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Crab Watch and Clam Watch provides the latest information available on local clam digging and crabbing conditions on the Oregon Coast to facilitate planning your crabbing and clam digging adventures. Crabbing Recreational Crabbing in the ocean closes on Octomber 16th through November 30th. Recreational crabbing has been great in the ocean when ocean conditions have allowed crabbers to cross the bar. Dungeness Crabs are common to the subtidal areas of the ocean with a sandy bottom and in areas with extensive eel grass beds at depths ranging from 18 to 90 feet. The first storms of Fall has seen crabbing productivity decline in some of Oregon's southern, central and northern bays. However, a Pacific high is moving the storm track into Washington and Canada and crabbing should once again improve over an extended period of time. Dockside Crabbing Crabbing with the Crab Max from Moe's Pier in Siletz Bay. The jumbo Dungeness crab in the bucket was the only keeper caught in the strong tidal surge by crabber Steve. A crabber tosses his crab ring into Alsea Bay from the end of one of two crabbing docks operated by the Port of Alsea.   
Folding crab traps are a recent innovation that is changing the face of crabbing from crab docks. Crab catch capacity is the measure that separates the Crab Max from other folding crab traps like the Crab Hawk, Sporty Crab Trap and the Danielson Folding Crab Trap as shown in the video clip. The 18 inch dimension really pays off when crabbing is hot. It is not unusual to catch 3 or more keeper sized Dungeness crabs per pull. Occasionally the crabber is surprised with 4 keeper sized crabs but one lucky crabber took 5 crabs with 1 pull at Netarts Bay. Folding crab traps are my favorite method for taking crabs from Oregon's crabbing docks. Not only are folding crab traps one of the most productive methods used to take crabs they are the best way to introduce children to crabbing; for example, my grandchildren use their Crab Max folding crab traps to take both Dungeness and red rock crabs from Yaquina Bay crabbing docks. In the photos below took the Dungeness crabs from the Coast Guard dock in Winchester Bay using one Crab Max folding crab trap. The three Dungeness shown below provided just enough sweet succulent crab meat to make a Crab Louie for me and my wife. Crabbing from the Coast Guard dock was so good I could have easily limited out, but three crabs were just enough crab to fulfill my immediate needs.
We provide Internet links to following websites for the latest information available on local clam digging and crabbing conditions on the Oregon Coast.
CURRENT MOON
*There is going to be a total eclipse of the moon about 10:33 p.m. on Monday Dec. 20. If the sky is clear, you can see the eclipse in the Pacific Standard Time zone begins at 10:33 p.m. with the total eclipse at 11:41 p.m. and lasting a little more than an hour. The eclipse will end about 2:01 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 21. During a total lunar eclipse, the Moon's disk can take on a dramatically colorful appearance from bright orange to blood red to dark brown and (rarely) very dark gray. The Winter Solstice of 2010 also occurs on Dec. 21 at 11:38 pm GMT. This is just 15.3 hours after the mid-point of the total lunar eclipse ( 08:17 am GMT ). There is no special significance to this coincidence since a lunar eclipse can occur on any calendar date of the year. However, it does mean that this eclipse will take place with the Moon at its maximum northern position in its orbit. The last time a lunar eclipse occurred on Dec. 21 was in 1991 and the next one is in 2094. The last total lunar eclipse visible from the entire continental United States was Feb. 21, 2008. The next opportunity to see a total lunar eclipse from North America will be April 15, 2014. *odfw Click on NOAA Tides and Currents to link to the tide tables for the Oregon Coast; then scroll down and click on the location of interest. We provide a link to Oregon Surf Check to view the height and interval of the long ocean swells. Click on the following link to the Coast Guard Jettycam real time views of the bar crossing of Oregon's Bays and follow the instructions. Click on NOAA Regional Weather Forecast to view the 7 day weather forecast for your area of interest. Click on the pink colored portion of the map for your area of interest. Click on the area of the map between the coastline and the blue line defining the weather forecast 10 miles to sea. Move the cursor over your area of interest and click for a detailed 7 day weather forecast. Click on the NOAA Website Marine Digital Point Forecast Matrix Interface to view a detailed weather and surf forecast for the Oregon Coast. Position the cursor over the location of interest on the Oregon Coast and left click. A check of the Northwest River Forecast shows river levels for all of Oregon's rivers are near average levels with the exceprion of the Columbia, Willamette, Umpqua and Rogue. Look for river levels to remain higher than average with continued rainfall into the summer months. The smaller estuaries the Chetco, Rogue, Salmon, Sand Lake and Necanicum are the first to be affected by seasonal flooding followed by the larger estuaries Coquille, Siuslaw, Alsea, Siletz, Nestucca, Nehalem, Yaquina, Tillamook, Coos, Netarts and the Lower Columbia River Estuary. Conversely when river levels drop crabbing improves first in Netarts and Coos Bays before improving in Oregon's other estuaries. Click on Chetco River to display the height of the river level for the Chetco River near Brookings Click on Rogue River to display the height of the river level for the Rogue River at Agnes Click on Coquille at Coquille to display the height of the river level for the Coquille River at Coquille Click on Coquille at Myrtle Point to display the height of the river level for the Coquille River at Myrtle Point Click on Siuslaw to display the height of the river level for the Siuslaw River near Mapleton Click on Umpqua River near Elkton to display the height of the river level for the Umpqua River near Elkton Click on Umpqua River at Reedsport to display the height of the river level for the Umpqua River at Reedsport Click on Alsea River at Lobster Creek to display the height of the river level for the Alsea River at Lobster Creek Click on Alsea River at Tidewater to display the height of the river level for the Alsea River – At Tidewater Click on Siletz to display the height of the river level for the Siletz River at Siletz Click on Nestucca to display the height of the river level for the Nestucca River near Beaver Click on Wilson for Tillamook to display the height of the river level for the Wilson River at Sollie Smith Bridge Click on Trask for Tillamook to display the height of the river level for the Trash River above Cedar Creek near Tillamook Click on Nehalem to display the height of the river level for the Nehalem River near Foss Clamming and Crabbing Reports Lower Columbia River Crabbing: Gene from Tackle Time Charters reports: Hello, Crabbing on the lower Columbia River is usually very good from late July through Septembe and into October. Most have nice hard shells by late August and limits are common. A limit of crab is 12 per person. They are catching crab just off of buoy 20 and buoy 21. The crabbing is done by boat just off the river beach. We don't have any piers or docks out far enough into the river to do any crabbing without a boat. Unless, you have a crab catcher that is attached to your fishing pole. And if you do, you can catch crab with your crab catcher. It's a fun thing to do! And you can get some good crab too! Also, they are fishing for Salmon from the river beach and doing very well !! For those of you who do not know where the river beach is. It is located near Fort Stevens State Park. You'll see signs saying: To Jetties. The first parking lot will be a look out tower that over looks the ocean. The third parking lot is where you can access the river beach. Come Join The Fun!!!! Any questions, Please call us at (503) 861-3693 or check out our web site at Tackle Time Charters. Have a Great Day, Linda. On 08/14: a lot of crabs in the river but a high percentage are soft. Avid clam digger, crabber and fisherman Don shares the photo array of his clam digging and crabbing adventure to the Oregon coast from the South Jetty on the Columbia River, Nehalem Bay, Oregon Dunes National Recreational Area and Coos Bay. Don lives and works in San Diego and submitted the photos of the Pismo clams posted on our photo album. Don writes, "Sorry for the late Clamming report Bill, I've been up to my neck at work since coming back from my trip to Oregon from 8/25 - 9/3/10. We had a great time fishing, crabbing, and clamming in Astoria, Nehalem and Coos Bay. We were able to savor Oregon seafood every day we were up there, it doesn't get any better than that. In terms of the clamming, we found the Purple Varnish Beds just south of the Nehalem boat launch, and directly across the bay from there, the heavy Softshell beds near the Brighton area. In Coos Bay (Empire area) we found heavy Butter Clam beds with the Manila Littlenecks mixed in, plus a Gaper Clam. Interesting thing was, we were dealing (every day) with tides that were +2.0 - +3.0, and still had excellent harvests!! It was awesome and can't wait to dig up and savor some more clams next year!! Just for the record, there were three of us clamming, which accounted for the sizeable amount of clams we harvested on some of our outings. Also, the Littleneck Clam Appetizer I made was modeled after Clamslayer's Clams Casino recipe. I cleaned and then chopped up and steamed the clam meat, then mixed with melted sharp cheddar, then topped with hot sauce. Wow, so delicious. Yet another great tidbit from your book. Thanks for your advice and your book. Don."
