Lost mushroom pickers frustrate Terrace Search and Rescue

Search and rescue workers in Terrace are frustrated by the growing number ofdisappearances of mushroom foragers, who they say are often ill-prepared to spend a night in the bush.

A mushroom picker in his seventies lost his way in the wild last week, and when search and rescue workers found him, it wasn't for the first time.

• Search for Terrace mushroom pickers called off by RCMP

"He's a repeat offender. He was in the exact same spot last year, exact same position, and he's not prepared," said Terrace Search and Rescue president Dave Jephson.

"At some point in time, well, then we're gonna go find him dead," said a frustrated Jephson.

He said foragers are too often unprepared for these situations.

Jephsonestimated that Terrace SAR deals with at least a dozen lost mushroom pickers per year, butsaid that number is growing.

Secret harvest spots

Prince Rupert mushroom picker Kent Orton says part of the problem is that mushroom pickers keep their harvest locations secret.

"There's a pretty big trade in B.C. I think it's driven by the Japanese interest. They'd be buying pine mushroom or matsutake," which is a particularly expensive variety, Orton said.

Jephson agreed that many mushroom pickers don't tell anyone where they're going, in part because they don't think they can get lost.

"If you go into the bush, think about getting lost. Now you can start to say, 'Okay, what should I have?'

What to bring with you

If you plan to head out foraging for mushrooms, here is Jephson's advice:

"We always say bring a compass, but a compass isn't good if you don't know that North means the highway. Have an understanding of situational awareness."

Jephson says the best thing foragers can do is be prepared with matches, a lighterand food to tide you over for a few hours, such as granola bars.

He recommends bringing an orange garbage bag, which besides providing warmthis also highly visible to search and rescue volunteers.

Another useful tool is a whistle.If you blow it at least once every 20 minutes in the morning when SAR teams are out looking, they will be able to find you, Jephson said.

To hear the full audio piece, listen to the file labelled:Recurring disappearance of mushroom pickers wears thin on search and rescue workers.