The Lincoln County Mycological Society will again have a mushroom identification display in a large tent set up on the grass field behind the Yachats Commons on Saturday and Sunday as part of the annual Yachats Mushroom Festival. (Quinton Smith/Lincoln Chronicle)By CHERYL ROMANO/Lincoln Chronicle
YACHATS — Fans of all things fungi are getting ready for one of the central Oregon coast’s biggest autumn events — the annual Yachats Mushroom Festival.
Set to sprout Friday through Sunday, Oct. 16-18 at locations from downtown Yachats to Cape Perpetua and south to Cummins Creek, the popular festival is marking its 27th year of celebrating all things mushroom.
The family-friendly festival invites all to join in for guided walks, expert talks and hands-on workshops, with many free features plus some ticketed, paid events.
“This year the mushroom festival will be one to remember,” said Nichole Lippincott, executive director of the sponsoring Yachats Chamber of Commerce. “We have a really special keynote speaker, Heather Dawson, talking about truffles and her unique discoveries. During the festival the town comes alive with wonderful people all gathering to share in their love for fungi.”
While a Friday night kickoff dinner is sold out, there may still be $15 tickets available for Dawson’s keynote presentation that night on “Seeking Buried Fungal Treasure: Truffles and the Dogs Who Find them.” Dawson, a doctoral student who has explored truffle-hunting for almost a decade, will speak at 7 p.m. at the Yachats Commons.
For details on all festival activities, including tickets available, go to the festival’s website.
The guided walks have been so popular that, according to the website, all the Saturday and Sunday events have been sold out. However, for last-minute availability, those interested are urged to stop by the information tent set up in front of the pavilion behind the Commons.
Need help identifying mushrooms? The Lincoln County Mycological Society’s display can help with that. (Quinton Smith/Lincoln Chronicle)Throughout the weekend, free talks about mushrooms will be offered at several sites, including the Yachats Lions Club Hall on Fourth Street, the Commons and the nearby Yachats Community Presbyterian Church. Topics range from mushroom preservation and cooking to medicinal mushrooms, the role of fungi ion the environment and native truffles.
The festival website offers a map detailing the event locations.
The Commons area will anchor two special attractions — an “All Things Mushroom” vendor fair, and a mushroom exhibition and identification hall. At the vendor fair, visitors will find the work of mushroom artists, cultivators and gatherers and fresh fungi, gourmet products, and crafts. The mushroom hall will be in a large tent behind the Commons and features local mushroom species and mushroom experts available to help identify mushrooms.
To augment the festival, the Yachats Farmers Market will run on Saturday as well as the traditional Sunday, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. This marks the final weekend of the market’s season.
To help move the crowds that are expected, the Yachats Trolley will be back in action. Festival trolley stops are Yachats Commons, the Cape Perpetua Visitors Center, and Neptune Beach north parking lot.
In tune with the festival, local restaurants will be serving up mushroom-inspired specials, while businesses throughout Yachats will showcase mushroom art and displays.
While the Yachats Chamber of Commerce sponsors the festival, much of the work involved in bringing it together is done by the Lincoln County Mycological Society.
- Cheryl Romano is a Yachats freelance writer who contributes regularly to Lincoln Chronicle. She can be reached at [email protected]
