Clam Digging Clams - - Can you dig 'em?

"It's awesome digging at night. Everyone's got their lanterns and flashlights." --Cissy Jones Westport, Washington

Each year thousands of people come to Washington’s Pacific coast beaches in search of clams. There are 17 miles of ocean beaches stretching south from Westport and Grayland where tens of thousands of clams are taken each season. You don’t need much equipment to dig clams. If you are going after razor clams, shovels or clam guns - special tubes that you push into the sand to get the clam - are the main tools. If you are getting butter clams, a simple garden rake will work. A net to hold your catch and waterproof footwear are about the only other things you’ll need for most clam digging. While the small butter clams can be raked almost year-round, the most popular clams are the razor clams, which measure about four inches in length. The spring season opens in mid-March and the fall season in mid-October. A shellfish license is required and the rules and length of seasons change, so be sure to check the latest published regulations. In the fall, razor clam digging takes on a whole different character, as diggers go out at night with lanterns. Your partner holds the light while you dig frantically after spotting a bubble and hole in the sand that marks a razor clam. You dig straight down about a foot, then get down in the bracing surf to grab the clam. There is nothing quite like digging clams in the surf under a full moon. With any luck at all, your hard work will be rewarded with a tasty clam dinner.

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