A Little Side Time

I have been sneaking away from the farm to do a little seaside harvesting.

Clamming (clam digging) on the Oregon Coast opened up October 1st for the first time in more than a year due to standards. Bacteria levels/natural toxins in clams are monitored for food safety, we are very fortunate to have dedicated testing and the harvesting had been shut down for the levels to drop to acceptable standards. Toxins are those sneaky things that cannot be seen or tasted, tainted seafood can carry the poison through the cleaning and cooking processes so the harvesting is put on hold until seafood is safe to eat.

For me, clamming is a activity that has been a sporadic exercise over the years. It can only be done on specific dates at specific times. My supply of clams that had been processed and vacuumed-packed in the freezer had dwindled to zero. It is time to get back into the sport.

Clamming is all based on moon phases and the tides. Even with the limited times that are ‘clam viable’, the weather plays a large part of available digging windows. To get ready for digging, a tide book is the first line of preparation. The tide has to be low enough to create dry sand. Storms far out at sea can churn up the sand and not allow the low tides to create the open sands for digging.

During the wintertime, the low tides are in the afternoon and evenings while during the spring the lows come in the very early morning hours many times well before sunrise. Those very dedicated diggers suit up for the weather, the tides and for the darkness. There is no one-size-fits-all approach for clam digging.

There are many types of water proof, sand proof clothing. Even at that there are those very hardy (or very foolish souls) that go running out into the surf in swimming shorts and barefooted. I and my sister each wear a neoprene wetsuit that protects us from toes to shoulders with thick, rubbery, soft foam. We are so well protected that walking becomes a shuffle/waddle maneuver once on soft sand.

The tools of the trade are as varied as the outfits. I have been slowly learning how to use a clam gun rather than a razor clam shovel. I am so used to taking out a couple of scoops and slamming my hand down into the sand to grasp the clam that I found I was doing that with the clam gun as well. In the near dark with my arm submerged in a hole and a sneaky wave that came in over me had me learning real quick that I needed to be more proactive with the gun and pulling the clam from the sand with suction the way clam guns work best.

I was able to get away for several evening digs and the time away from the farm was just as invigorating as a vacation.