Cortinarius depressus  Fr. (1838)                                                                                  *Collections: PNW

With a bit of experience it is not as depressing trying to recognize these small anonymous Hydrocybe in the field, as the name of the species suggests. The shiny cap with a darker, sub-acute umbo and contrasting paler ochraceous gills set it somewhat apart from the rest of the members of this difficult group. Microscopically, this one is easy to id by the small and rather narrow spores.

Spores: 6.3-8x3.8-4.3µ