45th Telluride Mushroom Festival

Signup at Registration: 
Thursday August 15th, 9am to 10:30am
Friday August 16th, 9am to 10:30am

Foray Description.
Enjoy the dewy morning hours in the mountains on this foray focused on general mycology. Michael Williams will help attendees identify wild mushrooms and submit observations online! Of course, you're likely to find choice edibles in addition to contributing to community science.
This is a great option if you want to beat the heat and rain, while still having time for lectures, workshops, and festivities later in the day!

Where to Meet.
This foray meets at Carhenge Parking Lot at 6:45am. We invite you to arrive a few minutes early to get acquainted with your fellow foragers! TMF does not provide transportation. We encourage all participants to carpool as much as possible!

Be Prepared!
A friendly reminder to come prepared for inclement weather with good footwear, properly hydrated, with snack and stories to share. A basket, reusable grocery bag, old shirt, paper bag, or tupperware help collect mushrooms. For a full list of recommended foray gear, please see our TMF Foray Checklist (click here).

Right out of a sci fi film, the world of entomopathogenic fungi is very large and very wild. Entomopathogenic fungi are fungi that attack arthropods or insects. Most well known as "cordyceps", this interesting group of fungi brings horror stories to life. We will be covering:
- Evolution of entomopathogenic fungi
- Notable species of entomopathogenic fungi
- groups/phylums of entomopathogenic fungi
- Insect immunity
- How the fungi infects the insect
- Secondary metabolites of entomopathogenic fungi
- cultivation of cordyceps and like groups
- Commercial cultivation
- Genetically engineering entomopathogenic fungi
- Insect control
- functional application for health and wellness
- And more

"The size of the group is limited to 25-30 gourd-holders, a facilitator and a presenter.  *Limited Capacity, signup required. One can also email Art Goodtimes directly for participation up until Aug. 12th, or at registration, if spots still available.
 
"Modeled after the peer-to-peer sharing of graduate seminars, the MycoGourds concept was inspired by the work of Colorado deep ecologist Dolores LaChapelle and Brazilian socialist educator Paulo Freire. Dolores was a strong advocate of sharing circles for information-sharing -- as used in many traditions, both ancient and new (such as Indigenous Councils and the Rainbow Family Gathering’s talking stick circles).

"Co-sponsored by the Telluride Institute's Telluride Mushroom Festival and the Telluride Historical Museum, this MycoGourds will be a variation of the passing of the gourd format. After a brief sharing from everyone, Art as facilitator will open the circle to questions of  ethnobotanist Kat Harrison who will be our featured guest. This will be an opportunity peer-to-peer to explore in-depth questions and issues with Kat in a small, relaxed, outdoor setting. Bring a chair or pillow. The Telluride Historical Museum is located at the top of Fir St. up the hill north of Telluride's main street. In case of rain we will meet at the upstairs meeting room in the Miramonte Building west of the Courthouse."

SPECIAL EVENT (SOLD OUT)

Foray Description.
Katrina Blair will dazzle you with the amazing foods that you can find right outside your door. Learn about these foods and then go on a foray with her after her lecture.

Where to Meet.
This foray meets at Elks Park at 8:45am. We invite you to arrive a few minutes early to get acquainted with your fellow foragers! TMF does not provide transportation. We encourage all participants to carpool as much as possible!

Be Prepared!
A friendly reminder to come prepared for inclement weather with good footwear, properly hydrated, with snack and stories to share. A basket, reusable grocery bag, old shirt, paper bag, or tupperware help collect mushrooms. For a full list of recommended foray gear, please see our TMF Foray Checklist (click here).

Signup at Registration: 
Thursday August 15th, 9am to 10:30am
Friday August 16th, 9am to 10:30am

Foray Description.
Explore the fungi kingdom with us and become a Fungi Ranger! Forays, learning tools & more- all for kids and families!

Where to Meet.
This foray meets at Carhenge Parking Lot at 8:45am. We invite you to arrive a few minutes early to get acquainted with your fellow foragers! TMF does not provide transportation. We encourage all participants to carpool as much as possible!

