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Mount Blue Sky / Echo Lake Foraging Conditions — ForageIQ

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Mount Blue Sky / Echo Lake

9,000–11,700 ft · CO🚗 Directions

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Mount Blue Sky Scenic Byway corridor — Echo Lake, Chicago Creek, and the upper Bear Creek drainages on the Front Range's highest fourteener massif. Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir from 9,000 ft to treeline, with lodgepole and aspen lower in Chicago Creek. Prime king bolete and hawk's wing habitat above 10,000 ft once monsoon moisture arrives; ancient bristlecone stands near Mount Goliath. Echo Lake SNOTEL sits right on the byway at 10,600 ft. Idaho Springs is the base town.

Permit Info →

Updated Aug 27, 4:25 AM MT

AI Conditions Report

AI-generated · verify in field

**Mount Blue Sky / Echo Lake – S Tier Flash Window** This is a rare high-altitude convergence: sustained soil moisture (0.25 VWC 7-day average) meeting stable 51°F soil temps at 9–11.7k feet post-monsoon. You're looking at 30+ edible and choice species firing simultaneously—King Boletes and Hedgehogs are the marquee calls, but Lobster and Slippery Jack are equally locked in. The moderate desiccation risk is the only brake: late-August alpine air dries fast, so the 1.9" over 14 days is your window, not a baseline. The limiting factor is literally time. Once that soil drops below 0.20 VWC (which could happen within 3–5 days given altitude and September approach), fruiting collapses. Cauliflower, Reishi, and the stinkhorns are borderline—soil temp is 7–9°F below their floor—but won't fruit unless a secondary rain event spikes soil warmth. Watch the next 72 hours for any additional precip; if it stays dry, those species stay dormant. **Hot tip:** Target north-facing cirque drainages and seeps now—soil moisture persists longest there, and boletes will cluster where water pools before it evaporates at this elevation.

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 Potential95/100

✅Moisture

✅Soil Temp

✅No Freeze

✅No Drought

Precip 7d

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Viable Species

Confidence × Primordia state

HIGHPrimed

King BoleteBoletus edulis

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

MODERATECold

Cauliflower MushroomSparassis crispa

soil temp marginal (51°F vs 58°F min, 0/7 days above), today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained

HIGHPrimed

Hedgehog MushroomHydnum repandum

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

MODERATEActivating

ReishiGanoderma tsugae

soil temp marginal (51°F vs 55°F min, 0/7 days above), today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained

HIGHPrimed

Pink-Tipped CoralRamaria botrytis

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Indigo Milk CapLactarius indigo

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Saffron Milk CapLactarius deliciosus

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Panther CapAmanita pantherina

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Pig's EarsGomphus clavatus

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Bleeding ToothHydnellum peckii

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Gypsy MushroomCortinarius caperatus

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

The PrinceAgaricus augustus

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Bay BoleteImleria badia

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Bitter BoleteTylopilus felleus

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Painted BoleteSuillus spraguei

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Chicken-Fat BoleteSuillus americanus

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Shrimp RussulaRussula xerampelina

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

The SickenerRussula emetica

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Short-Stemmed RussulaRussula brevipes

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Coker's AmanitaAmanita cokeri

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Deadly WebcapCortinarius rubellus

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Bloody WebcapCortinarius sanguineus

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Bleeding AgaricusAgaricus haemorrhoidarius

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Red-Belted ConkFomitopsis pinicola

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Sweet ToothHydnum umbilicatum

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Jelly AntlerCalocera viscosa

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Red CoralRamaria araiospora

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Angel WingsPleurocybella porrigens

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Yellow Fly AgaricAmanita muscaria var. guessowii

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Scaly Wood MushroomAgaricus silvaticus

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Lobster MushroomHypomyces lactifluorum

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Slippery JackSuillus luteus

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Hawks Wing

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

HIGHPrimed

Amanita Muscaria

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

MODERATEActivating

Banded MottlegillPanaeolus cinctulus

soil temp marginal (51°F vs 55°F min, 0/7 days above), today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained

HIGHPrimed

Yellow-Gilled GymGymnopilus luteofolius

All conditions met (soil 51°F, sustained 7/7 days above threshold, today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained)

MODERATEActivating

Common StinkhornPhallus impudicus

soil temp marginal (51°F vs 55°F min, 0/7 days above), today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained

MODERATECold

Dune StinkhornPhallus hadriani

soil temp marginal (51°F vs 60°F min, 0/7 days above), today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained

MODERATECold

Elegant StinkhornMutinus elegans

soil temp marginal (51°F vs 60°F min, 0/7 days above), today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained

MODERATEActivating

Lantern StinkhornLysurus mokusin

soil temp marginal (51°F vs 55°F min, 0/7 days above), today 0.30 VWC, 7d avg 0.25 — moisture sustained

Primordia readiness: Cold = mycelium dormant. Activating = soil warming, primordia building. Primed = 5+ sustained warm days at species threshold; fruiting imminent if moisture cooperates. Based on Schmidt 1983 / Mihail 2007.