Edible Wild Mushrooms

Vancouver Island & British Columbia

Next mushroom season: Morels are out, so get searching! Probably also oyster mushrooms.
NOTE: I'm currently having issues accessing the email address I've been using for this site and might have to start a new one. In that case, all emails received in the last year or so will be lost. If you want to contact me in the mean time, try Twitter or Instagram

Vancouver Island Mushrooms

Mushroom Course

Check out my new mushroom identification and foraging course available on Teachable.com. 

Includes lectures, photo references, and quizzes to test your knowledge.

Availabe for $15 (3 month access) or $20 (unlimited access). 

Take a look at the course page on Teachable here.  (Or click on the image to the left)

About Vancouver Island Mushrooms

British Columbia is home to many popular edible mushrooms like chanterelles, morels, and matsutake. There are also beautiful mushrooms, like the charismatic Amanita muscaria (known as fly agaric), and psychedelic "magic mushrooms" as well. The best season for picking mushrooms in British Columbia is the fall, but edible mushrooms can usually be found all year round.  Vancouver Island is a particularly excellent location in British Columbia for learning about and foraging mushrooms. 

This site - Westcoastforager.com - is a resource for would-be mushroom hunters and foragers to learn about the best that Vancouver Island has to offer. While the information here is focused on Vancouver Island, it should apply to British Columbia and the wider Pacific Northwest area as well.  

Vancouver Island is home to a number of highly poisonous mushrooms, including Death Caps (Amanita phalloides), Smith's Amanita (Amanita smithiana), and Deadly Galerina (Galerina marginata). It's important to be aware of these and other deadly fungi so that you can be 100% sure of an identification before eating any mushroom. 

Edible Mushrooms On Vancouver Island:

Two chanterelles and a lobster mushroom at the bottom of a bag
Cover of book "Mushrooms of British Columbia"

Looking for a reliable guide to identifying mushrooms in BC? Read more about the best mushroom foraging and identification books.

Mushroom Foraging Videos

For upcoming fungi events in British Columbia, check out the UBC Botanical Garden fungi events page.