Be Prepared!
A friendly reminder to come prepared for inclement weather with good footwear, properly hydrated, with snack and stories to share. A basket, reusable grocery bag, old shirt, paper bag, or tupperware help collect mushrooms. For a full list of recommended foray gear, please see our TMF Foray Checklist (click here).

Welcome to the 44th annual Telluride Mushroom Festival. Join us in Elks Park, located in the middle of Telluride off Main Street for registration pick up. On this day (Saturday) we will have a shortened time slot for attendees who arrived late to Telluride to pick up their festival wristband. We we also be passing out shirts if you have purchased a TMF shirt.

There is no workshop sign up this year so getting in line early is not necessary. You can pick up your wristband Thursday morning starting at 830am if you cannot make this pick up time on Wednesday. 

Registration - Festival Pass Wristband Pickup
- Please bring QR code from email for expedited wristband / t-shirt pick up
- If multiple pass pick-ups please make sure order has extra passes attached or each attendee has passes
- Come knowing what T-shirt color and size you have if pre-purchased
- If you purchased a T-shirt before color options were available, you will get a choice
- Download this SCHED app to access the whole festival program

Merch
- Please bring QR code from email for expedited wristband / t-shirt pick up to the merch and registration tent.
- Pre-ordered tees can be picked up with registration, all other merch shopping will be done in the merch tent this year.
- Items this year include 2024 fest tees, special edition tees, hats, stickers, posters, books, and other fun donated items from brands and businesses we love!

Again, welcome to Telluride! We have the biggest, most in depth and unique festival yet waiting for you. Start scoping out all the possible sessions you are going to be attending on Sched and build your schedule!

Mushroom ID Tent: Located in the middle of Elks Park.

We will have experts helping define and talk to you about all the mushrooms found around the San Juans during the days. These stations will be lead by our lead mycologists, Foray Leaders and some of the festival founders. ID Staffed most days around 12pm and goes until 3pm. It is variable with forays and weather.

Vendor Village: Located under both sides of the main banner in Telluride main street at the town malls. Also, a NEW area of the 100 block of North Oak Street where we will have food vendors. Featured elixir bar in Elk's Park.

Times:
Mushroom ID Tent
Thursday, August 15th - Saturday, August 17th - 9am - 5pm
ID Staff Hours - 12pm - 3pm
Sunday, August 18th - 9am - 12pm
ID Staff Hours - TBD

Vendor Village:
Stop by and shop from local artisans, mushroom businesses, and all things fungi! From medicine, to dried mushrooms, cultivation use, to some cool TMF shwag and a whole lotta unique crafts. Vendor Village is a must stop and shop for all people in and around Telluride.

Vendor Village hours:
Thursday, August 15th - Friday, August 16th, 9 - 5PM
Saturday, August 17th - 9am - 3pm
Sunday, August 18th 10am - 2pm

See you there!

Signup at Registration: 
Thursday August 15th, 9am to 10:30am
Friday August 16th, 9am to 10:30am

Foray Description.
Whether new to the world of fungus or a veteran myconaut, this foray provides a great chance to dedicate some quality time with the many species we love. Expect an outing that lasts a few hours, outside of town.

Where to Meet.
This foray meets at Carhenge Parking Lot at 9:15am. We invite you to arrive a few minutes early to get acquainted with your fellow foragers! TMF does not provide transportation. We encourage all participants to carpool as much as possible!

Be Prepared!
A friendly reminder to come prepared for inclement weather with good footwear, properly hydrated, with snack and stories to share. A basket, reusable grocery bag, old shirt, paper bag, or tupperware help collect mushrooms. For a full list of recommended foray gear, please see our TMF Foray Checklist (click here).

Signup at Registration: 
Thursday August 15th, 9am to 10:30am
Friday August 16th, 9am to 10:30am

Foray Description.
This foray focuses on general mycology, including field identification and the various lifestyles and roles found in the fungal kingdom. Of course, you're likely to find heaps of choice edibles in addition to contributing to community science!

