainsides of Montana, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia and

Alaska. Morel habitat is treacherous. Burnt trees called “widowmakers” stand in wait, propped up on neighboring trees and needing very little provocation to fall on your head, while the charred stumps of saplings can poke through your boots. On a recent picking trip, one novel danger was the bark on downed lodgepole pines. It looked so grippy, and it was so tempting to step on it. But weeks of rain had turned the bark into a banana peel, ready to slide out from under you as soon as you put weight on it.

That particular day was more of a guided hunt. A friend had been scouting this burn, waiting for the right combination of soil moisture and temperature to converge, and with it the morels. My buddy even drove and didn’t make me wear a blindfold. But a guided hunt is still hunting. You still have to find your prey.

I wasn’t doing particularly well; I had maybe a quart when I ran into some pickers who were on the way out, loaded with fungus. They were friendly but wary when I asked where they were from. Turns out they were Mexican and didn’t want any trouble. They were also tired, hungry and thirsty.

I had put down my backpack a few hundred yards below us and was just carrying my bucket and bear spray. I told them where my pack was and invited them to help themselves to food and water. When I got back to my pack, an elk sandwich was gone. And my pail had an extra 2 gallons of morels.

I took the morels and cooked them in sherry cream sauce, my go-to, and served alongside whitetail steak, washed down with red wine. It was the kind of meal that only a hunter gets to enjoy.

Morels in Sherry Cream Sauce

If you don’t have or can’t afford a lot of morels, one trick is to add button mushrooms. It will stretch out the morels without diluting the flavor. If you are using dried morels, toss a cup with ½ cup hot chicken broth and let sit for an hour, covered, to rehydrate before using.

2 cups fresh morels or one cup dried (see rehydration instructions above)

2 tablespoons butter

½ medium yellow onion, minced

¼ cup dry sherry

Zest and juice of ¼ lemon

Heavy pinch of nutmeg

¼–½ cup heavy cream

Salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter in a heavy-bottom pan. Add onion and mushrooms. Cook together until onions are translucent, and the morels give up their moisture –about 10 minutes.

Add sherry, and let it cook off. Add nutmeg, lemon zest and juice. Stir around and cook a moment, then add the cream. Cook five more minutes, season with salt and pepper, and serve. ■

Thursday13

River Arkansas plays, 5 p.m., Ska Brewing, 225 Girard Ave.

Patrick Crossing plays, 5 p.m., Purgatory Resort.

Black Velvet Trio plays, 5:30-7:30 p.m., Rochester Hotel’s Secret Garden, 726 E. 2nd Ave.

Bobby Marquez Band, 5:30 p.m., Buckley Park.

Thursday Night Sitting Group, 5:30-6:15 p.m., Durango Dharma Center, 1800 E. 3rd Ave, Suite 109.

Ben Gibson Duo plays, 6 p.m., James Ranch, 33846 Highway 550.

Nu Bass Theory plays, 6 p.m., Durango Hot Springs.

Bluegrass jam, 6 p.m., weekly, Durango Beer & Ice, 3000 Main Ave. All levels welcome.

Jeff Solon Jazz Duo play, 6-8 p.m., Lola’s Place, 725 E. 2nd Ave.

Live music, 6-9 p.m., The Office & Diamond Belle, 699 Main Ave.

Trivia Night, 6:30 p.m., Powerhouse Science Center, 1330 Camino del Rio.

Pete Giuliani plays, 7-10 p.m., 11th St. Station.

Goodbye Ranger, Myles Bullen and BlueRaspberry, 7:30 p.m., The Hive, 1150 Main Ave.

Hauntings & History Ghost Tour, 8 p.m., Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad Depot.

Friday14

BID Coffee & Conversation, 8:30 a.m., TBK Bank, 259 W. 9th St.

Friends of the Library Book Sale, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Durango Public Library.

San Juan Nature Hike, 9 a.m., Andrews Lake. Hosted by San Juan Mountains Association.

Gary Walker plays, 10 a.m.-12 noon, Jean-Pierre Bakery & Restaurant, 601 Main Ave.

Open Meditation, 12 noon-1 p.m., Durango Dharma Center, 1800 E. 3rd Ave, Suite 109.

Free Legal Clinic, 4-5 p.m., Ignacio Library.

Ralph Dinosaur and the Fabulous Volcanos play, 5 p.m., VFW Post 4031, 1550 Main Ave.

Black Velvet Trio plays, 6 p.m., Fire Fox Farms, Ignacio.

Live music, 6-9 p.m., The Office & Diamond Belle, 699 Main Ave.

Resolve: Music in the Mountains Festival Orchestra Concert, 7 p.m., FLC’s Community Concert Hall.

“The Complete History of America (Abridged)”, 7:30 p.m., Durango Arts Center, 802 E. 2nd Ave.

Saturday15

Durango Farmers Market, 8 a.m., TBK Bank parking lot, 259 W. 9th St.

Friends of the Library Book Sale, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Durango Public Library.

Wild Plant & Mushroom Identification Walk, 9 a.m., Pass Creek Trail (Engineer Mountain Trailhead at Coal Bank Pass).

American Indian Cultural Arts Festival, 10 a.m., Aztec Ruins National Monument.

Beer & Music Festival, 1 p.m., Purgatory Resort.

Art Mart Soiree, 4:30 p.m., Hermosa Café art lot, 736 Main Ave.

The Lizard Head Quartet plays, 5 p.m., Gazpacho, 431 E. 2nd Ave.

High Altitude Blues play, 6 p.m., Weminuche Woodfire Grill, Vallecito.

Live music, 6-9 p.m., The Office & Diamond Belle, 699 Main Ave.

Community Yoga, 6-7 p.m., Yoga Durango, 1485 Florida Rd. Donations accepted.

West Coast Swing Party, 6:30 p.m., Starlight Lounge, 937 Main Ave.

Music in the Mountains Festival Orchestra Concert featuring Tony DeSare, 7 p.m., FLC’s Community Concert.

“The Complete History of America (Abridged)”, 7:30 p.m., Durango Arts Center, 802 E. 2nd Ave.

100 Year Flood plays, 6 p.m., Animas City Theatre.

Sunday16

Durango Flea Market, 8 a.m., La Plata County Fairgrounds, 2500 Main Ave.

Veterans Benefit Breakfast, 9 a.m., VFW Post 4031, 1550 Main Ave.

American Indian Cultural Arts Festival, 10 a.m., Aztec Ruins National Monument.

Wolfwood Refuge Celebration and Fundraiser, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m., Kennebec Café, Hesperus. www.wolfwoodfrefuge.org.

Vinyl Sundaze, 12 noon, Lola’s Place, 725 E. 2nd Ave.

“The Complete History of America (Abridged)”, 2 p.m., Durango Arts Center, 802 E. 2nd Ave.

Feed the People! free mutual aid meal & gear drive for homeless community members, every Sunday, 2 p.m., Buckley Park.

Vibrant Virtuosos: Music in the Mountains Festival Orchestra Concert, 5 p.m., FLC’s Community Concert.

Live music, 6-9 p.m., The Office & Diamond Belle, 699 Main Ave.

Sunday Funday, 6 p.m., Starlight Lounge, 937 Main Ave.

The Crooked Rugs, Kangaroo Courts and ORA play, 7:30 p.m., The Hive, 1150 Main Ave.

Monday17

Happy Hour Yoga, 5:30 p.m., Ska Brewing, 225 Girard St.

Meditation and Dharma Talk, 5:30 p.m., Durango Dharma Center, 1800 E. 3rd Ave.

Live music, 6-9 p.m., The Office & Diamond Belle, 699 Main Ave.