#mycology

#mycology

But moist, forested Oregon-and the Cascadia ecoregion more broadly-has always been a "fungal paradise," according to mycologist Noah Siegel, coauthor of a 2024 guidebook, Mushrooms of Cascadia, that covers over 750 species. "They come in pretty much every single color possible and range from minuscule tiny little mushrooms that are a millimeter across to the Noble Polypores, which can be five feet across," Siegel says. "All of that is right under your nose, in the forest around you." It's truly a wonderland out there.

His goal: to traverse the open ocean to San Pedro, just south of Los Angeles, some 26.4 miles away. But upon a closer look, Shoemaker's kayak was no ordinary kayak. Brown-ish yellow and bumpy in texture, it had been made or rather, grown entirely from mushrooms. His journey, if successful, would mark the world's longest open-water journey in a kayak built from this unique material.