This past MLK weekend we opted to hit the shores and try our hand at razor clamming - this time with the right equipment. I say that because last time we tried razor clamming, we went with a garden shovel and had no luck at all - however, we were very fortunate to have had met a fellow on the beach the following day who was nice enough to have shared half of his harvest with us. Bless his heart because once we got a taste of those razor clams, I knew I was going to have to come back and give it another shot. And indeed we did and indeed we had a bountiful harvest. Oh look at these glorious creatures -they are so tasty and they truly have a unique sweet flavor.
We arrived at Thousand Trails Oceana RV & Camping Resort early Saturday morning. We pulled in and got settled into our site while the weather held up. After lunch, we headed to the beach through a trail from the campground to checkout the spot where we would go clamming the next day. We saw a washed up whale carcass! It was quite a scene.
The following morning we drove to the town of Ocean Shores and decided to take a stroll and check out the local town. Pono got so much attention on our stroll. Everyone stopped and greeted him.
After a leisurely stroll through the town we headed back to camp to load up our razor clamming gear and headed to the beach. The beach access by car was right around the corner so it was a breeze getting there. The low tide was expected at 6:15pm but you can start a couple hours beforehand. We got there about 4:45pm and boy were there a lot of people.
"We're late," we yelled! So we hurried to find a spot, park and got geared up to go. Flashlights - check, buckets - check, headlamps - check, shellfish license - check, clam guns....where's the clam guns?! We were so excited we forgot the clam guns back at our trailer. Luckily we parked right by the trail access to our campground - so I ran there and got it. 😂 Now we were ready.
We crushed the first 2 clams on our first 2 digs - trying to get used to the technique. But that's ok because they're still good, and you are required to keep the first 15 you dig - so that's what we did. The rest of our digs were perfect and we met our max allowable clams for the day. Shane and Taylor had a great experience and I've got a feeling it's now a favorite recreational activity Shane will be doing here on out.
Taylor wanted see how it looked digging its way back into the sand
Back at camp I made dinner while Shane cleaned off all the sand that came with us back from the beach. It's a sandy sport for sure. I made steak and shrimp and mushroom scampi - all in my cast iron. I love cast iron cooking. Truly the best way to make anything and everything.
cooked to perfection in a cast iron skillet
The rest of the evening we spent enjoying it around the campfire. This propane fire pit is truly a must have - especially when the campground does not have it as an amenity or when there are burn bans in effect.
Time to pack up and head home, clean the clams and enjoy them
