GOLDEN TREASURES OF THE FOREST: CHANTERELLES

Chanterelle Mushrooms

Few things bring such joy to a forest wanderer as spotting the golden glow of a Chanterelle mushroom peeking through moss and salal — though most often, I find myself digging for them in the humus layer as they can be shy about being found. 

These fragrant fungi—Cantharellus cibarius and its Pacific cousin Cantharellus formosus—are some of the most beloved wild mushrooms in the world, prized for their apricot aroma, delicate texture, and buttery, nutty flavour.

Here on Vancouver Island, particularly in the mossy forests around Cowichan Lake, and along the slopes of Mount Prevost, Chanterelles thrive in symbiotic partnership with the island’s towering Douglas fir, hemlock, and western red cedar. 

Step into the forest after autumn rains, and you’ll find them nestled among sword ferns, huckleberry, and the deep green duff of centuries-old woodland. 

Their curved, ruffled caps and forked gills make them easy to spot once your eyes adjust to their warm, golden hue against the cool greens and browns of the forest floor.

Chanterelles are a modern forager’s delight but harken back to an ancient lineage with roots deep in fungal evolution. Fossil evidence of their broader group, the Basidiomycota, dates back at least 90 million years to the Cretaceous Period, when dinosaurs still roamed. 

Chanterelle Mushrooms

While fossils are rare—soft-bodied fungi don’t fossilize easily—amber-preserved fungal spores and mycorrhizal traces show that these forest partnerships between trees and fungi were already well established by then. 

Their ancestors were likely forming underground alliances with early flowering plants, exchanging nutrients in the soil long before humans walked the Earth.

Today, these same networks still hum beneath our feet in the Cowichan Valley, binding trees together in a web of life. So the next time you’re out after the rains on Vancouver Island, follow your nose—when you catch that sweet, fruity scent drifting through the forest air, you might just be standing above a patch of ancient gold.

Chanterelles are one of the few mushrooms that resist insect damage thanks to natural compounds they produce—so your forest find is often as pristine as it looks!

Foraging Tips: Respect the Forest and Your Find

If you’re venturing out to collect Chanterelles, tread lightly—these mushrooms are slow to grow and play a vital role in the forest ecosystem. 

Be patient! It can take a fair bit of poking about exploring the landscape to finally find your first tasty bit of gold!

Only harvest what you can use, cutting the stem rather than pulling from the ground to protect the delicate mycelium underground. 

Watch out for lookalikes, such as the False Chanterelle (Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca), which has deeper orange tones and true gills rather than the forked ridges of a real Chanterelle. 

With a keen eye, a respectful approach, and a sense of adventure, you can enjoy these golden treasures while keeping the forest thriving for years to come.