2022 Workshops/Speakers (as of 5/12/22)

One of 2019's most popular festival speakers, Jon Sommer returns to the Wild Rivers Mushroom Festival in 2022 to once again teach beginners the ins and outs of mushroom identification.

Jon holds a bachelor’s degree in botany from Humboldt State University and master’s degrees in botany and plant pathology from the University of California, Davis.  He has studied mushroom identification with notable mycologists including Drs. David Largent, Orson Miller, Harry D. Thiers, and Daniel Stuntz. 

Jon has led numerous mushroom forays and nature walks (including two for the WRMF in 2019!) and has taught classes on mushroom identification across the U.S. for more than 40 years. A member of the Colorado Mycological Society since 1993, Jon was elected President in 2019, and is currently serving in that capacity.

Langdon Cook is a writer, instructor, and lecturer on wild foods and the outdoors. His books include Upstream: Searching for Wild Salmon, from River to Table (Ballantine, May 2017), a finalist for the Washington State Book Award, The Mushroom Hunters: On the Trail of an Underground America, winner of the 2014 Pacific Northwest Book Award, and Fat of the Land: Adventures of a 21st Century Forager, which The Seattle Times called “lyrical, practical and quixotic.” 

Cook has been profiled in Bon Appetit, WSJ magazine, Whole Living, and Salon.com, and his writing appears in numerous magazines, newspapers, and online journals, including National Geographic Traveler, Eating Well, Outside, Gray’s Sporting Journal, and Seattle Magazine, where he was a regular columnist for a decade. On-screen credits include the PBS TV series “Food Forward,” the Travel Channel’s “Trip Flip,” and the webcast “The Perennial Plate.” Cook lives in Seattle with his wife, poet Martha Silano, and their two children. 

 Following the presentation, Langdon will be on hand to sell and sign "The Mushroom Hunters: On the Trail of an Underground America".

The appeal of foraging and living off of the land has skyrocketed in recent years. It’s romantic and empowering. It’s also overwhelming with serious consequences if you don’t know what you’re doing. 

Which is why we're bringing Jesse Dolin to our festival. Jesse is the Central Coast Destination Coordinator for the Oregon Coast Visitors Association...AND an avid forager of all things wild - including wild mushrooms!

Jesse will share what he knows about foraging for mushrooms in an combination mushroom talk and forest outing. During his workshop, you will learn about the various wild, edible mushrooms which call the south Coast of Oregon home, including their habitat, when they're fruiting, and how to recognize the most common edibles.

If you have an appetite for a deeper connection to food and nature, let Jesse Dolin guide you along your journey.