Did you ever hear of waxcaps? These colourful wild mushrooms love to grow in old, undisturbed grasslands and make a spectacular appearance in autumn. They belong to a group of fungi known for their smooth, thin stems, widely spaced gills and waxy-looking caps, which can be red, yellow, orange, green, pink or white.

Eleven curious GoodGymers were tempted enough to learn more about these incredible mushrooms to forgo their usual Sunday afternoon plans and head to Walpole Park instead. In particularly windy conditions, the GoodGymers joined Richard and two other Ealing Greenwayers for a fungi survey in support of Plantlife – an organisation whose mission is to secure a world rich in wild plants and fungi.

Any activity in Walpole Park this autumn wouldn't be complete without an air of controversy thanks to Ealing Council’s plan for a temporary, 1,200-seat Troubadour theatre, which has sparked strong local opposition. Among the campaigners’ concerns was the loss of green space, whose ecosystem they believe should be protected rather than sacrificed for a large-scale theatre development. Since waxcaps are a rare, species-rich grassland indicator, heavens knew what would happen if the GoodGym and Greenwayer expedition found these fungi in the park!

Armed with flags to mark the locations of the fungi we discovered and litterpickers (to expand our impact beyond mushroom-spotting), we formed a line abreast, standing shoulder to shoulder. We marched forward, eyes firmly fixed on the ground not to miss even the tiniest fungi. Tiny they certainly were - and not quite waxcap-looking.

Our line-abreast phalanx swept through about three-quarters of the park's grassland (and woodchip-land), discovering a variety of fungi and collecting about a bag of litter that hadn't yet been blown away by the wind. No waxcaps, alas!

Walpole Park may not be an ancient grassland, but the hope is not lost. During our quest, we bumped into a shroom-savvy Selborne Society member, who pointed out that the dry summer had been rather merciless to fungi and that he wouldn't expect to find waxcaps in Walpole Park. He gave us some hints about other promising locations, so you may yet see another mushroom survey this autumn, before the first frosty days arrive.

The last Sunday in October at Acton junior parkrun inevitably brought out the Halloween getups, sported by both the little runners and the volunteers. Probably the most impressive was tailwalker Jane’s devilish tail – proof that the range of Acton junior tails for all weather and occasions keeps growing! Three GoodGym volunteers hadn’t got the memo about the spooky fashion for the day, but they still got to enjoy little pumpkin chocolates after the run. Yum!

Alan, Maria and Kash all helped secure the course as marshals. The gusts of wind kept sending everything flying around, just as if the park was haunted by a horde of ghosts, so every pair of hands was needed. The stormy weather was particularly merciless at the roundabout section of the course, where two marshals had to keep chasing three cones with route directions, none of which had been weighted down! Luckily, the young runners knew their parkrun well, and 68 children made it to the finish line without being blown away by the wind.

When the usual
Is always unusual
Gratitude unfolds