Where to Meet.
This foray meets at Carhenge Parking Lot at 9:30am. We invite you to arrive a few minutes early to get acquainted with your fellow foragers! TMF does not provide transportation. We encourage all participants to carpool as much as possible!

Be Prepared!
A friendly reminder to come prepared for inclement weather with good footwear, properly hydrated, with snack and stories to share. A basket, reusable grocery bag, old shirt, paper bag, or tupperware help collect mushrooms. For a full list of recommended foray gear, please see our TMF Foray Checklist (click here).

In this free crafting session, create your very own wearable fungus with usual and unusual art supplies with the internationally renowned wearable sculpture artist and two-time Telluride Mushroom Festival Costume Competition winner Riitta Ikonen.

Pop in and make a quick-fix fungal suit for the parade, meet your soulmates who also want to play the parts in the life cycle of dung-loving fungi, or bring your half-finished caps and we’ll help you fill them with sporulating spores. Bring along anything from fishing poles to bicycle helmets and turn them into all-immersive cordyceps bodystockings, head covering caps, trailing-mycelium, and full-body wearable microscopes.
After this fantastic fungi festivity, you will be ready to march Telluride Main Street in the Mushroom Parade or even win this year’s gold medal at the Telluride Mushroom festival’s costume competition.

Supplies and comfortable assembly location will be provided by Ah Haa Art School but space s limited.
Ah Haa School for the Arts

Join us for an enlightening journey into the world of truffles, those elusive and highly prized fungi that have captured the imaginations and palates of people around the globe. In this talk, we will delve into the fascinating world of truffles, exploring their enigmatic nature, ecological significance, and the pivotal role they may play in the evolution of the mammalian nervous system. Our adventure begins in the truffle hubs of Spain and Oregon, where our speaker has spent the past year working and learning from world experts in the field. Through this unique experience, a groundbreaking theory has emerged, suggesting a profound influence of truffles on the development and evolution of mammalian species. This presentation will provide a comprehensive overview of what truffles are, including their lifecycle, varieties, and the methods used to cultivate and forage these culinary treasures. Furthermore, we will take a deep dive into the proposed theory that truffles have played a significant role in the evolution of the mammalian nervous system. This hypothesis suggests that the co-evolutionary relationship between mammals and truffles has led to significant adaptations, influencing not only foraging behaviors but also sensory perception and neurological development. Lastly, the talk will demystify North American truffles, shedding light on their diversity, ecological importance, and potential culinary uses. Despite their relative obscurity compared to their European counterparts, North American truffles possess unique qualities that deserve recognition and appreciation. Whether you are a mycologist, a culinary enthusiast, or simply curious about the natural world, this talk will offer fresh insights into the complex relationships between fungi and mammals, and the untapped potential of truffles in both cuisine and science.

Signup at the Workshop Tent: 
Thursday August 15th, 9am to 10:30am
Friday, August 16th, 9am to 5pm

Foray Description.
Jen and Alison welcome all women to join them for a generative walk in the woods. Between their diverse expertise, they're well equipped to give guidance around your myco-curiosities whether it's your first foray or your hundredth, whether you're interested in wild edibles or strange species.

Where to Meet.
This foray meets at Carhenge Parking Lot at 10:15am. We invite you to arrive a few minutes early to get acquainted with your fellow foragers! TMF does not provide transportation. We encourage all participants to carpool as much as possible!

Be Prepared!
A friendly reminder to come prepared for inclement weather with good footwear, properly hydrated, with snack and stories to share. A basket, reusable grocery bag, old shirt, paper bag, or tupperware help collect mushrooms. For a full list of recommended foray gear, please see our TMF Foray Checklist (click here).

Join our mycologists at the Workshop Tent at Elks Park for some periodic "what's been coming in" talks. Learn more in depth what people are finding out foraging in the mountains. You may learn new species, common edibles, identifying techniques and foraging locations for specific mushrooms. All this and more will be happening throughout the festival. Times may vary day to day depending on mycologist availability.

