Not a true fungus, yellow slime mold is a colony of protists often found in piles of wood chips. It dried up quickly in the heat of the sun. When its time has come to fruit, the cells move into pools and form single-stalked fruiting bodies. Some are sacrificed as the base of the stalk and others will escape into the Hampton Park air. This is what looks to be the “dog vomit” variety.
Riding a bike along the road, looking into the ditch is how we found these chanterelles. We found several patches and carefully cut the fruiting fungus parts off. Normally it is not advisable to pick mushrooms so close to the road, but on windy Long Beach, after the town of Nahcotta and Ocean Park, there is little traffic the farther up the 28-mile long peninsula you go. Eventually it dead-ends at a state park where there is a no-pick rule to protect the variety of indigenous species.
They say that Lactarius Deliciosus is not as tasty as its European cousin, but we enjoy eating them.
Water, algae, and waves make patterns with light and translucency.
