Gaia GPS
  • 7-Day Free Trial Gaia GPS Premium
  • Out and Back Podcast
    • Adventures

      How to Avoid Another Deadly Avalanche Season

      January 21, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      The Best Advice We Received in 2021

      December 26, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Avalanche Safety with Snow Science Expert Bruce Tremper

      November 30, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Everything You Need to Know About Satellite Communicators

      November 10, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Planning a Thru-Hike Next Year? Here’s What You…

      October 21, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      A Definitive Guide to the Best Camp Coffee

      September 30, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Owls and UFOs with Ultralight Expert Mike Clelland

      September 9, 2021

  • Offroad Podcast
    • Gaia GPS

      Monique Song: How a City Girl Became the…

      April 7, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      TrailRecon Explains How to Become an Overlander Overnight

      March 9, 2022

      Adventures

      How to Stay Married on a Long-Distance Adventure

      February 9, 2022

      Adventures

      How to Go From ‘Desk to Glory’ in…

      January 12, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      The Best Advice We Received in 2021

      December 26, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Gaia GPS’s Best New Overlanding Maps and Features…

      December 23, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Inside the Never-Ending Road Trip with Dan Grec

      November 20, 2021

  • Adventures
    • User Stories
  • Activities
    • Backcountry Skiing
    • Boating
    • Emergency Response
    • Fishing
    • Offroading
  • New Features
    • Gaia GPS

      Meet Map Packs: A Totally New Way to…

      May 9, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Top 10 Ways to Use Waypoints

      April 14, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Discover & Reserve Campsites Right From Gaia GPS

      February 22, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Navigate from the Dashboard with Improved Android Auto

      February 4, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Trailforks Mountain Bike Trails now in Gaia GPS

      January 13, 2022

      Android

      Gaia GPS Year in Review: Best New Maps…

      December 28, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Gaia GPS’s Best New Overlanding Maps and Features…

      December 23, 2021

  • New Maps
    • Featured

      Find Phone Signal With Cell Phone Coverage Maps

      May 2, 2022

      Adventures

      Using Gaia GPS to Find Free Camping in…

      March 9, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Discover Snowmobile Trails Across the Globe

      February 9, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Get Worldwide Ski Resort Reports in Gaia GPS

      January 25, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Trailforks Mountain Bike Trails now in Gaia GPS

      January 13, 2022

      Android

      Gaia GPS Year in Review: Best New Maps…

      December 28, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Gaia GPS’s Best New Overlanding Maps and Features…

      December 23, 2021

  • Home
Gaia GPS
  • 7-Day Free Trial Gaia GPS Premium
  • Out and Back Podcast
    • Adventures

      How to Avoid Another Deadly Avalanche Season

      January 21, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      The Best Advice We Received in 2021

      December 26, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Avalanche Safety with Snow Science Expert Bruce Tremper

      November 30, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Everything You Need to Know About Satellite Communicators

      November 10, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Planning a Thru-Hike Next Year? Here’s What You…

      October 21, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      A Definitive Guide to the Best Camp Coffee

      September 30, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Owls and UFOs with Ultralight Expert Mike Clelland

      September 9, 2021

  • Offroad Podcast
    • Gaia GPS

      Monique Song: How a City Girl Became the…

      April 7, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      TrailRecon Explains How to Become an Overlander Overnight

      March 9, 2022

      Adventures

      How to Stay Married on a Long-Distance Adventure

      February 9, 2022

      Adventures

      How to Go From ‘Desk to Glory’ in…

      January 12, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      The Best Advice We Received in 2021

      December 26, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Gaia GPS’s Best New Overlanding Maps and Features…

      December 23, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Inside the Never-Ending Road Trip with Dan Grec

      November 20, 2021

  • Adventures
    • User Stories
  • Activities
    • Backcountry Skiing
    • Boating
    • Emergency Response
    • Fishing
    • Offroading
  • New Features
    • Gaia GPS

      Meet Map Packs: A Totally New Way to…

      May 9, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Top 10 Ways to Use Waypoints

      April 14, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Discover & Reserve Campsites Right From Gaia GPS

      February 22, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Navigate from the Dashboard with Improved Android Auto

      February 4, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Trailforks Mountain Bike Trails now in Gaia GPS