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Don used a crab snare very effectively to take the Dungeness crabs in the top photo off of the south jetty of the Columbia River Estuary. They dug the puprle varnish and picked the mussels from Nehalem Bay. Don is pictured digging softshell clams from the Brighton area of Nehalem Bay pictured in the photo. Don and his brother-in-law pose with shotshell clams they dug next to the photo of the cleaned clams and the cooking clams and the photo of the purple varnish clams. The photo of them on the ATVs was taken at the Oregon Dunes Recreational Area. The photo of the butter that were dug from Coos Bay is next to the photo of Don's version of Clams Casino. Internet links of Interest for the Lower Columbia River Estuary and Clatsop Spit: We have submitted numerous request to NOAA to post the tidal projections for the beach at Seaside OR on the NOAA Tidal Projections Website. In addition we have posted numerous request to update tidal projections on a monthly basis rather than the 12 month calendar year beginning in January. Doing so would allow users a forward look of eleven months into the future rather than a declining number of months as the calendar year progresses. This is the reason we reference 2 years of tidal projections for clam diggers and crabbers. Todate: Slience of the wind blowing through the trees is the only response we have from NOAA. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at the North Jetty at the entrance to the Columbia River Bar. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at Hammond, Oregon. Scroll down the desired month. Click on the Northwest River Levels to view the height of the river level for the Columbia River. Click HERE to view a detailed hourly forcast for weather, wind and surf conditions on the northern Oregon Coast. Click HERE to view the Marine Forecast for the northern Oregon Coast. Click HERE for the ten day weather forecast for Astoria. Recreational Advisories: Always call the shellfish Hotline at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474 toll free outside of Oregon before harvesting clams or mussels for messages listing the areas closed to harvesting shellfish due to high levels of marine toxins. The information displayed on the ODA Shellfish Hotline Website may not be up to date and cannot be trusted. For up to date information call the Shellfish Hotline before you dig at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474. AlwaysCheck Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program The Oregon Public Health Division conducts several activities to protect people living, working and playing near Oregon's beaches, rivers, lakes and other waterbodies. Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program helps protect people who play in the coastal waters. The program does regular water testing to look for high levels of bacteria and lets visitors know when there is a health concern. The Harmful Algae Bloom Surveillance program advises the public when a harmful algae bloom has been detected in a lake or river. Not all blooms are harmful, but some species of algae, such as cyanobacteria or blue-green algae, can produce toxins that can cause serious illness in pets, livestock, wildlife and humans Please see the Oregon fish consumption guidelines for more information abut the health benefits of fish and how to make healthy fish choices. Razor Clam Digging on Clatsop Spit Beaches: The annual conservation closure on Clatsop Spit Beaches is in effect from July 15th through September 30th. Digging for razor clams will resume on October 1st. The digging for razor clams on the beaches south of Tillamook Head remains open to harvest. Razor clam digging is often unproductive during periods of heavy tidal surge. I stay home if the offshore long ocean swells exceed 6.0 feet or a combination of wind chop and long ocean swells exceed 8 ft.....Razor clams are reluctant to show during periods of heavy surf. We provide a link to Oregon Surf Check to view the height and interval of the long ocean swells. We recommend digging bay clams during periods of moderate to heavy surf. Remember, clam digging is most productive during periods of Spring tides and crabbing is most productive during periods of Neap tides. View the NOAA tide tables to see the predicted height of the low tide for your bay of interest. This spring and summer razor clam diggers had to work harder to dig limits of razor clams from Clatsop beaches this year. The most productive digging was from the beach associated with Fort Stevens State Park and the Cove on the southern end of Seaside. The razor clam set of 6 and 9 million clams that produced the easy limits of razor clams over the last several seasons failed to occur last year. Refer to the Annual Assessment of Razor Clams below for the detail. Annual Razor Clam Assessment 2011: I emailed Matt Hunter and asked him for his opinion about this year's razor clam abundance and how it will affect razor clam digging productivity. His response is as follows: Bill, The abundance estimates in the graph represent a range (coefficient of variation) of distribution, so actual numbers are less reliable than general abundance. Pre-recruits are those clams under 3" and recruits are over 3". The highest abundances are in the two ends of the beach, by the south jetty and Seaside. That being said the numbers are low. The Clatsop beach did not see a significant set this past year which is obvious in the graph. It is also apparent in the graph that we did not have a high survivorship of the larger (recruit) clams from last year to this year. Why did this happen? I don't think there is any one factor but most likely a multitude of factors. The clams did spawn this past year but the set didn't occur, at least on the beach. Between the lack of upwelling, warm water off the beach, erosion and even harvest to an extent are probably the main factors why the abundances are so low. So what does this mean for this year (2011)? It will be a slow harvest year. The days of 15 minute limits will not occur this year like the last two years. For the future, it all depends upon where the clams set. If the beach gets a set that holds the abundances will increase and so will harvest. We will just have to wait and see. Matt My thanks to Matt Hunter for his timely and thoughtful response to our request.. Bill. Last summer Clam Digger Association member, Jerry and his friend John dug limits of razor clams near the area south of the wreck of the Peter Iredale. Jerry reported, "We are returning to 1/4 mile south of the entrance at the Peter Iredale. The Razors are 5-5.5 inches and necking like crazy. -Jerry" During the next series of low tides Jerry reported, "John and I got two nice limits of razors at the Peter Iredale shipwreck site yesterday a.m. The clams there are HUGE. take care my friend. -jerry." Jerry and his friend John have have been busy digging limits at the Cove in Seaside.
For a change of pace clam diggers Jerry Lynch and John Lim were going to dig gaper clams in Netarts Bay but the lure of yesterday's success was too great and they both dug limits of mostly 3 and 4 year old razor clams at the Cove at Seaside. On the previous day, clam digger Jerry Lynch and John Lim dug razor clams from the Cove at Seaside. Jerry dug a limit while John who is 75 only dug 9 clams. Most of the clams were 2 year old clams. On 05/18 Avid razor clam digger, Bill Morris reports that razor clam were showing well near the wreck of the Peter Iredale. The diggers in his party had no trouble digging limits. Bill dug a limit of clams with his 11 inch Junes razor clam shovel on the morning of the 17th, but switched to using his clam gun this morning to dig a limit of razor clams. Most of the clams he dug were 4 inches long. Bill and his brother John usually dig the beaches near their homes in the Newport area but have been digging on the Clatsop Spit beaches because of the poor digging conditions at Newport area beaches. On 04/19 digging for razor clams on all the Clatsop Spit beaches was very productive early in the series of low tides before shutting down later in the series according to Bud's Campground. On 02/04 Keith from the Seaside Aquarium dug limits of razor clams over the last series of low tides. Keith bag limit consisted of mixed sized clams. The most productive digging was in the wet sand with shovelsl. Association member Casey writes: Hi Bill, We hade a great time at seaside and got our limits of razors! It was our first time digging razors so we cracked some shells and got some small ones but we kept em all. We fried them up and they were delicious. I noticed that they have a similar flavor to abalone (I used to be a diver in Ca). Great fun and we can’t wait till next time. I've included some pics of my wife Sonja and our limits and my nephew Brandon and his small one. Casey Brisbin
I've included some pics of my wife Sonja and our limits and my nephew Brandon and his small one. Casey Brisbin.
