Clamming in Rockaway Beach, OR

Sunday 8/5/2012

While at Paradise Cove Resort and Marina we meet our neighbors Greg and Marilyn.

They invited us to go with them to do some clamming.

I didn't have a shellfish licence, so I was going to just watch. They took off across the mud flats at low tide.

Greg gives Joe his first lesson on how to find clams.

Mean while Marilyn has started to search her limit for the day.

Up the way on the bay, there was another man and his dog clamming with a shovel.

Just up from him was a women clamming also with a shovel.

Some other guys where out in a boat fishing.

Marilyn finds her first clam!

Marilyn and Grey both have hip waders on, that help keep them dry. Joe of course didn't have anything.

While I watched from the shore, I took this picture to show you how foggy it was that morning.

Joe finds his first clam. Greg decides to go farther out on the mud flat toward the water.

Joe brought bags and tape to cover up my shoes if I wanted to go on the flats. I got tired of being on the side lines, so I bagged and tapped up.

I walked carefully out to them, being careful not to fall in the mud with my camera. It is not easy to walk on mud with bags on your shoes. It was much more slippery.

Greg and Marilyn think it is easier to clam by just digging with your bare hands. Even if I had had a shellfish licence I don't think I would have clammed. I don't like getting dirt under my nails.

Marilyn has 8 clams all ready.

Joe finds another clam.

Soon Joe has 7 clams,

and Marilyn has 12.

Greg found this sand shrimp while digging for clams.

He showed me how the sand shrimp has a huge left claw.

After a while the three of them find there limit of 36 soft shell clams.

Joe, elbow deep before he had got his limit. It was a cool day and Joe was very wet and cold from his hips down. ( and of course his arms from his elbows down)!

It was time for the three of them to rinse off their clams.

Greg's foot got stuck in the mud and he almost fell into the water, as Joe and Marilyn grab a hold of him before he went down.

Marilyn, Joe and Greg with their limits and ready to go home.

Greg and Marilyn had gone out salmon fishing with a guide the previous day. After we got home Greg brought over some caviar for us to try. It was very salty. I had never had caviar. I didn't know it was orange, but Greg told me that salmon caviar is orange. It was really sweet of them to share their knowledge of clamming, as well as their caviar. While relaxing out on our lawn chairs that evening, they also shared some of their salmon that they had just smoked. That was just yummy! It doesn't get any better than fresh smoked salmon!

The neighbor next to Greg and Marilyn gave Joe some fresh salmon he had caught, so Joe cooked it up for dinner.

Joe cooking his clams

I am not a big clam eater, unless it is in clam chowder, so I let Joe enjoy all them.

While washing the pan from which the clams were in, I found this dead little crab. You can even see it's eyes and mouth.

Before we left this campground I asked Greg for his and Marilyn's email address. He brought over his card. When I read it I realized I had followed him on his blog a few times in the past. It's a small world after all isn't it!. If you would like to follow Greg and Marilyn on thier blog, here is their blogspot address http://gundyville.blogspot.com