      January 13, 2022

      Android

      Gaia GPS Year in Review: Best New Maps…

      December 28, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Gaia GPS’s Best New Overlanding Maps and Features…

      December 23, 2021

  • New Maps
    • Featured

      Find Phone Signal With Cell Phone Coverage Maps

      May 2, 2022

      Adventures

      Using Gaia GPS to Find Free Camping in…

      March 9, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Discover Snowmobile Trails Across the Globe

      February 9, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Get Worldwide Ski Resort Reports in Gaia GPS

      January 25, 2022

      Gaia GPS

      Trailforks Mountain Bike Trails now in Gaia GPS

      January 13, 2022

      Android

      Gaia GPS Year in Review: Best New Maps…

      December 28, 2021

      Gaia GPS

      Gaia GPS’s Best New Overlanding Maps and Features…

      December 23, 2021

  • Home

How to Create The Ultimate Morel Mushroom Hunting Map

by Corey Buhay May 21, 2019
by Corey Buhay May 21, 2019

The morel is perhaps one of the most prized quarries of American mushroom hunters. Its distinctive look, rich meaty flavor, and reputation for elusiveness all make for an intoxicating chase. Consequently, the locations of morel jackpots are often closely guarded secrets.

Morel mushroom hunting maps do exist, but they’re often based on reports from other foragers. If you want to find your own secret spot, or discover the hotspots locals won’t share, you’ll need to supplement those reports with a map of your own.

Tricks for Finding Morel Mushrooms

Though the exact whereabouts of morels can be difficult to predict, they are more prone to appearing at certain times and in certain locations.

Start hunting for morels in the spring, usually when tree buds just begin to open and soil temperatures hover consistently around 50 degrees. That means daytime highs in the 60s or 70s and nighttime lows in the 40s. In most places in the U.S., those conditions occur for a week or two sometime between late-March and the end of May.

A morel mushroom on the forest floor.
Morel mushroom. Photo by George P. Macklin, sourced via Flickr.


Before you head out, secure permits for foraging when required. Research local land management policies to determine responsible collection limits. Also be sure to follow other regulations and Leave No Trace policies as they apply to off-trail exploration.

In the early season, look on warmer south- and west-facing slopes and at lower elevations. Later in the season, move your hunt uphill and on cooler north- and east-facing slopes. Morel mushrooms tend to favor damp, well-drained soils.

Look around ash, elm, or cottonwood trees, particularly ones that are dead or dying. Morels are linked to environmental distress, particularly timber cuts and, in the West, wildfire burn scars.

morel mushroom hunting in a recently burned area
In the West, hunt for burn morels in areas affected by recent wildfires.

The Best Morel Mushroom Hunting Maps

To build your own morel mushroom hunting map, you’ll need the following map layers. All of these are available in Gaia GPS, and you can layer maps on top of one another and adjust the transparency to pinpoint the spots where conditions are perfect. Usually, you’d need a Premium Membership to use them, but you can access all these maps for free for the rest of the season with the three-month free trial offered at the bottom of this page.

1) A Burn Scar Map Layer. In the Western US, morels have been known to proliferate on completely burned soil in the first growing season after a fire, especially in burned coniferous forests. Use the Wildfires (Historical, US) map layer to see burned areas color coded by year. On iOS devices, you can also tap on a burn to learn the name of the fire and see just how recent it was.


a map of areas that were recently logged for timber

2) A Timber Cut Map Layer.Use the Timber Harvests map layer to show swaths of recently felled trees, one of the harbingers of a morel mushroom gold mine. Wait for a little rain and the right temperatures, and then go prowling around the stumps.


a map of private and public land boundaries

3) Maps of Private and Public Land Boundaries.Always make sure you’re hunting for morels legally. Ask private landowners for permission to search on their property, and follow appropriate regulations on public land. In most national forests, for example, collection permits are required for morel mushroom hunting. Check the land manager’s website for specific details. Use the Private Land and Public Land maps in Gaia GPS to make sure you’re within the right boundaries.


a map showing shaded relief of a mountainous region in the US

4) Good Shaded Relief.Hillshading, or shaded relief, can help you distinguish the different aspects of a slope. This is useful for gauging how much sun it will receive. Remember: morels often favor south- and west-facing slopes in the winter and north- and east-facing slopes in the summer. In Gaia GPS, try the Shaded Relief Layerfor nationwide coverage.