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| Association member George shown below reports: we clammed at the end of (U) street most everyone got their limit in our party. and we seen many walking out with their limit.. we got there a little late... |  |
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Necanicum River at Seaside: Like the Salmon River Estuary the Necanicum River Estuary is dominated by freshwater and crabbing productivity is limited to periods of extended clear weather. The most productive crabbing is from boats and from shore at the 12th Ave Bridge, the park along Holiday Drive and from the visible point from shore accessible point from the pullout located on the west side of HWY 101 just north of Seaside. On 08/16/11 saw the Necanicum River full a crabs. Every where I went I saw people taking crabs. Enjoy the short video clip of crabbers at the 12 Ave Bridge. Bill Necanicum River Estuary clam digging is limited to softshell clams.. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at the 12th Street Bridge over the Necanicum River. Scroll down the desired month. Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast for Seaside. Last summer clam digger Sparkypaul reported: I went down the day I got to seaside, on a 1.7 tide just while waiting for my wife(shopping) just to see if I could see any "shows" , and ended up digging a dozen softshell clams with my bare hands. I went to gearhart, parked at the end of wellington, 100 foot trail to bay. where I found them was up against the edge of the bay, gearhart side to the east. they were smaller2.5 to 3.5", but quite a few. I also noticed a few varnish clam shells laying around, so that might be worth investigating the next time I'm up. Good Morning Sparkypaul, Bill here. Thanks for the heads up. Clam Diggers Association member Jerry and his friend John raked crabs in the Necanicum several months ago. They only managed to rake one legal crab, but they described finding purple varnish clam shells as lage as the palm of Jerry's hand. I am looking forward to digging some of the giant purple varnish clams this summer; that is if I can tear myself away from the razors. Bill Cannon Beach Under consideration Nehalem Bay: 08/14 Jim from the Wheeler Marina reports: Crabbing in the bay is much improved with some crabbers taking limits......... Wheeler Marina is located just south of Nehalem on US 101 in the historic town of Wheeler, Oregon. We are right in the center of Wheeler with plenty of parking, kayaks for sale/rent, crab boat rentals, licenses, mooring, a crab cooker, snacks, tackle, and friendly advice on what to see & how to do it. On 08/15 The Jetty Fishery located at the jetty of Nehalem Bay reports that crabbing is great from both boats and from the crabbing dock with limits common or in the high double digits. The Jetty Fishery allows crabbing from their Dock for a nominal fee of $8 per day…… using OUR crab ring on dock for entire day, includes first bait and cooking of up to 1 dozen crabs; or $8 per day …… using YOUR crab ring on our dock for entire day. Only rings, not crab pots, traps or cages are allowed on our dock. Internet links of Interest for Nehalem Bay: Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at Brighton, Nehalem Bay. Scroll down the desired month. Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast for Nehalem Bay. Click HERE to see the navigation hazards for crossing the bar at Nehalem Bay. Click HERE to view the Marine Forecast for the northern Oregon Coast. Click on the Northwest River Levels to view the height of the river levels for Northwest Oregon. Click HERE to view the height of the river level for the Nehalem River. Clam digging in Nehalem Bay is very good but limited to softshell clams, purple varnish clams and butter clams. Tillamook Bay is Oregon's second largest bay and recreationally friendly. Avoid boating in the lower bay and jetty channel during the outgoing tide. Disabled boats are easily swept into the waves generated at the bar. We recommend staying at 1) the Barview County Campground and R/V Park or at 2) the Harborview Inn on the waterfront in Garibaldi. Camping is also available at the Keliches River County Park and the Trash River County Park. Crabbing Tillamook Bay: Visiting the Tillamook Bay, Netarts Bay area stop by Tillamook Sporting Goods the largest independent family owned and operated sporting goods store on the Oregon coast at 503 842 4334. Keith and his staff can provide all the equipment necessary for your recreational needs ...... On 08/14 Jeff from the Garibaldi Marina at 503 322 3312 or 800 383 3828 reports: Crabbing is great with some crabbers taking limits from the bay. Crabbing in the ocean has been good with but crabbers are having to work through the soft crabs........... Click on the following link to view the real time up to the minute report on crabbing and fishing in Tillamook Bay. Remember crabbing is best during Neap Tides. When I visited Jeff the first thing I noticed that everything was neat and stowed where it belonged. Jeff rents everything you need to make you trip a success. Boat rentals are reasonable priced and by reservation only. Boats are only rented during the incoming tide so consult the tide table for Tillamook Bay to plan your trip. Ring rentals are $5.00 all day, bait is $2.50 each and it cost $4.50 per limit to have your crabs cooked........... As shown below late last summer Association member Jerry reports excellent crabbing yesterday at Garibaldi. However, the crab are not completely "full" yet; most are at about 80% solid. Still very good eating, especially when hot and fresh right out of the "cooker". Look below the crab in the "fish box"; you can partially see the three 8 lb. cohos we caught prior to pulling up the crab traps.
Located just north of Garibaldi, the Barview Jetty is a great place to stay while on your clam digging adventure. The jetty provides the opportunity to fish for salmon, perch and shallow water rockfish. Fishing from the North Jetty is rated the most productive of any Jetty on the central or north coast. Use a crab snare to take Dungeness crabs while fishing for black rock or perch. Bait the crab snare with herring purchased from the Barview Store. The Barview Jetty Store has great fresh hot food plus they sell crab bait and frozen herring plus all the fishing, crabbing and clam digging equipment to fill your immediate needs. Members of the Coast Guard were chowing down the last week while was visiting there is testament to how good the food is. Tillamook Area Attractions: Munson Falls is the perfect setting to share with that special someone. A trip to the Tillamook Air Museum becomes part of the clam digging experience and provides the visitor with a glimpse to the horror and glory of War. Enjoy a trip into history by taking a ride on the Oregon Coast Senic Railroad. The steam driven locomotive train departs the fishing port of Garibaldi to the resort beach community of Rockaway. Hungry after a hard day crabbing or digging clams? The tablefare at the Blue Heron French Cheese Co. will fill the bill. Clam Digging Tillamook Bay: Tillamook Bay clam digging at Garibaldi is one of the most popular digging areas found in any of Oregon’s Bays. Public access is limited to the Garibaldi tidal flats, but the most productive digging is on the large tidal flat adjacent to the Bay Ocean Peninsula Road just south of Crab Harbor. The easiest access to the Garibaldi tidal flats is via 12th street parking lot or via the scenic walkway located behind the Harborview Inn and RV Park conveniently located on the bay at Garibaldi. The Port of Garibaldi offers crabbing and/or fishing from the public dock at the intersection of 7th and Commercial and from the Pier's End crabbing dock at 12th Street. If you plan to visit Netarts Bay, Garibaldi or Nehalem Bay stop by Tillamook Sporting Goods. They have the equipment to take care of your crabbing, fishing and clam digging needs. Clam Clinic Tillamook 2009 was a success. Approximately 25 persons attended the lecture and the clam dig. Most of the participants went home with clams. The gaper clams we dug from the Garibaldi tidal flat ranged in size from small to medium. Tillamook Bay clam digging at Garibaldi is one of the most popular digging areas found in any of Oregon’s Bays. Gaper clams and cockles are located sandy substrate east of the 12th ST.fishing pier at Bay LN.. Butter clams, gaper clams as well as some cockles are located in the tidal flats dominated by gravel substrate west of the fishing pier. Use a potato fork with a shovel to dig the calms from the gravely substrate. The lower half of the bay offers all species of bay clams. Using a boat is the best way to access the more productive isolated clam beds in the bay. The upper bay is home to softshell clams Avoid areas with soft mud. Dig only in areas with solid footing. Some razor clams are dug from the north end of the island in the lower reach of the bay and from the beach on the Bayocean Peninsula.
Clam Clinic Tillamook 2010: The librarian counterd120 clam diggers attending Clam Clinic 2010 at Garibaldi at the Tillamook County Library located at 1716 3rd St in the City of Tillamook on Saturday afternoon June 12th. The response was so great we had to have two lectures. The lectures began at 3:00 pm and 4:00 before ending at 05:30 pm.