This 30 minute guided meditation will take participants on a journey through the senses and the elements, connecting each element to your innermost eroticism. Journey underground and experience the mycelial web of life and the interconnectedness of all things. Let your sacred sensuality flourish and thrive within this divine vessel of healing.

Watch two documentaries featuring Giuliana Furci, Merlin Sheldrake, and Toby Kiers, filmed during the same mycological expedition to Tierra del Fuego in Chile and immerse yourself in the storytelling work carried out by the Fungi Foundation over the past twelve years. Q&A with Giuliana on the films is included in this event.

Following Katrina Blair's early magical Wild Food Foray, she will be bringing back some of the bounty to share one of her beloved Wild Food recipes with us at the Workshop Tent in Elk's Park.  This workshop is free for everyone to learn so we can all go out and start mindfully foraging our food and feeding our bodies and the land with reciprocity.

We are rooted in a harm reduction model that welcomes all people who need a place to process and/or would like support from our licensed therapists with psychedelic integration training, massage therapists and herbalists. This cozy and accessible lounge will host integration circles and have other alternative wellness modalities for festival goers to be able to down-regulate and integrate their TMF experience. This is a safe, quiet, space where everyone is welcome.

There will be programing in the space beginning at 11 Thursday, Friday & Saturday.

Join PHD biochemist and mushroom ceremony facilitator Jeremy Widman, military and special forces leader Dr. Lance Cutsforth, psychedelic therapist Dr. Joe Cohen, Columbine 1st responder Christian Macklin, and September 11th Tower 1 first responder John Kostick for this in depth look at macro dose psychedelic healing in therapeutic setting through the Do Good Ranch. Hear first hand experience and lessons from the old and new art of healing with our veterans, first responders and athletes. This talk will surely change your mind on how we view healing in community settings utilizing psychedelics and their limitless impact.

Covered topics:
- Education - Lessons learned, information shared, expansion of the team (and the skill sets they bring to DGR)

- Access - How we get the message out via partners and alumni, expanded scope of participants (from pro athletes and vets only to females, 9/11 survivor, first responders, complex co-morbidities)

- Community - Participants returning to help, alumni support groups, aftercare, resources available

Make a sweet sign for the parade that promotes your favorite mushroom message.  We will provide markers, paints, cardboard, and other materials onsite at the Workshop tent.

"Each year hundreds of Festival attendees, visitors and extraterrestrials dress up like mushrooms and parade down Main Street in Telluride exclaiming "WE LOVE MUSHROOMS" / "AMAMOS A LOS HONGOS!" to hundreds of onlookers.
This year the parade will include an African Drum Crew. Bring your own drum to join in on the fun."

Sign Making @Elks Park starts at 2:00pm-4pm

Festival attendees don’t take the parade lightly, and many spend months planning their elaborate costumes.

The parade will start at 4pm and march all the way down Colorado Ave. to Town Park where then fungi fanatics will join in dancing and drumming until sunset.

Festival attendees don’t take the parade lightly, and many spend months planning their elaborate costumes.
When the parade ends at the Town Park with the Drum Circle we will also pause to announce our costume award winners onsite.

We've heard rumors this year there will be some mighty wild costume creations and we look forward to seeing your and selecting winners for various costume categories.

Dj Inside Out will host a dance party in town park shortly after the drum circle. Bring your dancing shoes and let’s get down and groove!!

Hamilton’s Mushrooms welcomes you to the 2nd ever Telluride Mushroom Festival Puff Ball. DJ John Felix will open the night and Random Rab will shut it down.

Let’s get psily and celebrate Colorado’s historic liberation of plant medicines. Wear Fungattire, fluorescent spores and glowing caps for a dance party. Come bearing costumes, Peace, Love, and Transformative community.

Donation based. All proceeds go to a small business vendor scholarship. 

Time 8PM-12PM at Sheridan Opera House.