UW - La Crosse Mycology Club

08/27/2026

Northwoods Foray registration is available: https://www.wisconsinmycologicalsociety.org/cablenorthwoodsforay.html

Our Friday speaker at Northwoods Foray 2026 will be Lauren Ré, a mycologist pursuing her Master's degree at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. Lauren studies the wonderful waxycap Family, Hygrophoraceae. These colorful, ecologically-diverse and deeply understudied fungi pop up all over Wisconsin, including around Cable, WI, but who are they? What are they doing out there? Dare we ask.. are any eat-able? Learn about them with Lauren, and then follow up the next day with Stephen Russell as he presents Saturday on fungal sequencing, conservation, and more.

08/20/2026

WMS members - join us Thursday, August 20th for "Mushrooms of Paradise: Our Unique and Beautiful Wisconsin Fungi", a presentation with Q&A by Arne Martinson.

Arne was born and raised in Bayfield, Wisconsin, where he lives exploring and photographing the area’s extraordinary biodiversity. You can find his photography showcased .fungus on Instagram.

Arne is an expert forager as well as scientifically-oriented mycologist, and operates Northern Mushroom Tours. He also is a WMS board member, foray director and host for our Rustic Camping Foray, Sept 24-2. By the way, registration for that event is open now! https://www.wisconsinmycologicalsociety.org/bayfieldrustic.html

08/09/2026

📣: NEW HOURS!

08/05/2026

EVENT REMINDER (TODAY)
August Enviro-Wednesdays @ The Nature Place
Wednesday August 5, 2026, 7:00 PM

Mycology 101: Understanding the Fungi Around Us
Fungi are one of the planet’s most diverse and dynamic groups of life. Despite growing interest among the public, science has only described about 1% of Earth’s estimated fungal species. Mycology, the study of fungi, offers curious naturalists a chance to discover a hidden world that exists in their own backyards. Join us to learn more about this fascinating field of study, including how fungi have impacted and driven humanity. We’ll also take a look at some local diversity of mushroom species you may encounter in Wisconsin and the La Crosse area and how you can learn more!

Lauren Ré and Mariah Rogers are mycologists & nature educators based in La Crosse. They are master's students at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse researching fungi and their genetic relationships, diversity, and ecology. They devote much of their free time to educational organizations including the UW-L Mycology Club and Wisconsin Mycological Society. They're both endlessly passionate about sharing the joys and wonders of fungi and uplifting community science.

Friends of the Marsh and The Nature Place co-host Enviro-Wednesdays. Programs are free, open to all ages 14+ with an adult.

08/04/2026

📣New public hours, same commitment to our community.

We’re adjusting our summer public hours to better align with the demands of our busy season and recent loss of AmeriCorps members. This shift helps us respond to these changes while remaining open and accessible to the community we care so deeply about.

New Hours:
☀️Monday–Friday: 9 AM – 4 PM
☀️Saturday: 9 AM – 12 PM
☀️Sunday: Closed

All scheduled programs will continue as planned, even if they fall outside of our public hours. Please continue to check our online calendar for event details. We're committed to serving and supporting our community, rain or shine.

08/03/2026

Weather report:
Chanterelles 💛😇

Want to read more about the science of chanterelle species? Check out work by Matt Foltz, UWL alum -

https://www.uwlax.edu/news/posts/tasty-news-for-mushroom-fans/

08/03/2026

Yay! This was us. Thank you to La Crosse Public Library 💕🍄‍🟫for co hosting this event with us, much love to the many curious people who came out despite the mosquitos, and thanks to News 8 Now / News 8000 for showing up to put mycology in the news.

The walk covered the basics of identifying mushrooms, including how to recognize different mushroom parts and features, as well as where to find fungi in forest environments

07/26/2026

We’re excited to be leading a foray tomorrow, Sunday July 26th with the Wisconsin DNR & Friends of Wildcat State Park from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. We’ll be looking for mushrooms along the Hemlock Trail but please take note that the google map location with that name is incorrect. Please use this : https://maps.app.goo.gl/fAZoL3EhfvQpLM26A or enter “Wildcat Landing” in Ontario into your maps and park in the larger first lot.

05/04/2026

Join us in collaboration with the Wisconsin Mycological Society to celebrate the legacy of Dr. Tom Volk – The beloved UWL Mycology professor who devoted his life to sharing the joys and mysteries of fungi with the local & global community. Learn more about his life and career here: https://msafungi.org/in-memoriam-tom-volk/ and check out his iconic educational website here: https://archive.botany.wisc.edu/tvolk/

This year’s Tom Volk Memorial Foray will be held on Sunday May 17th from 1-3 p.m. at Perrot State Park in Trempealeau WI. We’ll meet at the Perrot Nature Center and hit the trails from there. There’s plenty of surrounding parking, just be sure your vehicle has a current state park pass. Annual and day passes can be purchased online or at the park office.

This year there’s the option to camp the night before, Saturday May 16th with some exploring during the afternoon and campfire hangouts in the evening! We’ll start convening at the group campsite B at 3 p.m. Camping is free thanks to the UWL Mycology Club & WMS.

🏕️ IF YOU PLAN TO CAMP PLEASE COMPLETE THIS SHORT FORM 🏕️ – You’ll find more information about the camping portion of the event there: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1vUCH4QfmOdxJqz0aYRj7uggpxt4sRJQUcM64iTrGXek/edit

Morel season is upon us and if weather permits, there will still be some for the picking! As always, we will look for any fruiting fungi to learn about and celebrate together 🍄‍🟫

We hope you’ll join us for this exciting event! Please reach out to [email protected] if you have any questions, comments, or concerns.

04/21/2026

Join us for a fun night of roller skating THIS SATURDAY 04/25 to fundraise so we can offer more events to the community! Everyone is welcome, all ages and skill levels, students and the public. Admission is $20 including roller skate/blade rentals as well as other fun activities including opportunities to win mushroom-themed prizes! The music will feature a range of throwbacks including disco, funk, soul, rock R&B and more!