Above are some of the participants that met the following morning Sunday June 13th at 06:30 am at the Pier's End Crabbing Dock on the Garibaldi Tidal Flat to dig for gaper clams. Low tide occurs at 08:06 am PDT with a -2.05 foot low tide. Unfortunately the gaper clams failed to show and for the first time we have been holding clam digs diggers went home disappointed. Internet links of Interest for the Port of Garibaldi: Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast for Garibaldi. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at the Barview Jetty. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the tide table at Garibaldi. Scroll down the desired month. Click HERE to see the navigation hazards for crossing the Tillamook Bay Bar or Click HERE to see the Chartlette for the lower Tillamook Bay. Click HERE to view a detailed hourly forcast for weather, wind and surf conditions on the northern Oregon Coast. Click HERE to view the Marine Forecast for the northern Oregon Coast. Click on the Northwest River Levels to view the height of the river levels for Northwest Oregon. Click HERE to view the height of the river level for the Wilson River at the Sollie Smity Bridge. Click HERE to view the height of the river level for the Track River at above Cedar Creek near Tillamook. Click HERE to view the Tillamook County Park at Barview. Click HERE to view the Tillamook County Park website.. Recreational Advisories: Always call the shellfish Hotline at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474 toll free outside of Oregon before harvesting clams or mussels for messages listing the areas closed to harvesting shellfish due to high levels of marine toxins. The information displayed on the ODA Shellfish Hotline Website may not be up to date and cannot be trusted. For up to date information call the Shellfish Hotline before you dig at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474. AlwaysCheck Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program The Oregon Public Health Division conducts several activities to protect people living, working and playing near Oregon's beaches, rivers, lakes and other waterbodies. Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program helps protect people who play in the coastal waters. The program does regular water testing to look for high levels of bacteria and lets visitors know when there is a health concern. The Harmful Algae Bloom Surveillance program advises the public when a harmful algae bloom has been detected in a lake or river. Not all blooms are harmful, but some species of algae, such as cyanobacteria or blue-green algae, can produce toxins that can cause serious illness in pets, livestock, wildlife and humans Please see the Oregon fish consumption guidelines for more information abut the health benefits of fish and how to make healthy fish choices. Netarts Bay is one of the pearls of the Three Capes Scenic Loop. The bay, Oregon's sixth largest, is more like a tidal basin than a bay because it receives a limited amount of freshwater from the small streams flowing into it. With the exception of logging and the absence of a large river flowing into it the isolation of the bay has limited the effects of human development that have degraded the water quality of Oregon' other large bays. Oysters grown in the bay are renowned for their quality and flavor because of the high quality of the water. The freshwater entering the bay has minimal effect on the salinity of the saltwater in the bay and for this reason the bay is noted more for the excellent crabbing and clam digging than for fishing. It is dangerous to attempt to cross the bar at Netarts Bay at anytime. Use caution when boating in the lower bay. The high velocity of the outgoing tide can pull a small boat across the bar into the surf. When visiting the Netarts Bay area stop by Tillamook Sporting Goods at 503 842 4334. Dan and his staff can provide all the equipment necessary for your recreational needs ....... Crabbing Netarts Bay: on 08/14 Al from the Big Spruce RV Park and Boat Rental reports: crabbing has picked up with lots of crabs in the bay but the high percentage of legal males have soft shells........ Al and Lorna not only rent boats and all the gear for crabbing they run a first class operation with full hookups and pull thrus. Call I 503 842 7443 or toll free 1 877 651 9342 for information or reservations. Clam Digging Netarts Bay: Clam digging in Netarts Bay is renowned for all species of clams. All species of clams, gaper clams, cockles, butter clams, softhsell clams, steamer clams, razor clams and geoduck clams, are dug from the tidal flats of Netarts Bay. Netarts Bay Clam Clinic 2011 over the July 4th weekend was a success with everyone going home with a limit of gaper clam and some went home with a full limit of bay clams consisting of 12 gaper clams and 8 other hard shell clams. The dig did not go as intended. The poorly written clam digging regulations resulted with one third of the diggers exceeding the limit of gaper clams while digging for butter clams. Click on the following links to view the event . |
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Netarts Bay is one of two Oregon's Bays that have a verified population of geoduck clams. Clam digger Jim knew what he was looking at when he saw the neck of the geoduck. Jim is holding the leash my yellow lab, Cali Ann. Last summer Clam Diggers Association members, Walt, Jerry and John and Imet at Netarts Bay to dig clams and do some crabbing. Butter clams were my objective but it was difficult to ignore the large gaper clams and my favorite clam, littleneck clams. |
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| A little experience is all that is necessary to dig limits of either butter clams or steamer clams, or a combination of both as I chose to do in my video clip. Note the net bag I am testing for use as a clam bag.
My lab, Cali Mae poses with the 12 butter clams and 8 littleneck clams I dug from the tidal flats of Netarts Bay. Cali is the best clam digging companion. |
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The shell of the littleneck clam with the hole in it as shown in the photo below was the victim of a Moon snail. Crabbing productivity plunged with the strong currents of the low Spring tides. We caught lots of short males and very large female crabs. I spoke to one crabber who left his pots all night and failed to take a legal crab. Association member Jerry's scored theses big boys in Netarts.
Last summer clam digger Fish-On Fred shares his clam digging adventure at Netarts Bay with us. By sharing you success with us you are inspiring other digger to share theirs. Thanks, Bill "Hi ya diggers.....Went to Netarts on 8-11-10, and walked in to dig. Usually bring my boat but not this time. Went out to where I usually go and got 11 Gapers and 1 Geoduck. Headed back and finished my limit with Cockles. A very good morning and hardly anyone was digging' that day. It must be better when you dig during the week rather than the weekend. I love Netarts Bay. But do not tell anyone that it is so good, we will have all the yahoos over. Later, Fish-On Fred" Recreational Advisories: Always call the shellfish Hotline at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474 toll free outside of Oregon before harvesting clams or mussels for messages listing the areas closed to harvesting shellfish due to high levels of marine toxins. The information displayed on the ODA Shellfish Hotline Website may not be up to date and cannot be trusted. For up to date information call the Shellfish Hotline before you dig at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474. AlwaysCheck Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program The Oregon Public Health Division conducts several activities to protect people living, working and playing near Oregon's beaches, rivers, lakes and other waterbodies. Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program helps protect people who play in the coastal waters. The program does regular water testing to look for high levels of bacteria and lets visitors know when there is a health concern. The Harmful Algae Bloom Surveillance program advises the public when a harmful algae bloom has been detected in a lake or river. Not all blooms are harmful, but some species of algae, such as cyanobacteria or blue-green algae, can produce toxins that can cause serious illness in pets, livestock, wildlife and humans Please see the Oregon fish consumption guidelines for more information abut the health benefits of fish and how to make healthy fish choices. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at Netarts Bay and sroll down the desired month. Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast Netarts. Sand Lake Recreational Area:is a multifunctional use area for off road vehicle use, hiking, fishing, crabbing and clam digging. The Sandlake Recreation Area on the north shore is popular and busy with off-highway vehicles especially on weekends. There are 3 developed campgrounds: Sandbeach (101 sites), East Dunes (51 sites), and West Winds (20 sites). Day use parking at North Winds. The Sand Lake County Park at Whalen Island is where the crabbers, clam diggers and fishermen camp. The county park at Whelan Island is closed for camping from December 1st to May 1st but is open on the honor payment system in the open area next the boat launch. For the latest information call the Camp Host at 503 965 6085. The campground is scheduled to close on 12/01. Looking out over the flat sand beach at Tierra Del Mar makes me wonder where are the razor clams that should be there. Sand Lake Recreational Area:is a multifunctional use area for off road vehicle use, hiking, fishing, crabbing and clam digging. The Sandlake Recreation Area on the north shore is popular and busy with off-highway vehicles especially on weekends. There are 3 developed campgrounds: Sandbeach (101 sites), East Dunes (51 sites), and West Winds (20 sites). Day use parking at North Winds. The Sand Lake County Park at Whalen Island is where the crabbers, clam diggers and fishermen camp. The county park at Whelan Island is closed for camping from December 1st to May 1st but is open on the honor payment system in the open area next the boat launch. For the latest information call the Camp Host at 503 965 6085. The campground is scheduled to close on 12/01. Looking out over the flat sand beach at Tierra Del Mar makes me wonder where are the razor clams that should be there. Sand Lake Crabbing ranges from fair to good for most of the year inside the entrance to the tidal basin south and to the west of Whalen Island. Crabs are taken by crabbers from the bridge to Whalen Island on the incoming tide. The crabbing is consistent because rainfall has little effect on the salinity of the water because the basin does not have a large continuous source of freshwater. Sand Lake clam digging is limited to purple varnish clams and a small population of cockles. Raking for cockles in the cockle beds located in the south channel has declined, but the purple varnish clams in the tidal flats associated with the north channel are abundant. We suggest raking cockles at Netarts Bay rather than Sand Lake. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at the entrance to Nestucca Bay. We use the time and tide for Nestucca Bay because there no location listed for the Sand Lake Tidal Basin. Scroll down the desired month. Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast for Pacific City. Nestucca Bay: On 08/14 Mitchell's Shell and Bait Shop at 503-965-0031 Pacific City reports crabbing in the lower bay has improved with lots of soft shell crabs...... Typically the best crabbing occurs in the lower bay..... But they do report crabbing is good at Sand Lake with some legal being taken from the bridge. Mitchell's offers an innovative incentive way of selling sand shrimp. The customer gets to select their own sand shrimp filling a 16 oz cup. The result is 2 dozen plus sand shrimp for 4 bucks and with their punch card you get every 12th purchase free. Speaking of incentives, economical R/V and tent space accomodations in the Three Capes Scenic Loop are extremely limited. There are low cost alternatives to the high priced RV parks in Woods and Pacific City for R/V ers and tent campers. The Webb County RV Park is located just north of the high priced Cape Kiwanda R/V Park and the Woods Campground and County Park is another low cost option for campers located nearby in Woods. This Spring crabber Steve and two other crabbers drove down the beach on the Nestucca Bay Spit and crabbed near the Jaws on the inside of the bay and did not catch a crab. The three crabbed using 8 Crab Max folding crab traps and did not catch a single crab. Steve crabbed here in June taking limits of crabs.
