Free Mushroom Map Soil, weather & burn data
Most “free” foraging tools give you just enough to be frustrating — a teaser map with no real data, or a paywall the moment you try to check conditions.
Forayz works differently. A free account — email and password, no credit card — unlocks every environmental layer: soil temperature and moisture at two depths, rainfall over 7, 14 or 30 days, snow cover, wildfire smoke, ecoregions, and rainfall normals. These are the same layers I use to decide whether a trip is worth the drive.
What’s Free in Forayz
The free tier includes every environmental layer on the map. These are the conditions that drive mushroom fruiting, and having them in one place saves hours of checking weather stations, soil databases, and SNOTEL sites individually.
Soil Temperature
The single most important variable for timing morel hunts. Morels fruit when soil temps reach roughly 45–50°F (7–10°C). The map shows you exactly where that threshold is being reached across the Pacific Northwest and Western US — instead of guessing from air temperature or elevation. Readable at the surface (0–3 in) or down in the root zone (3–11 in), which lags the surface and tracks fruiting better.
Soil Moisture
Moisture is the second half of the equation. A warm burn site that hasn’t seen rain in three weeks isn’t going to produce. This layer helps identify areas with enough water in the ground to support fruiting — especially important later in the season when exposed slopes dry out fast. Also available at both surface and root-zone depth.
Precipitation: 7, 14 or 30 Days
How much rain has fallen, over whichever window fits what you’re chasing. The 7-day view catches a single storm that just soaked one valley; the 30-day view shows whether the season has been wet enough at all. Chanterelle and bolete hunters lean on these in the fall.
Snow Coverage
In spring, snow coverage tells you which burns and high-elevation sites have melted out and which are still buried. No point driving three hours to a site under two feet of snow. Updates regularly so you can watch the melt line climb. (Pro adds a Recent Melt mode showing where snow came off in the last two weeks.)
Ecoregions
Ecoregion boundaries help you understand the landscape at a glance — what kind of forest you’re looking at, what elevation band you’re in, and what species are likely to grow there. Useful when planning trips to unfamiliar areas.
Wildfire Smoke & Forecast
Near-surface smoke right now, plus where it is forecast to peak 24 and 48 hours out. In late summer this is the layer that decides whether a trip is worth making at all. A blank map means clear air.
Active Wildfires & Historical Burns
Current NIFC fire perimeters so you know what to drive around, plus 25,000+ older burn perimeters across the West going back to 2005 — enough to find long-cold burns that still produce.
Public Lands, Roads & Trails
Federal, state and provincial public land across the US and Canada, the numbered USFS road network, maintained trails, and recreation sites like trailheads and campgrounds. Answers “am I even allowed to pick here, and can I get there?”
Rainfall Normals
Long-term precipitation averages by area. Is this spot generally wet or dry? Combined with the recent-precipitation layers, you can identify areas running wetter or drier than usual — which can mean better or worse conditions than the map suggests alone.
Check conditions before your next trip
Make a free account, turn on soil temperature and moisture, and see what’s happening at your target spots right now. No credit card.
What Forayz Pro Adds
The free layers are enough for general foraging — checking conditions, timing trips, understanding the landscape. If you’re specifically hunting burn morels or doing serious backcountry scouting, Pro unlocks the layers that matter most for that work.
Burn Maps
Wildfire burn perimeters from recent years across the entire Western US. First-year burns are where the big morel fruitings happen, and having every burn mapped on one screen saves an enormous amount of research time. 2026 burn maps are live.
Timber Harvest Maps
Recently logged and thinned forest areas. These are underrated morel spots that most foragers overlook — timber harvests create similar conditions to burns, but with less competition because fewer people are looking at harvest data.
Area Fruiting Calendars
Open a town or mountain pass and Forayz shows which species typically fruit there in which months, built from years of observation data for that specific area — alongside its ecoregion, the forest composition around it, and 30-year climate normals. Useful for somewhere you have never foraged.
Tap the Map for Conditions
Long-press anywhere in the apps, or click empty map on the web, and a pin drops with the conditions at that exact point: elevation, soil temperature and moisture, snow depth, recent rainfall, and the dominant tree species there. One tap instead of toggling five layers.
Tree Species Maps
22 species mapped by live tree density — Douglas-fir, cottonwood, the firs and hemlocks, ponderosa, oak, madrone, redcedar and more. Find the host trees your target species associates with before you drive out.
Offline Map Downloads
Download map areas to your phone for use without cell service. Essential for backcountry foraging where you’re miles from a tower. Download your target areas at home, then navigate in the field without worrying about signal.
How Foragers Use the Free Map
Fall chanterelle scouting: Check soil moisture and the 14- or 30-day precipitation window for your usual spots before making the drive. If the ground is dry, save the gas.
Spring morel timing: Watch soil temperature maps in March and April. When your target elevation band crosses 50°F and there’s been recent rain, it’s go time.
Planning a trip to a new area: Use ecoregions and rainfall normals to understand what kind of forest and moisture regime you’re headed into. Cross-reference snow coverage if you’re heading to higher elevations, and wildfire smoke if it’s late summer.
General mushroom scouting: Soil moisture, temperature, and precipitation together tell you whether conditions are favorable for fruiting in any area, for any species. These are the fundamentals.
Free vs. Pro: Which Do You Need?
| Feature | Free | Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Soil moisture & temperature | ✓ | ✓ |
| Precipitation (7, 14 & 30-day) | ✓ | ✓ |
| Snow coverage | ✓ | ✓ |
| Ecoregions & rainfall normals | ✓ | ✓ |
| Wildfire smoke + 48-hour forecast | ✓ | ✓ |
| Active wildfires & historical burns | ✓ | ✓ |
| Public lands, roads & trails | ✓ | ✓ |
| Waypoints & track recording (iOS & Android) | ✓ | ✓ |
| Burn maps (Western US) | — | ✓ |
| Timber harvest maps | — | ✓ |
| Tree species maps (22 species) | — | ✓ |
| Tap-the-map condition readout | — | ✓ |
| Area fruiting calendars | — | ✓ |
| Offline map downloads | — | ✓ |
| Price | $0 | $14.99–$20/yr |
If you’re foraging casually or hunting species that don’t depend on burn data — chanterelles, boletes, hedgehogs, lobster mushrooms — the free tier is a complete tool. Start there.
If you’re chasing burn morels, want offline maps for backcountry use, or want the tree species and fruiting calendars, Pro pays for itself on your first trip that would’ve been a bust without the data.
Try It Now — Free, No Credit Card
Make a free account, turn on a few layers, and check conditions somewhere you know. Available on web, iOS, and Android.