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Donkey Kong 64 Guide > Golden Bananas > Fungi Forest

One of the most enjoyable stages in the game takes the Kongs to a strange forest where night and day yield different results. Climb to the top of a giant mushroom, shiver at the sound of distant howling wolves, battle killer tomatoes, and venture into the depths of an abandoned well for a wild mine cart ride. You'll have to change from day to night and back again several times in order to accomplish everything this stage offers, and it's one heck of a ride.

Donkey Kong


  • In the giant mushroom, activate the cannons (this requires teamwork from all the Kongs). Now stomp the blue switch, then run down to a cannon, get shot up to the top, and dash over to the waiting golden banana.
  • Enter the building with the water wheel and break apart some crates. This will reveal a switch. Stomp the switch to open an area where three switches wait. They are numbered. Pull them in the order of 2,1,1,3,2. This reveals a banana outside, but you can't access that banana until night.
  • Outside the mushroom, Diddy can use his jetpac barrel to fly up to a ledge where you'll find a tag barrel and a pad that Donkey Kong can use to reach the barrel bonus stage.
  • At night, enter the area with a thorny wall. Find the invincibility barrel and use it to access a switch that is surrounded by thorns. This opens the door of a building. Enter that building and break apart a ? box to reveal another switch. Stomp it, climb up to the building's second level, and swing across temporarily-lowered vines to reach a bonus barrel and win a golden banana.
  • Behind the building with the thorny wall, and behind the thorny wall itself, there's a blueprint guardian walking around. Defeat him and take the blueprint to Snide to earn yourself a wonderful golden banana.

Diddy Kong


  • Next to Snide's Headquarters, you can find a building with crates nearby. At night, climb up the crates and bounce up into the building. Play the music on the guitar pad to bring Squawks the Parrot with a light. Now walk the platforms to reach the golden banana.
  • There's a barrel with a bonus game at the top of the giant mushroom. Fly up there and play the game to win a golden banana.
  • Enter the area where there is a footrace and a big oak tree when it's dark. Play the guitar to wake an owl, then find a nearby jetpac and fly up to the owl. He'll present you with a challenge. Fly through rings to make a bonus barrel appear at the top of the tree where the owl lives. Then play the game inside that barrel to win a golden banana.
  • While it's still dark, climb up a rope that leads to the top of the building with the water wheel. Atop a small tower there you'll find a switch. Stomp the switch to open the building's door. Now go inside and shoot the 'on' switch you'll see when you look around. Next charge a switch at the wench's base. Go outside and find the new guitar pad that appeared near a thorny wall. Play the song to free the banana.
  • There are several floors inside the giant mushroom. A blueprint guardian walks on one of those floors. Defeat him to win a blueprint that you can return to snide for a golden banana.

Tiny Kong


  • In the area where Lanky races the rabbit, you'll find a tall mound. You can't climb it, but you can get on top. How? First use the shrink barrel behind the hill to shrink, then run around to the front and stand on the music pad as you play your tuba. Now Squawks the Parrot will come and give you a free ride to the top. Drop in the hole and defeat the enemies to earn a golden banana.
  • When you get the banana in the mound near the footrace, you'll get a bean. Take the bean immediately to the area where Chunky fought the giant tomatoes. There will be a patch of soil fenced by three sides. Put the bean there and a plant should sprout. Then go to the right to a shrink barrel. Shrink and return to the front of the plant and play your instrument on the music pad to receive another ride. Now you get another golden banana!
  • First Chunky needs to knock away some bad wooden gates to enter a building and stomp some switches. This can cause a small hole to appear in the building. Now Tiny should come back at night and enter the hole. There she'll see a room with a moon symbol over it. When she enters, she'll fight a giant spider. Hit the spider in the eye with your feather gun after you destroy her little ones. Then repeat the process until you've hit her enough times for victory. Keep moving or you won't survive that long! Your reward is a much-deserved golden banana.
  • Inside the giant mushroom there's a switch Tiny can stop. Then she can climb to ladders and float over some ledges to a barrel that contains a bonus game and a golden banana.
  • The blueprint guardian Tiny should find is hidden just outside the mushroom, on one of the wooden ledges. Defeat him for the blueprint that you can take to Snide for your reward.

Lanky Kong


  • When it's dark, float up to the top of the building with the water wheel attached at one end (you can find a pad at the building's base that makes this possible). Once there, enter a little room and stomp a switch to face an attack from bats. Shoot them all to win a golden banana.
  • Teleport to the top portion of the mushroom, then handstand up to its peak and stomp a switch. Now drop down to enter a room with a bonus game. There should be trampolines and bees. Kill the bees and then use the trampolines to bounce up to a golden banana (note that there are two rooms Lanky accesses by stomping the switch; you might first discover the other room, explained below).
  • Another room you can access by stomping the switch on the mushroom contains five mushrooms and a chart on the wall. Stomp the mushrooms in the order outlined by the chart on the wall. Remember the color of bananas that each character collects, and you should have no trouble.
  • In the area where Diddy found the owl, you can find a rabbit near a giant tomato. He's asleep, so play the trombone to wake him. Now race him. When you win, which may take a while, he'll propose a second race, which you must win for the golden banana. To win, you'll probably have to try quite a few times. You first need to have the improved handstand that allows you to race quickly, or you'll never win. That eats up crystals. Use the move to race the rabbit, cutting corners all the way, barely touching the edges of the targets as you pass through. A very tough challenge.
  • You'll find a blueprint guardian in the same area as you find the footrace. Defeat him and take the blueprint to Snide for the usual reward.

Chunky Kong


  • Chunky can enter the well in the first, main area of this level. Just climb up the stump, jump onto the grate covering the well, and butt smash it to enter. It's rather difficult to win the 50 coins you'll need, but if you do you get a golden banana.
  • In the building with the water wheel, break some boxes to reveal a triangle music pad. Now play the tune to start some conveyor belts moving. Pick up a barrel and leave the room, then immediately come back in with the barrel. The belt should still be moving, and there will be two more barrels. Place one on the belt and it will move and self-destruct. Put the other two there, too, and you will receive a golden banana for your efforts.
  • Go to the area near Funky's Arsenal. You'll see a giant apple there. Inside is a worm who feels he's on the wrong side of the tracks. Terrible, mean tomatoes pick on him. You can help. Jump in the barrel that makes you grow. Now smash the tomatoes with butt stomps. The grateful worm wants you to move him. Still huge, carry the apple to the main area and set it down on the large patch of soil partially covered by a green emblem. Now you get a golden banana.
  • Go to the top of the giant mushroom (you can use the number 5 teleport). Circle it and you'll find a blue switch. Stomp it and enter a room with a puzzle. You must match the pictures so they form a large picture of Chunky's face. This can be difficult, as portions of Lanky's face sometimes look like Chunky. But you can still do it. By now, you should have a pretty good idea of what your monkey friends look like.
  • About halfway up the inside of the mushroom, a ledge branches out towards some vines. Swing across them to a door, then leave to find a ledge where a blueprint guardian waits. Defeat him for a blueprint piece, which you can take to Snide for a golden banana.

NEXT: Crystal Caverns