Clam digging in Nestucca Bay is limited to the harvest of softshell and purple varnish clams. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at the entrance to Nestucca Bay and scroll down the desired month. Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast for Pacific City. Click on the Northwest River Levels to view the height of the river levels for Northwest Oregon. Click HERE to view the height of the river level for the Nestucca River near Beaver. Click HERE to view the navigational hazards of concern for crossing the bar at Nestucca Bay or the Salmon River Estuary.
Salmon River Estuary: Like the Necanicum River the Salmon River Estuary is dominated by freshwater and Crabbing productivity is limited to periods of extended clear weather. There is no local source for crabbing or clam digging information available. All crabbing is from boats. Historically crabbing ranges from poor to fair from May through July and is good during August and September in the lower estuary. Salmon River Estuary clam digging is limited to the harvest of softshell and purple varnish clams. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at the entrance to Nestucca Bay. We use the time and tide for Nestucca Bay because there no location listed for the Salmon River Estuary. Scroll down the desired month. Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast for Otis. Siletz Bay Crabbing: On 08/14 Bill from Crab Max reports crabbing from Moes dock has been good 2 hours before high tide but there are a lot of soft shell crabs. Steve from Moe's crabbing dock reports crabbing from Moe's dock is based on the height of the incoming tide. The Crab Max trap has to clear the lip of the berm otherwise the trap hangs up and buries in the sand. Crab off of Moe's Dock only when the height of the tide exceeds 7.0 feet; otherwise crab of off the sandy beach when the height of the incoming tide is lower than 5.0 feet. Crabbing from the sandy beach when the incoming tide is between 5.0 and 7.0 feet requires the crabber to wade into the water to caste or retrieve the Crab Max over the berm. Crabbing has been mixed for crabbers using a Crab Max. Steve uses a Crab Max baited with mussels.. . Crabbing with a crab max crab traps is the type of crab gear most often used to take crabs from Moe's crab dock.... On 08/14 Siletz Moorage (541) 996-3671 reports crabbing has been good in the lower bay but with lots of soft shell crabs. Siletz Moorage usually goes on winter hours at the end of October but they have a terffic after hous entry program. They offer 15 launch tickets for 90 dollars which works out to 6 dollars a launch. They provide you with the entry code for the gate and you deposit the ticket into the box when you launch after hours. Siletz Bay CLam Digging: Siletz River Estuary clam digging is limited to the harvest of softshell and purple varnish clams. Clam digger nofaultwalt and I put together a little vido to answer your questions about indentifying purple varnsh clams. Remember each digger must dig their own clams. I have a disabled clam diggers license and Walt often helps dig my clams.
Clam Clinic Siletz Bay 2011 was very rewarding for us as well as for the participants. The enthusiasm was infectious as those new to digging clams embraced the experience.
On 05/19/10 nearly 50 participants of Clam Clinic 2010 Siletz Bay digging for puprle varnish clams. Happily everyone went home with limits of clams. Click on the 4 icons on the bottom right corner of the video to play full screen. Mimi Cogswell and twin 4 1/2 year old sons shared their great clam digging adventure to the coast with us. I have posted her enthusiastic account of their adventure below. See the Discussion Forum for the complete text of her adventure. "Dear Bill: I wanted to thank you for your web site and books on clamming, that made it accessible for my 4.5 year old twins and I this weekend, at Siletz Bay, to catch our limit of purple varnish clams!
So, I totally have the clamming bug now and can't wait to come back. Would you consider doing an extra clinic on Mother's Day weekend? This is what I want for Mother's Day now, to go clamming (am copying to my husband, hint, hint!) Thank you Bill, for all your work to spread the knowledge on the thrill of this hobby. And, I just ate those clams and they were delicious! Mimi" Internet Links of Interest for Siletz Bay: Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at Taft and scroll down the desired month. Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast for Lincoln City. Click on the Northwest River Levels to view the height of the river levels for Northwest Oregon. Click HERE to view the height of the river level for the Siletz River near Siletz. Click HERE to view the navigational hazards of concern for crossing the bar at Siletz Bay. Depoe Bay Crabbing allows crabbing and fishing from the port docks from one half hour prior to sunrise and one half hour after sunset. All the crabbing equipment must be removed from the docks during prohibited hours. Lifejackets are required to be worn by children under 14 years of age when crabbing from the port docks but you must provide your own lifejackets for them. On Sunday 08/07 the view of the Highway 101 Bridge over the crack in the basalt from port dock one is spectacular; however, the crabbing was not. My clam digging dog, Cali Ann and I spent several hours on the crabbing dock and managed to catch short male Dungeness. The bay is home to both Dungeness and red rock crabs.
Click HERE to view the 2011 tide tables for Depoe Bay. Click HERE to view the nagivational hazards for crossing the bar at Depoe Bay. Weather forecast for Depoe Bay Marine Forecast for the northern Oregon Coast. Yaquina Bay Crabbing: I posted the following video clip about crabbing from the docks at Yaquina Bay. An interesting aspect about crabbing in Yaquina Bay that is also common to some of Oregon's other bays is that crabbing may be slow from the docks but productive in the deepwater areas of the bay. Include a visit to the Hatfield Marine Science Center on your crabbing and clamming trips to the Newport area. You and your kids won't be disappointed. On 08/14 Dion from Sawyer's Landing (541) 265-3907 reports: crabbing is great with limits common. Crabbing from the docks is slow to fair............. Sawyer's Landing operates the only boat hoist on Yaquina bay. The also have rent boats and crab gear. Sawyer's Landing cooks crabs for a six dollar minimum charge for 12 or fewer crabs. Yaquina Bay Clam Diggigng: |
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| Last spring CDAO members from left to right Sandi and Dave Randleman with their friend Sara pose with their limits of gaper clams that we dug from the tidal flats of Yaquina Bay. Click on gaper clam to view the one of the more productive methods for taking gaper clams |  |
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Click on gaper clam to view the one of the more productive methods for taking gaper clams. In the photo below and to the right clam digger Kevin shares a limit of mixed limit of bay clams he and his son along with his brother and two friends dug from tidal flats behind the Marine Science Center at Yaquina Bay.   In the above photo on the left clam digger Kevin shares a limit of mixed gaper clams he dug from tidal flats behind the Marine Science Center at Yaquina Bay during a minus .08 tide. Internet links of interest for Yaquina Bay: Navigational hazards for crossing the bar at Yaquina Bay or Click HERE to view the Chartlette for crossing the bar at Yaquina Bay. Stonewall Bank Buoy ReportsNational Buoy Data Center observation reports for buoys off the Oregon Coast. We provide a link to Oregon Surf Check to view the height and interval of the long ocean swells. Click HERE to view a detailed hourly forcast for weather, wind and surf conditions on the northern Oregon Coast. Ten day weather forecast for the central coastal area at Yaquina Bay. Marine Forecast for the northern Oregon Coast. Current weather conditions for the South Jetty at Yaquina Bay. Sunrise and Sunset tables for Yaquina Bay. OSU Links of Interest to view weather, buoy observations and other links of interest. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tide tables at the bar of Yaquina Bay. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at Southbeach and scroll down the desired month. Recreational Advisories: Always call the shellfish Hotline at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474 toll free outside of Oregon before harvesting clams or mussels for messages listing the areas closed to harvesting shellfish due to high levels of marine toxins. The information displayed on the ODA Shellfish Hotline Website may not be up to date and cannot be trusted. For up to date information call the Shellfish Hotline before you dig at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474. AlwaysCheck Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program The Oregon Public Health Division conducts several activities to protect people living, working and playing near Oregon's beaches, rivers, lakes and other waterbodies. Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program helps protect people who play in the coastal waters. The program does regular water testing to look for high levels of bacteria and lets visitors know when there is a health concern. The Harmful Algae Bloom Surveillance program advises the public when a harmful algae bloom has been detected in a lake or river. Not all blooms are harmful, but some species of algae, such as cyanobacteria or blue-green algae, can produce toxins that can cause serious illness in pets, livestock, wildlife and humans Please see the Oregon fish consumption guidelines for more information abut the health benefits of fish and how to make healthy fish choices. Digging razor clams at Agate Beach and the North and South Jetties at Newport: Always check the Shellfish Hotline Before digging clams or taking mussels or call (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474 toll free outside of Oregon. Razor clam digging is often unproductive during periods of heavy tidal surge. I stay home if the offshore long ocean swells exceed 6.0 feet or a combination of wind chop and long ocean swells exceed 8 ft.....Razor clams are reluctant to show during periods of heavy surf. We provide a link to Oregon Surf Check to view the height and interval of the long ocean swells. We recommend digging bay clams during periods of moderate to heavy surf. Remember, clam digging is most productive during periods of Spring tides and crabbing is most productive during periods of Neap tides. View the NOAA tide tables to see the predicted height of the low tide for your bay of interest. Click HERE to view health advisory closures for the Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program. Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program test coastal water for elevated levels of bacteria that can be transmitted to humans by the contaminated water. The Beach Monitoring Program is funded by a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The grant is intended to help states design and implement coastal and estuarine water quality monitoring programs. Monitoring and public notification began in Oregon in 2003. Click HERE for additional information. Razor Clam Forecast for Agage Beach, the North Jetty and the South Jetty: 2011 has bee tough on the population of razor clams common to the sand bars at Agate Beach . The rough surf has eroded the sand bars we have come to depend on to harvest razor clams. Digging on the North Jetty has been tough this year and the days of easy limits are behind us; but digging conditions have improved. 05/18/11 Mixed results were reported from razor clam diggers at Agate Beach. Clam digger, Ivan reported limiting out yesterday while clam digger, Steve managed to dig 8 clams. 05/17/11Razor clam digging slow at South Beach is slow with those who get there first digging 8 to 10 plus clams per experienced digger and less to zero for the rest of use. Zipo for me. I did not see a show. Bill 05/15/11Razor clam digger, Bill Morris, dug Agate Beach during the last series of low tides. The tides were marginal and the day he dug he managed to dig 2 clams. The surf was running high so you have to discount his report. 04/19/11 Razor clams show at South Beach and at the north end of Agate Beach with limits the rule rather than the exception. Bill Morris had no problem digging limits of razor over the last three days at South Beach. I spoke to several digger who dug limits of razors at north Agate Beach. Digging for razor clams is more usually more productive on the front end of the series of low tides rather than the back side of the tidal series.
