Back in the forests of the Carpathian Mountains of East Slovakia, this time looking for birch bolete and cep (porcini) mushrooms. After seeing the prices of cep (and we’re not going to even mention black or white truffles) in the Italian speaking Istria region of Croatia, and how much visitors are charged to spend a few hours looking for them in the forest with a guide (we were offered a 3 hour tripe for 250 Euros!), we decided to spend a sunny Sunday morning in the forests close to the house, looking for them ourselves. As we do every year.
Mushroom hunting is a major activity among slavic peoples, and they can get very competitive about it, especially when it comes to the rarer species such as ram’s head. The forest was incredibly dark and humid today because of the dense canopy, and the ground was slippery because of the constant rainfall. But it was stunning. It felt so good to be back among the trees, listening to the birds and the wind rustling the leaves. I can’t imagine living in a place with a view of just concrete, brick and tarmac. Hopefully this video will encourage those who do to spend some time away from the urban environment and to get out into nature to experience it as it really is, not as TV shows it as.
Filmed with a Panasonic Lumix FZ300/FZ330 with a Polaroid UV lens
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Carpathian Adventure 