Vancouver Island mushroom picking

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports on mushroom picking (led by a monk) in Canada's Vancouver Island.

Every September and October the popular mushroom-picking tours leave from Aerie resort, a 25-minute drive from capital Victoria.

"Brother Michael, a Benedictine monk and mushroom expert who is our guide for the day and has been leading the Aerie's outing each fall weekend for three years. From the Solo Dio monastery in nearby Duncan, Brother Michael spends four or five hours a day, five days a week, tramping among these steep hills, collecting pounds and pounds of mushrooms to supply Victoria's upscale restaurants, as well as the Aerie. His eyes are so well trained he can spot a potentially promising mushroom cache from more than 20 paces away."

After the three-hour hunt, happy pickers return to the resort for a gourmet lunch off of their mushroom find.

Read the full story: Mushroom hunting on Vancouver Island