Last Sping the CDAO had the pleasure of assisting Greg Harlow instruct the Toledo Outdoor School kids to dig razor clam at South Beach during a minus 1.8 foot tide. The rough surf conditions kept the clams from showing. I found one razor clam necking in about a foot of water and when I attempted to dig it the surf rolled me over. Greg found a razor clam necking and dug it. The kids gathered around Greag to get a good look at his prize. The kids returned to looking with renewed interest and shortly thereafter one young man dug his first razor clam.
Last December Bill reports: as shown below, my friend Bill Morris and I dug razor clams at South Beach at Yaquina Bay over the 4th and 5th and managed to dig 11 clams between us. I tried digging on the 6th and did not see any shows. It was great to dig adult clams but disturbing when we failed to dig juvenile clams. Bill
Alsea Bay Crabbing: The Grim Reeper claimed another boater in the lower bay earlier this November foolish enough to get caught in the lower bay at the wrong time. The Coast Guard called of the search for his body. Crabbing in the lower bay is dangerous during periods of the strong outgoing tidal current generated during clamming tides. The Dock of the Bay carries a complete line of crabbing gear. They also rent boats and cook crabs for a nominal charge............ 08/15 Bill from the Dock of the Bay at (541) 563-2003 reports: crabbing is great with boat crabbers taking limits of crabs. Crabbing from the crab dock is fair with 6 crabs the high count yesterday........... On 08/11 my daughter took 24 Dungeness crab while diving in Alsea Bay before retuning 8 soft shell crabs to the bay. The also observed mating pairs of dungeness crabs. Alsea Bay Clam Digging: Alsea Bay is renowned for the high population of softshell clams common to the upper bay. Cockles and gaper clam (Tresus Capax) are common in the lower bay On beautiful sunny morning my buddy Dutch and I visited the south shore of Alsea Bay to dig for the oversized gaper clams once fairly common. We both managed to dig 1 oversized gaper clam apiece. The two we dug were the only ones we were able to find. Dutch dug a total of 8 gaper clams while I dug 4 gaper clams. We spent several hours looking for the big boys but all of the shows we observed were from small gaper clams. The clam diggers raking cockles we observed did poorly taking very few cockles for the time spent raking. We did observe diggers raking for cockles in the Bayshore channel on the north side of the bay but we were too far away to see how well they were doing.. Internet links of interest for Alsea Bay: Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at Waldport and scroll down the desired month. Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast at Waldport. Click on the Northwest River Levels to view the height of the river levels for Northwest Oregon. Click HERE to view the height of the river level for the Alsea River at Lobster Creek and Click HERE to view the height of the river level for the Alsea River at Tidewater. Florence at the Siuslaw River Estuary on 08/15 Ken from the Port of Siuslaw Campground at the water's edge on the bay reports: Crabbing is extremely good in the lower bay and in the ocean. Crabbing from the City Docks ranges to fair in late summer and fall with lots of juvenile crabs in the mix. The crabbing from Siuslaw Bay public crabbing dock located at the end of the South Jetty Road is excellent from late spring until the freshwater from winter rains force the crabs out into the ocean Jay at the BridgePort Market rents crab rings and pots. Jay also carries fishing tackle and clam shovels. They also make a mean deli sandwitch. Jay is a clam digger and crabber. He can answer your clam digging and crabbing questions you may have concerning the Siuslaw River Estuary. The BridgePort Market is located on the bayfront next to the Port of Siuslaw Campground............ Clam Digging Siuslaw River Estuary: Softshell clams are the primary clams of interest in the Siuslaw River Estuary. Piddocks clams are dug from the exposed tidal flats on the north side of the channel some distance from the Harbor Vista R/V Park. Some cockles are raked and some gaper clams are dug on the tidal flats below the Harbor Vista R/V Park Internet links of interest for the Siuslaw River Estuary: Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tide tables for entrance to the bar at the Siuslaw River and scroll down to the desired month. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at the City Docks at Florence and scroll down to the desired month. Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast at Florence. Click HERE to see the navigation hazards for crossing the Siuslaw River bar. Click on Northwest Rivers Forecast to view the height of the river level for the Siuslaw River. Winchester Bay on the UmpquaRiver: The Crab Watch Report is provided by the outdoor reporter and outdoor writer, Pete Heley at the Stockade Market. Crabbing: On 08/06 Pete Heley reports: Crabbing in the lower bay from the Coast Guard dock in Winchester Bay has been poor. Crabbing from boats in the lower bay is good. Late last summer, I took 3 nice sized Dungeness crabs using a Crab Max folding crab trap from the old Coast Guard dock. Three crabs were just enough for my wife and I to enjoy a great Crab Louie. Click on Winchester Bay Crabbing Video to view crabbing action from the Coast Guard Pier. Crabbing for legal sized males was slow with the catch comprized of mostly females, small males and a few legal sized crabs but my grandsons and I had a great time. Boat crabbers should be aware of dangerous tidal conditions in the jetty channel. Sudden ocean swells can easily lift and leave a boat up onto the rocks of the north jetty... Click on the Umpqua Post to view Pete's Outdoor Report. Click HERE to see Pete's books about Bass Fishing (for both large and small mouth bass and striped bass) on the OregonCoast. The Stockade Market carries a complete line of fishing and crabbing equipment. Clam Digging Umpqua River Estuary: Clam digging in Umpqua River Estuary is renowned for some of the largest softshell clams found in any of Oregon's bays. The most productive clam beds are associated with Bolon and Steamboat Islands from the communities of Reedsport and Gardiner down river to The Point. ODFW’s map of the softshell clam beds show a population of softshell clams on the north shore of the river located below The Point, however, the population has declined and the clams are no longer common this area. In addition to softshell clams the sand beach within the triangle produces the largest gaper clams dug in any of Oregon's bays but a clam die off occurs when excessive rainfall floods the area for an extended period of time. Internet links of interest for the Umpqua River Estuary: Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at entrance to the bar at the Umpqua River. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at Gardiner and scroll down the desired month. Click HERE to see the 10 day weather forecast at Reedsport. Click HERE to display the height of the river level for the Umpqua River – Near Elkton Click HERE and scroll down and over the icon for the water level gauge station of choice. Click the river gage station icon to display the river gage station information. Click on Northwest Rivers Forecast to view the height of the river level for the Umpqua River. Click HERE to see the navigation hazards for crossing the Umpqua River bar. The navigational hazards posted for crossing the bar at Winchester Bay, Coos Bay and the Coquille and Chetco River Estuaries are displayed as PDF files. Print them out and refer to them before crossing the bar. Coos Bay Crabbing: Oregon's largest bay is a salt water dominated bay that holds crabs longer than any other of Oregon's Bays........Crabbing in the ocean resumes on 12/01. Crabbing in the ocean now is open from December 1st of the current year thru October 15 of the following year. Be sure to double check the opening and closing dates in the synopsis. Dungeness Crabs are common to areas of the ocean with a sandy bottom and in areas with extensive eel grass beds. The month of June saw crabbing improve in Coos Bay for those crabbing from boats in the lower bay taking limits of crabs. Look for crabbing continue to improve through September and into the Fall months; however the fairly consistent rain over the last week can have a negative impact on crabbing productivity........ On 08/15/11 Fisherman's Wharf reports crabbing from the Charleston dock is fair for Dungeness and red rock crabs. Crabbing from boats in the lower bay and in the ocean is great. On 08/15/11 Joe from the Bites On located at 750 Newmark Ave in Empire or (541) 888-4015 reports: Crabbers from boats are taking limits of Dungeness crabs with a lot of soft crab in the mix..... When crabbing gets going in side the bay crabbing is hot all to from the jetty channel up above the Empire boat launch.......... Crabbing from the docks is slow for Dungeness and red rock crabs are dominating the catch......... Joe rents rings for 5.00 a day and sells crab bait for a 1.50 a pop.
