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Bighorn Mountains Foraging Conditions — ForageIQ

Bighorn Mountains

5,500–13,000 ft · WY🚗 Directions

Bighorn NF. Isolated range with lodgepole pine, Engelmann spruce, subalpine meadows. Good king bolete habitat at mid-elevations. Late-season morels in high burns.

Trees:Lodgepole Pine Engelmann Spruce Subalpine Fir

Permit Info →

Updated Aug 27, 4:05 AM MT

AI Conditions Report

AI-generated · verify in field

**Bighorn Mountains A-Tier: Post-Monsoon Flush Window** You're sitting in a genuine high-elevation flush—sustained soil moisture (0.21 VWC avg) paired with consistent cool temps have triggered 33 viable species, dominated by boletes, milk caps, corals, and agarics. The tier holds because moisture threshold was met and has stayed there for two weeks; that's the backbone of the rating. Hedgehogs, indigo milk caps, slippery jacks, and bay boletes are your bread-and-butter high-confidence targets—all conditions squared. The limiting factor is desiccation risk. At 52°F soil temp and only 0.25" rain in the last week, you're running on the fumes of that 14-day precipitation. Any sunny stretch above 8,500 ft will evaporate this window fast. Watch the next 36–48 hours; if temps stay cool and you catch any overnight drizzle, the flush extends another week. If high pressure locks in, you've got 3–4 days before the moderate-viability species start dropping out. **Hot tip:** Scout north-facing slopes and dense conifer stands at 7,000–9,000 ft where soil stays shadowed—those microclimates will extend your window by 5–7 days after the ridge tops dry.

Generated by Claude (Anthropic) from the structured weather, soil, and phenology data on this page. The LLM can misread edge cases — treat this as a starting hypothesis, not a guarantee. Always verify conditions on the ground before committing to a long drive.

Foraging Potential75/100

✅Moisture

✅Soil Temp

✅No Freeze

✅No Drought

Precip 7d

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Nearby Camping

Within(11)

Shell Reservoir Camping Area

dispersed

USFS~1.3 mi from center

Bighorn National Forest

Reserve →

Ranger Creek Recreation Area

developed

USFS~5.9 mi from centerFee required/night

Bighorn National Forest

Reserve →

Upper Paint Rock Lake Campground

developed

~6.7 mi from center

Shell Creek Campground

developed

~6.7 mi from center

Shell Creek Campground

developed

USFS~6.9 mi from centerFee required/night

Bighorn National Forest

Reserve →

Medicine Lodge Lake Campground

developed

USFS~6.9 mi from center

Bighorn National Forest

Lower Paintrock Lake Campground

developed

USFS~7.3 mi from centerFee required/night

Bighorn National Forest

Reserve →

Lower Paint Rock Lake Campground

developed

~7.3 mi from center

Coffeen Park Campground

developed

USFS~7.8 mi from center

Cabin Creek Campground

developed

~8.1 mi from center

Cross Creek Campground

developed

~9.6 mi from center

⚠ Road Access Notice

Always verify road access is public before following GPS directions to mountain areas. Many forest roads are seasonal, gated, or require 4WD. Dispersed camping follows USFS/BLM rules (typically 14-day limit). Check ranger district offices for current road and campground conditions.

Viable Species

Confidence × Primordia state

MODERATECold

Cauliflower MushroomSparassis crispa

soil temp marginal (52°F vs 58°F min, 1/7 days above), today 0.19 VWC, 7d avg 0.21 — moisture sustained

HIGHPrimed

Hedgehog MushroomHydnum repandum