Fairy Rings and Forest Gold
- Kyle Schultz
- Sep 27
- 4 min read
Finding portals to the Otherworld and gourmet golden chanterelles in the PNW.
Wander deep into a Pacific Northwest forest and you might stumble upon an invitation to the Otherworld or find yourself flush with forest gold. I’m talking about fairy rings and golden chanterelles, of course. Both have interesting ecology and are rich in folklore, their stories tangled together like mycelium through soil.
Folklore of the Circles: Fairy Rings in Myth & Legend
For centuries, perfect circles of mushrooms have sparked a mix of awe and unease. In Celtic and English traditions, fairy rings were said to mark the dance floors of sprites or fae. Step into one, and you might vanish, be caught in an endless dance, or slip into another realm. German tales called them Hexenringe (witches’ rings) where gatherings took place on nights like Walpurgisnacht. And in some Dutch lore, the Devil himself churned his milk in those circles. Yep.
Across Scandinavia, France, and the British Isles, the rings were seen as thresholds or portals. Some stories say fairies made rings to protect hawthorn trees; others claim the mushrooms were their tables and chairs. Folklorists have documented endless variations: don’t pick mushrooms from a ring, don’t enter unless you know how to get out, don’t linger long. These tales remind us of a time when the forest gave us patterns we could explain with beautiful imagination, enchantment, and entertaining stories.
Science Behind the Circle
Turns out the actual explanation is pretty enchanting too.
Fairy rings form when underground fungal networks, called mycelium, grow outward in a circle, exhausting the nutrients at the center and continuing to fruit at the edges. This process can leave behind arcs or full rings of mushrooms.
Ecologists group them into “free” rings, those growing across grasslands or meadows, and “tethered” rings, which are tied to the roots of trees in forests. Free rings can get massive. One in France, formed by Clitocybe geotropa, spans nearly half a mile in diameter and may be 700 years old. Forest rings are usually smaller, but more common, especially here in the PNW.
The Pacific Golden Chanterelle (Cantharellus formosus)
While fairy rings come with warnings of vanishing forever, chanterelles feel more like nature’s gift. Honestly, who wouldn’t get excited about actual gold hiding under moss and ferns?
The Pacific golden chanterelle, Cantharellus formosus, is the most common chanterelle in the Northwest and it is Oregon’s official state mushroom. It fruits from midsummer into late fall, often tucked beneath layers of duff and fern.
Chanterelles are mycorrhizal fungi, which means they form a partnership with trees like Douglas-fir and western hemlock. Their underground network connects to tree roots, trading nutrients for sugars, helping forests thrive in return. As an aside - if this sounds cool, you should check out Suzanne Simard's Finding the Mother Tree.
You’ll recognize them by their golden funnel shape, soft-edged false gills, and fruity apricot scent, especially strong when dried. (Color can shift with weather: brighter after rains, paler in dry or shady patches.)
In the Northwest, they love mid-aged Douglas-fir forests, including forest plantations. They also associate with spruce, hemlock, and pine depending on local conditions. Look for them in well-drained soils with a thick mossy blanket. They like moist, but not soggy, ground.
Where Myth Meets Mushroom
Chanterelles don’t have as many direct folklore stories as fairy rings, at least not in the written record and to my limited knowledge. But in places like Sweden, they’ve taken on symbolic meaning. Often called “forest gold,” chanterelles became one of the few mushrooms widely embraced by the public, even during times when many people distrusted fungi in general.
Sweden’s allemansrätten, the “right of public access”, lets everyone roam and forage on uncultivated land, as long as they respect nature. This cultural right has helped embed foraging deeply into the national identity, with chanterelles at the heart of that tradition.
For something so striking - golden flares among the moss and shadows - I was surprised not to find more folklore concerning them. But maybe that’s because their magic was always felt more than it was written down. Maybe the stories live in the act of foraging itself i.e. the quiet excitement of spotting that first cap, the kneel, the careful twist, the grateful cheer. When I find a chanterelle patch, it feels like being let in on a secret. A convergence of trees, soil, time, and enchantment.
And maybe, if you’re lucky, you’ll even find a fairy ring of chanterelles.
Your Quest This Season
This fall, take your map predictions into the woods. Seek out Douglas-fir stands, mid-aged and mossy. Watch the ground beneath ferns, salal, or moss. When you find a chanterelle, pause. Think of the mycelial web beneath your feet and the stories you could tell to others looking for enchantment in their lives.
And if you find something magical, share it. Tag me on Instagram so I can live vicariously through your forest fortune.
References
Miller, N. (2023, September 21). The forest’s gold: The appearance of chanterelles in Swedish history. Niche‑Canada. https://niche-canada.org/2023/09/21/the-forests-gold-the-appearance-of-chanterelles-in-swedish-history/
Mrs. Mushroom. (2022, February 24). Magical fairy rings: The science and folklore. Mushroom Appreciation. https://www.mushroom-appreciation.com/fairy-rings.html
Utah State University Herbarium. (n.d.). Fairy rings Fun facts about fungi. Utah State University, College of Arts & Sciences. https://artsci.usu.edu/herbarium/activities_fun-stuff/fun-facts-about-fungi/fairy-rings
Wescott, E. (1976, July 7). Fairy rings. Alaska Science Forum, University of Alaska. https://www.gi.alaska.edu/alaska-science-forum/fairy-rings
Vickers, H. (2019, August 26). What is a fairy ring and what causes them? Woodland Trust. https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2019/08/what-is-a-fairy-ring/
Jay, M. (2020, October 7). Fungi, folklore, and fairyland. Public Domain Review. https://publicdomainreview.org/essay/fungi-folklore-and-fairyland
Northern Woodlands. (2021, October 25). Of fungi and fairy rings. The Outside Story. https://northernwoodlands.org/outside_story/article/fairy-rings
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