Many of you in the Coos Bay area know Chuck Holloway. Chuck is an avid crabber and shares this photo of his crabbing friend showing a large crab they caught in lower Coos Bay. Thanks Chuck for sharing your crabbing adventure with us.
On 08/03/11 ODFW reports: Crabbing is good from boats from Clam Island to the jetty channel. No report for Crabbing from the docks. The best crabbing areas from a boat have been near the jetties. The crabbing has been more productive from the Charleston docks than the Empire docks. Red rock crabs still remain the main harvest from the Charleston docks. In Charleston the best crabbing docks have been the B/C and D/E docks in Charleston. The best baits for crabbing are fish, chicken or turkey legs. The best time to crab is three hours before high tide 1/2 hour after. Crabbing like all other salt water related activity in the bays is dependent on the tides. The most productive crabbing tides occur during the series of Neap tides followed by the minor tidal exchange of Spring tides. The most productive crabbing in Oregon's Bays occurs in the larger salt water dominated bays during periods of slack tide and during periods of diurnal inequality between the low high tide and high low tide of the daily tidal cycle. Crabbing is not as productive during the high velocity tidal current generated during the major tidal exchange of spring tides or during the outgoing tide. The crabs bury themselves in the sand to escape the increased current velocity of the outgoing tide. Remember crabbing in the bays is best during periods of neap tides. Coos Bay clam digging:
Coos Bay clam digging offers the most productive clam digging for all species of clams found in any of Oregon’s Bays. Click HERE to view a video clip of cockles being raked in South Slough. The harvest of empire/gaper clams has been good at the North Spit and Clam Island. North Beach on the North Spit is the southern boarder of the Oregon Dunes National Recreational Area and is located just north of the entrance to Coos Bay and below Horsfall Beach but is administered by the BLM.
The best harvest areas for the average clam digger without 4 wheel drive trucks are from the Empire/Charleston tidal flats along Cape Arago Highway , and within Charleston , north and south of the Charleston Bridge . Butter, gaper, and cockle clams are abundant in these areas. Digging for razor clams in the Coos Bay area Spring 2010 has been mediocre. Early last Spring limits of razor clams came from Charleston Boat Basin Sand Spit, North Spit, Bastendorff, and to the northern section of the Seven Devils Wayside beaches. Hopefully digging conditions for razor clams will improve as ocean conditions lay down during sunny weather. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tide tables for Charleston and scroll down the desired month.
ODFW reports limits of bay clams are the rule for digger in Coos Bay over the latest series of Spring tides. Digging for gaper clams on the Charleston Triangle usually produces clam that are smaller than the average sized gaper clams dug from other locations in Coos Bay. Junkyard Jim Had a very productive weekend out on the mud flats. The lowest tide of the weekend was .7, but the clams are thick if you walk a half mile north of the parking area. Sunny and 70! Gapers stacked on top of gapers, and we had the whole place to ourselves! I tried Bill's trick of icing them down immediately after digging, and boy does that make a big difference in the ease of cleaning and the flavor! It was less than 2 hours from the mud to the pot, and the texture/flavor was exceptional! They looked so nice while I was cleaning them, I ate some of the adductor muscles raw. Very tasty sashimi. Although gapers are too much work for my 8 year old boy, he still loves to go out and find cockles and crabs. He also gets to bury my holes! We limited out on trout Sunday, fishing at Arizona pond. My son's first limit. A green wedding ring with half a crawler, retrieved slowly, seems to work on every cast. I hook 'em, and he lands them. Crabbing was slow at Charleston, with nets full of almost legal dungeness. Maybe next month will be better, but it's hard to beat clam guts as bait! Fossil Point is halfway between Charleston and Empire. Look for the Sanitation pump house, and park courteously, since the lot is small. Maybe I'll see you there next weekend. Internet links of interest for Coos Bay: Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast at Coos Bay. Click HERE for the latest marine forecast and small craft advisories from Florence to Cape Blanco. Click HERE for an hourly weather, wind and surf conditions for the southern Oregon Coast. Click on Northwest Rivers Forecast to view the height of the river level for the Coos River. Click HERE to see the navigation hazards for crossing the bar at Coos Bay. Click on 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections for Charleston and scroll down the desired month Recreational Advisories: Always call the shellfish Hotline at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474 toll free outside of Oregon before harvesting clams or mussels for messages listing the areas closed to harvesting shellfish due to high levels of marine toxins. The information displayed on the ODA Shellfish Hotline Website may not be up to date and cannot be trusted. For up to date information call the Shellfish Hotline before you dig at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474. AlwaysCheck Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program The Oregon Public Health Division conducts several activities to protect people living, working and playing near Oregon's beaches, rivers, lakes and other waterbodies. Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program helps protect people who play in the coastal waters. The program does regular water testing to look for high levels of bacteria and lets visitors know when there is a health concern. The Harmful Algae Bloom Surveillance program advises the public when a harmful algae bloom has been detected in a lake or river. Not all blooms are harmful, but some species of algae, such as cyanobacteria or blue-green algae, can produce toxins that can cause serious illness in pets, livestock, wildlife and humans Please see the Oregon fish consumption guidelines for more information abut the health benefits of fish and how to make healthy fish choices. Coquille Bay at the Port of Bandon: On 08/14 Robert from Tony's Crab Shack 541 347-2875 reports: Crabbing busted loose earlier this week for crabbers from boats while crabbers from Webers pier are taking good numbers of crabs............ Tony makes killer crab tacos. Read Tony's all encompassing Fishing Report in the Bandon Western World newspaper or the online edition at Bandon Western World. Tony's cooks crabs for 50 cents per crab and backs them for an additional 25 cents per crab. On 08/14 Diane at Bandon Bait and Tackle 541-347-3905 reports: Crabbing is great from Webers Pier ...... Bandon Bait shop rents clam shovels, poles, and crab rings plus sells rods, reels, bait, tackle, and ice. Fishing gear repair services are available as well as professional guided trips on the Coquille, Sixes, and Elk Rivers. They also sell hamburgers, fish and chips, and fried prawns. Bandon usually remains productive until the bay blows out with turbid brown stained water. Softshell clams dominate the tidal flats of the Coquille River Estuary at Bandon. Internet links of interest for the Coquille River Estuary: Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections for the Port of Bandon and scroll down the desired month. Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast at Bandon. Click on Northwest Rivers Forecast to view the height of the river level for the Coquille River. Click HERE to see the navigation hazards for crossing the bar at the Coquille River. Port Orford is the only port in Oregon that offers crabbing in the Ocean from a dock facility. Crabbing from docks is open all year but crabbing productivity varies from day to day and with the season. Recreational boaters crab in the ocean south of the port in 60 to 80 feet of water. We have asked the good folks at Port Orford docks repeatedly for information about crabbing and fishing from their docks but with no response. Finally, a crabber was good enough to share the following infomation about crabbing from the dock at Port Orford. I for one am looking forward to crabbing there. Bill "When we were crabbing at Port Orford we were with a friend who was well acquainted with the dock area. If there are fishing boats coming and going there is only about 20 feet of dock available for crabbing because it is very much a working dock. We happened to hit it lucky two evenings in that all the boats were in before 6 p.m. so we were able to use the entire length of the dock where the cranes are located where the boats usually come in for as long as we wanted. If the cranes are in use you cannot safely crab from there. The third time we were there the weather was so lousy no boats had gone out at all so we had the entire dock to ourselves. The water at Port Orford appears to be much cleaner than the water elsewhere where crabbing is done at the mouths of rivers. We could see the bait on the bottom and could actually watch the crabs moving toward and onto the traps in the shallower water. The folks on the dock at Port Orford ask that crabbers spin the females or too small males back into the water so they hit the water on their sides. Since the dock is so high above the