Brightwood Chicken Farm

​Yesterday I went to the park early in the morning, and decided to spend some time on the two-bridge trail.  I saw two bucks and two deer, who joined me halfway on the trail and appeared to guide me somewhere.  When they stopped, I saw an area with bright orange colored objects in a dark background of woods and logs.  This turned out to be a large colony of chicken-in-the-woods mushrooms.  It was a stunning experience since I have never seen so many of them in such a layout.  The name Brightwood Chicken Farm immediately came across my mind.  Meanwhile, the same kind of mushrooms were seen in many areas of the park in an isolated manner.  I wonder if this is a cycle of nature for the species and my lucky year (yours, too, of course).

Also included are images of multiple hen-of-the-woods mushrooms I took at the fallen tree near the dam.  On the top of the broken trunk, there is a chicken-of-the-woods mushroom, like a crowing rooster.

Here I am sharing with you the photos taken with camera and with iPhone, respectively.  Included are the small mushrooms (near the dam) I have been monitoring for a few weeks.  Two finally came off from where they grew.  Interestingly they seemed to be doing OK after falling for two days.  The original hairy one was already absorbed by the mud.

One of the orange-colored mushrooms caught my eye with its pleasant smile.  Actually many of the mushrooms have interesting patterns if you use your imagination.