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August Foraging with Families

Mushroom walk participant smiling while holding a shelf mushroom in the Catskill Mountains. Yael Bernhard, walk leader of Catskill Fungi, looks at the mushroom and is also smiling as she holds a walking stick and wears a Catskill Fungi Reishi T-Shirt.
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August Foraging with Families

Mushroom Walk for Beginners Young & Old - Pine Hill, NY

$30.00

08/10/2025
10:00 am- 12:00 pm
Catskill Fungi Mushroom Mural
8553 NY-28, Big Indian, NY 12410
Join Yael Bernhard in this introductory mushroom walk for (almost) all ages. As production manager and mushroom walk leader for Catskill Fungi as well as children's book illustrator and homeschoolers' art teacher, Yael loves to work with kids and teens. We will learn about the life cycle of mushrooms and the role they play in the ecosystem, types of mushrooms, beginning identification skills, and some pretty cool take-home facts. Each family gets a hand lens to take home for examining the physical attributes of mushrooms. 

Please note: all children under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Toddlers and children under the age of 7 are not recommended.

 

Location:

Meet at the Catskill Fungi Mushroom Mural on Route 28, Pine Hill. 

What to expect:

We will start at the Mushroom Mural in Pine Hill where each family gets a hand lens for identifying mushrooms. There will be a brief Fungi101 explanation as well as what to expect from our walk. Participants will have the option to borrow baskets, bags, and/or books to take with them as we head onto an easy trail into the forest to learn about the fungi we find. We will talk about how to look for, sustainably harvest, and identify mushrooms. We talk about what is edible, medicinal uses, and how to prepare them. We will also focus on historic uses, current scientific trends, and present day innovations of the fungi we find. People of all ages are welcome to explore and get their questions answered. We will walk back to the parking lot and spread out all of our specimens on a table for further inspection. We can take a group photo which, along with other photos from the day, will be available on the Catskill Fungi Instagram/Facebook. Participants will get discounts of Catskill Fungi products that will be available for purchase. 

Please dress for the weather. We will walk rain or shine. This means boots or sneakers.  Optional equipment would be a water bottle, bug/tick repellent, rain coat, or snacks. You are welcome to bring pictures of mushrooms you would like them identified.

Kids

Students under the age of 16 are free. 16 years old and above must purchase tickets. Adults, bring only children directly under their care and at most 3 children per adult.

Please don't take advantage of this policy, otherwise we will have to charge for kids.  

Pets

I love them but, no. Never met a dog on a walk that didn't step on the mushrooms or worse. Some people have allergies or are afraid of dogs.

Cancelations

If you need to cancel please notify us via email. Email us at least 48 hour before the start of the walk and we will refund you.   

See you in the woods!

Mushroom walk participant smiling while holding a shelf mushroom in the Catskill Mountains. Yael Bernhard, walk leader of Catskill Fungi, looks at the mushroom and is also smiling as she holds a walking stick and wears a Catskill Fungi Reishi T-Shirt.
Close up picture of a child's hand holing a pinecone and wearing a colorful striped sweater in the forest of the Catskill Mountains. From the pinecone grow a large gilled mushroom and mycelia (fungal roots) grow between the scales.
Young girl (about 10 years old) wearing a bright green hoody and red earings is smiling while looking at a shelf mushroom she is holding as she stands on the side of a trail in the forest of the Catskill Mountains.