water it can kill the crabs if they land on their backs or stomachs. They also asked us to keep the area clean by removing all seaweed from the dock and throwing the snails back as well." Thank you for sharing, Bill Internet Links of Interest for Port Orford Click on 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at for Port Orford and scroll down the desired month. Click HERE to see the 10 day weather forecast at Port Orford. Click HERE to see the unfavorable harbor conditions at Port Orford. Fishing information for Port Orford and the other small esturies in Southern Oregon. Rocky Point: the digging for littleneck clams at Rocky Point has declined because of a large scale die off late last year. The die off of littleneck clams has occurred in many areas along the ocean beaches of the Pacific Northwest. We need current up to date information on digging conditions at Rocky Point. Click on the link to Rocky Point for information about tide pools. Rocky Point Update: An association member had a lengthy discussion with a South coast digger who noted that the steamer clam population has indeed had a terrible drop on those coastal rocky reaches. The digger did note that a couple of years ago, he would get 8 or 10 steamers out of some of the spots, but this year he managed to get only 1 or 2. The positive aspect of this is that some of the steamers did survive. Razor clams in Southern Oregon: Click on Southern Oregon beaches to view the location of the best razor clam digging south of Seaside. We need input on the razor clam digging conditions in Sourthern Oregon. Do you part contribute by sharing your clam digging experiences with us qt williamlackner001@msn.com. Chetco Bay, Brookings: the Port of Brookings Harbor has no current information availale from both public of private resources; however, the port does have a public fishing and crabbing dock. Rogue River Estuary at the Port of Gold Beach allows crabbing from the marina docks but crab pots and rings cannot be left soaking over night and children under must wear lifejackets. You must provide your own lifejackets for your children. Crabbing from the marina docks has been good this summer and fall. The bay clams common to Oregon's Bay are not present in Brookings Harbor or in the Rogue River Estuary at Gold Beach in large enough numbers to be of interest to recreational clam diggers. Click on 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at for Bandon at Chetco Cove and scroll down the desired month. Click HERE for the 10 day weather forecast at Brookings. Click HERE to see the navigation hazards for crossing the bar of the Chetco River. Click HERE to see the navigational hazards for the Rogue River Estuary and Click HERE to see the Chartlette for the Rogue River Estuary. Click on the Northwest River Levels to view the height of the river level for the Chetco River. Recreational Advisories: Always call the shellfish Hotline at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474 toll free outside of Oregon before harvesting clams or mussels for messages listing the areas closed to harvesting shellfish due to high levels of marine toxins. The information displayed on the ODA Shellfish Hotline Website may not be up to date and cannot be trusted. For up to date information call the Shellfish Hotline before you dig at (503) 986-4728 or 1-800-448-2474. AlwaysCheck Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program The Oregon Public Health Division conducts several activities to protect people living, working and playing near Oregon's beaches, rivers, lakes and other waterbodies. Oregon's Beach Monitoring Program helps protect people who play in the coastal waters. The program does regular water testing to look for high levels of bacteria and lets visitors know when there is a health concern. The Harmful Algae Bloom Surveillance program advises the public when a harmful algae bloom has been detected in a lake or river. Not all blooms are harmful, but some species of algae, such as cyanobacteria or blue-green algae, can produce toxins that can cause serious illness in pets, livestock, wildlife and humans Please see the Oregon fish consumption guidelines for more information abut the health benefits of fish and how to make healthy fish choices. Internet Links of Interest for Razor Clam Diggers Click on the following link to view the 2011 NOAA tidal projections for the Estuaries located near the beach where you intend to dig razor clams. Then scroll down to and click on the selected area. Click the following link to view the local weather forecast for Brookings. Click on the Marine Forecast from Florence to Cape Blanco to view the marine forecast featuring Small Craft Warning. Click the following link to view the Marine Forecast for the NWS Medford Zone: Coastal waters from Cape Blanco OR to Pt. St. George CA out 10 nm (PZZ356) The following NOAA link for detailed information for the Oregon Coast is a great source for planning your razor clam digging adventures. Click on the following link to see a detailed hourly forecast for weather and surf conditions on the southern Oregon Coast NOAA Coastal Forcast for Curry County Click on to view the Oregon Surf Report Click on to view Stonewall Bank Buoy Reports Click on National Buoy Data Center to view the observations from buoys off the Oregon Coast. To view the trail from Hwy 1001 to north end Baker Beach click on Heceta and Baker Beach Razor Clams. Last summer ODFW reported some razor clams were dug from the northern reach of Baker Beach. I have been unable to get any information from diggers on the digging productivity at Heceta Beach. The little I have heard that it is not very productive, but that does not mean much. At one time excluding the Clatsop Spit Beaches the digging of razor clams at Heceta Beach was considered the best place to dig razor clams in Oregon ahead of Agate Beach and Meyers Beach. There are some parking permit requirments required to park at the beaches north of the North Jetty of the Siuslaw River. Parking is free at the North Jetty. A Lane County parking permit is required to park at the end Heceta Beach Road. There is a fee to park at the Sutton Lake Recreational area on the west side of Hwy 101 just north of Florence except for holders of the Golden Eagle pass program. I do not know if a parking permit of any kind is required at Baker Beach via the Bake Beach Rd. Baker Beach Rd. is the northern most access road to the beaches located north of the North Jetty except for the trail that leads to Baker Beach from the turnout overlooking the beach from Hwy 101.. On 05/20 ODFW reports fair digging for razor clams from the beach inside the North Jetty. BastendorffBeachRazor Clams:Bastendorff Beach located between Coos Bay and Yoakum Point is listed by ODFW as a razor clam location. On 05/20ODFW reports poor digging. 04/20 There were diggers on the beach at Baker Beach when I drove to Florence the other day but I have no idea how well they were doing. On 04/20 ODFW reports diggers are doing fair on razor clams at Sparrow Park RD. North Beach Razor Clams at Coos Bay: on 04/20 ODFW reports fair digging for razor clams. Whiskey Run Beach Razor Clams: Whiskey Run Beach off of Seven Devils Road allows beach access by motor vehicles and is listed by ODFW as a location to dig for razor clams. 04/20 clam diggers repor fair digging with a lot of juvenile clams showing. Meyers Beach Razor Clams: Late last summer clam digger Ron reported that he has been digging razor clams at Meyer's Beach with his grandson without any competition from other diggers. Can you imagine digging limits of razor clams with no one else around. The life cycle of razor clams is short. The clams may come and go before we have a chance to dig for them. We need input on the razor clam digging conditions in Southern Oregon. Do you part contribute by sharing your clam digging experiences with us by posting them on the message board. Razor clam digging is often unproductive during periods of heavy tidal surge. I stay home if the offshore long ocean swells exceed 6.0 feet or a combination of wine chop and long ocean swells exceed 8 ft.....Razor clams are reluctant to show during periods of heavy surf. We provide a link to Oregon Surf Check to view the height and interval of the long ocean swells. We recommend digging bay clams during periods of moderate to heavy surf. Remember, clam digging is most productive during periods of Spring tides and crabbing is most productive during periods of Neap tides. View the NOAA tide tables to see the predicted height of the low tide for your bay of interest. We need information on the current digging conditions for all of Oregon's Beaches. Share the news of your clam digging experience on the Discussion Board. Click 2011 or 2010 to view the NOAA tidal projections at Wedderburn on the Rogue River Estuary. Click HERE to see the 10 day weather forecast at Wedderburn.. Click HERE to see the navigation hazards for cross the Rogue River bar. Click on the Northwest River Levels to view the height of the river level for the Rogue River.
Email us with any suggestion how we can improve the information we provide at williamlackner001@msn.com.
Return to Oregon's Razor Clams Return to Oregon's Clams Return to Oregon's Crabs Click HERE to link to ODFW Weekly Recreation Report for the Southwest Zone and HERE to link to the report for the Northwest Zone and HERE to link to the Marine Zone. For more information about the life cycle of Dungeness Crabs click HERE. |
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