Appalachia NAMA 2023

Together in proud partnership with the NAMA-affiliated Asheville Mushroom Club (AMC), Blue Ridge Mycological Society (BRMS), Mushroom Club of Georgia (MCG) and, South Carolina Upstate Mycological Society (SCUMS), NAMA is excited to open registration for Appalachia NAMA 2023, our 62nd Annual Continental Foray, this year to be located at wonderfully comfortable Kanuga Conference Center​ in the bucolically beautiful rolling country around Hendersonville, North Carolina. This site and facility, identified and selected two years ago by past Foray Chair Sam Landes, seems tailor-made for NAMA's signature annual event!

The word "Kanuga" is said to be of Cherokee linguistic origin and refers to a "gathering place; the current management's heartfelt land acknowledgment the territory of Indigenous people who were driven west about 70 years before the original summer mountain getaway was created. Our Voucher Collection Project mushroom identification and preservation activity will be housed in a humongous gymnasium. There are ample classroom-type spaces for our presenters to hold forth and Minkler Grove, located near the Main Lodge, offers a ring of stand-alone rooms that seem ideal for various workshop purposes. Evening programs will take place in Balthis-Rodwell Meeting hall, followed by live music and beverage-fueled socials on the outdoor deck of Cunningham-Nevius Pavilion, with an expansive deck overlooking the shimmering, trout-filled lake.

Foray Chair Mandie Quark has worked with our NAMA committees to assemble an impressive roster of featured presenters, including Arleen Bessette as Host Mycologist, and a growing list of mycological moguls, listed in detail in the speaker section. Our Voucher Collection Project celebrates its 25th year, with Chair Dr. Andy Wilson, along with Dr. Patrick Leacock and Foray Recorder Adele Mehta, on hand to identify and process attendees' specimens for accession into the permanent collection at The Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. Individual foray sites have been carefully selected by our partner clubs to showcase the diversity of this stunning region. Hands-on paid workshops, set to include Mushroom Basket-weaving, DNA-Barcoding, Mushroom Cultivation, Culinary Arts, and UV-light Night Forays will be offered to event registrants for sign-up at a later date.

Kanuga is known for its luxurious and beautifully maintained accommodations. All accommodations feature complimentary Wifi, which we found to be excellent across the entire venue during our site visit.

Airports with relative proximity to our location include:

Greenville/Spartanburg, SC (GSP) 56 miles

Asheville, NC (AVL), 14 miles

Charlotte, NC (CLT), 100 miles

Knoxville, TN (TYS) 150 miles

There is an Amtrak train station in Charlotte, NC as well.

Please check our FAQs section for more answers to all your questions!

For questions or help with registration, please reach out to Foray Registrar Peggy Green at forayregistrar@namyco.org; President Trent Blizzard at president@namyco.org; Chief Operating Officer Bruch Reed at coo@namyco.org; and Kristen Blizzard at support@namyco.org.