a map of satellite imagery with contour lines

5) Clear Contour Lines.In Gaia GPS, you can leave waypoints to mark where you’ve found morels in previous years. If you start your hunt earlier or later in the season in subsequent years, check the elevation of the waypoint. Then, follow the contour lines (like those on this Satellite Topo base map) up or down the slope until you reach the elevation and corresponding soil temperatures that match your predictions about this season’s crop.


a map showing the rainfall forecast

6) A Rainfall Forecast Overlay. Mushrooms tend to emerge after a good rain, often appearing to suddenly pop up overnight. You’ll want to look for places where the soil is damp but not drenched. Check the forecast over your intended hunting grounds several days in advance with the 24-hour or 72-hour Precipitation Forecast overlays in Gaia GPS. The overlays show the estimated rainfall in inches.

And, finally…

a topographic base map to use with your morel mushroom hunting map

7) Reliable Topo Maps. If off-trail searching is permissible, go for it, but be sure to carry a GPS-enabled map with you. It’s easy to get turned around when your eyes are on the ground. The Gaia GPS app uses your phone’s built-in GPS chip to show your location and direction of travel even without cell service. Plus, the app lets you download maps so you can always find your way home—hopefully with a bag of morels in tow.

Tips for Responsible Morel Mushroom Hunting

Never hunt for morels or any other mushroom without consulting an expert first. Many mushrooms are toxic, and morels have dangerous lookalikes that can easily be mistaken for the real thing. Always carry a reliable field guide, but know there’s no substitute for in-person instruction from a seasoned professional, and that the consequences for misidentification can be serious.

Always be careful to observe collection limits set by land managers, and secure a permit if one’s required. Don’t over-pick any one area; like any mushroom, morels perform an important service to the ecosystem by breaking down debris in the forest floor. Plus, if you leave a few behind, they’re more likely to release more spores and ensure future harvests.

Get These Maps for Free with a Free Trial of Gaia GPS

Click here for a 3-month free trial of Gaia GPS

Access all the maps above and more with a 3-month free trial of a Gaia GPS Premium Membership.

Gaia GPSmapsmorel mushrooms
4
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Corey Buhay

previous post
Meet the New and Improved Public Land Survey System (PLSS) Map Layer
next post
High-Resolution Geologic Map with Worldwide Coverage

You may also like

Meet Map Packs: A Totally New Way to...

May 9, 2022

Fastpacking 101: What You Need for This Running-Backpacking...

May 5, 2022

Natural Navigation Clues: How to Find Your Way...

May 4, 2022

Find Phone Signal With Cell Phone Coverage Maps

May 2, 2022

Top 10 Ways to Use Waypoints

April 14, 2022

Monique Song: How a City Girl Became the...

April 7, 2022

How to Air Down Off-Road Tires for Overlanding

March 23, 2022

How to Check for Snow on the Trail

March 10, 2022

TrailRecon Explains How to Become an Overlander Overnight

March 9, 2022

Using Gaia GPS to Find Free Camping in...

March 9, 2022

Keep in touch

Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube

Popular Posts

  • 1

    How to Read Topographic Maps

    July 1, 2021
  • 2

    How to Save Phone Battery Life in the Backcountry

    March 25, 2021
  • 3

    How to Download an Entire State Map with Gaia Topo

    August 19, 2021
  • 4

    Unlock Adventure with Gaia GPS on Outside+

    September 30, 2021
  • 5

    Using Gaia GPS to Find Free Camping in National Forests

    March 9, 2022

Categories

  • Adventures
  • Android
  • App Comparisons
  • App Updates
  • Backcountry Skiing
  • Boating
  • Company News
  • Emergency Response
  • Featured
  • Fishing
  • Gaia GPS
  • Gaia GPS Offroad Podcast
  • GaiaCloud
  • Hikes
  • How-To
  • Hunting
  • iOS
  • New Features
  • New Maps
  • Newsletter
  • Offroading
  • Out and Back Podcast
  • User Profiles
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • RSS

@2022 - All Right Reserved. Gaia GPS


Back To Top