A week of razor clam digs have been approved starting Tuesday at Long Beach, Twin Harbors and Mocrocks beaches.
The Department of Fish and Wildlife has also announced tentatively scheduled digs through February.
The approved dig is for the following beaches, dates and low tides:
• Dec. 10, Tuesday, 5:28 pm, -0.2 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Dec. 11, Wednesday, 6:06 pm, -0.6 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Dec. 12, Thursday, 6:45 pm, -0.9 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Dec. 13, Friday, 7:26 pm, -1.0 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Dec. 14, Saturday, 8:08 pm, -1.0 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Dec. 15, Sunday, 8:53 pm, -0.8 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Dec. 16, Monday, 9:41 pm, -0.4 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
No digging is allowed before noon during evening digs.
“We also were able to pencil out tentative dates, and upcoming digs bring a ton of opportunity to harvest clams well into the new year,” said coastal shellfish manager Dan Ayres.
The Department of Fish and Wildlife sets tentative razor clam seasons that are based on the results from an annual coast-wide razor clam stock assessment and by considering harvest to date. Each dig is independently after getting the results of marine toxin testing.
Proposed razor clam digs for Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis and Mocrocks include:
• Dec. 23, Monday, 4:35 pm, -0.4 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Dec. 26, Thursday, 6:47 pm, -1.1 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Dec. 27, Friday, 7:26 pm, -0.9 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Dec. 28, Saturday, 8:05 pm, -0.6 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Dec. 29, Sunday, 8:43 pm, -0.2 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Jan. 8, Wednesday, 5:05 pm -0.3 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Jan. 9, Thursday, 5:47 pm -0.8 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Jan. 10, Friday, 6:29 pm -1.2 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Jan. 11, Saturday, 7:11 pm -1.4 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Jan. 12, Sunday, 7:53 pm -1.3 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Jan. 13, Monday, 8:36 pm -1.2 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Jan. 14, Tuesday, 9:20 pm -0.5 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Jan. 21, Tuesday, 4:23 pm -0.1 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Jan. 22, Wednesday, 5:10 pm -0.5 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Jan. 23, Thursday, 5:53 pm -0.6 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Jan. 24, Friday, 6:32 pm -0.6 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Jan. 25, Saturday, 7:08 pm -0.5 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Jan. 26, Sunday, 7:42 pm -0.3 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Feb. 6, Thursday, 4:40 pm -0.3 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Feb. 7, Friday, 5:26 pm -0.9 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Feb. 8, Saturday, 6:09 pm -1.3 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Feb. 9, Sunday, 6:51 pm -1.4 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Feb. 10, Monday, 7:32 pm -1.3 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Feb. 11, Tuesday, 8:13 pm -0.8 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Feb. 12, Wednesday, 8:55 pm -0.1 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Feb. 20, Thursday, 4:54 pm 0.0 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Feb. 21, Friday, 5:35 pm -0.1 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• Feb. 22, Saturday, 6:11 pm -0.2 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis
• Feb. 23, Sunday, 6:44 pm -0.1 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
Final approval of the tentatively scheduled openings will depend on whether results of marine toxin tests show the clams are safe to eat.
Ayres notes that low tides around New Years are not low enough for successful razor clam harvest, so digging will not open then. Digs aren’t scheduled on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day because past digs on those days didn’t draw a large number of diggers and so the department can give its staff some time off.
All diggers age 15 or older must have an applicable 2019-20 fishing license to harvest razor clams on any beach. Licenses, ranging from a three-day razor clam license to an annual combination fishing license, are available online at https://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov and from license vendors around the state.
Under state law, diggers at open beaches can take 15 razor clams per day and are required to keep the first 15 they dig. Each digger’s clams must be kept in a separate container.
