Mushrooms are everywhere right now – and I'm talking in more places than just your bowl of risotto. These humble fungi are popping up in everything from plant-based proteins and coffee powders to skincare serums, wellness elixirs, biodegradable packaging and even faux leather made from mushroom roots. I, for one, am an OG mushroom fan and love all the umami goodness they add to dishes. So when I heard about an old railway tunnel turned fungi farm hiding in Tasmania, I had to visit. Just like mushroom sprouts, this tunnel is destined to grow into something awesome.
Hidden below the slopes of Mount Rumney, just a 20-minute drive from Hobart's CBD, Tunnel Hill Mushrooms is one of only two operating mushroom farms in abandoned railway tunnels across the country. After more than a decade of exclusively supplying local chefs and restaurants, founder Dean Smith is finally rolling up the tunnel door and welcoming the public to explore the mycelial magic of his underground mushroom lair.
The story behind Tunnel Hill Mushrooms is as extraordinary as the fungi it produces. When Smith and his family purchased the Mount Rumney property in 2000 – which included a 90-metre stretch of the 165-metre, heritage-listed Bellerive–Sorell railway tunnel – they intended to transform it into a small hobby farm. That was, until they received a surprise visit from Dr Warwick Gill, the original farm manager at Huon Valley Mushrooms.
Read more at TimeOut
