Big Minus Tide Time (1/2)

[Latimeria]

So, I wasn't planning on cooking the Prime Rib on Saturday and wanted to fish on Sunday, but that didn't look like it was going to happen so I checked out the tides.  Yikes!  Huge minus tides!

Plan B was quickly set up to do some clamming while the Sous Vide was doing its thing.  I got down to an empty beach!  It was cold and windy, but not a sole. 

I started my search and for the next 30 minutes only found 1 legal and a few babies that I reburied.   



Look at that cute little guy!



Then people saw what i was doing and all piled around me looking and plucking one up here and there.  Totally No licenses and felt like they had to follow me around which was totally annoying.
As I was looking, I found the motherlode and within 15 minutes found the rest to fill my limit of nice clams.  I got a few striped ones which was pretty cool and weird looking!



I also dug up a spiny mole crab and he pinched me pretty good.  Ouch!



I was pretty stoked to get my clam limits and back home in time to get the Prime Rib ready and finished up.  3 days of purging the clams with fresh seawater, and I'll be ready to shuck them up and prepare a few clam meals.



I love different types of fishing (or harvesting) that I don't do too often, and I only get out clamming once or twice a year so it was pretty exciting.

Thanks for reading and Happy New Year!  Lets get some sharks on the new 2022 board that I'll have to get all set up.  hahahaha.

[Tim524]

Those are some nice ones, I have never done that before, only at Pismo but didn't need a pitch fork, very cool

[jrodda]

Nice haul, looking forward to see what you do with them.

[vdisney]

Awesome, haven't seen clams since I was a kid.  We used to go to Pismo and clam as a family 60 years ago...........

[BenCantrell]

Cool report Tom! I regret not getting more into non-fish harvesting when I was SD.

[skrilla]

Purging clams, I need to learn more about this technique...

[Pinoyfisher]

Been a while since I've clammed. Very cool Tom! Not sure I would have kept my cool with those poachers benefitting off of my hard work.

[Latimeria]

Been a while since I've clammed. Very cool Tom! Not sure I would have kept my cool with those poachers benefitting off of my hard work.

Two kids were following me around and said "Damn, how do you know where they are? What's the secret?".   I replied "First trick is buying a license". They just had a blank stare and asked again and I just said I'm not giving up the secrets. LoL

[Latimeria]

Purging clams, I need to learn more about this technique...

Bring a bunch of extra buckets or coolers for seawater.  I keep them cold in a cooler full of water and put a bubbler in it. The bubbles (and pouring water from the cooler back into the cooler) make them want to move their feet and filtrate the water more. This causes them to start pushing the sh!t out and filtering the clean water. Next day dump the water, clean the stuff that came out and add new water. Repeat process for 3 or even 4 days and all the garbage inside them will have been expelled.  I cleaned one prior to doing it and one after 3 days and when I cut them up, you can visually notice the difference.

[skrilla]

Purging clams, I need to learn more about this technique...

Bring a bunch of extra buckets or coolers for seawater.  I keep them cold in a cooler full of water and put a bubbler in it. The bubbles (and pouring water from the cooler back into the cooler) make them want to move their feet and filtrate the water more. This causes them to start pushing the sh!t out and filtering the clean water. Next day dump the water, clean the stuff that came out and add new water. Repeat process for 3 or even 4 days and all the garbage inside them will have been expelled.  I cleaned one prior to doing it and one after 3 days and when I cut them up, you can visually notice the difference.

Nice thanks for the tip. 

[Latimeria]

Purging clams, I need to learn more about this technique...

Bring a bunch of extra buckets or coolers for seawater.  I keep them cold in a cooler full of water and put a bubbler in it. The bubbles (and pouring water from the cooler back into the cooler) make them want to move their feet and filtrate the water more. This causes them to start pushing the sh!t out and filtering the clean water. Next day dump the water, clean the stuff that came out and add new water. Repeat process for 3 or even 4 days and all the garbage inside them will have been expelled.  I cleaned one prior to doing it and one after 3 days and when I cut them up, you can visually notice the difference.

Nice thanks for the tip. 

This was after day 2's purge.  That's all sh!t  at the bottom and the water was probably filled with unseen crap.  I think I'm going to do a 4th water purge this week to make sure it's extra clean as the clams are still happy down there.