Day 17: "Elfin," I said. "Elfin, not 'elephant.'" It's amazing how many people mispronounce the common name of this family of mushrooms. Personally, I wouldn't care to sit astride one whether I was an elf or on an elephant. Think of the saddle sores!
Elfin Saddles can fruit in spring or fall, and novice mushroomers often confuse them with Morels which are exclusively a spring occurrence. Characteristically, Morels have a nicely shaped cap with regularly spaced ridges and pits. On the other hand the Helvellas look like gobs of wax, contorted and lumpy. Helvella lacunosa, so named for the lacunae (deep pits) in the stipe, is one of the more common Saddles to be found in the Pacific Northwest.
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