[Clamman]

Oregon's Clatsop Beach is open from October 1st to July 14th. Beaches south of Tillamook Head are open year round. This is only if there is not a toxin closure!

Remember as of January 1, 2004 all persons 14 years or older will be required to have a recreational shellfish license.


Clam

 

[Play'n Snooky]

ok so I am curious now, why does Oregon have such a liberal season? Washington only does a few days and only certain tides on those days? The differences seem huge! I can't wait to get down to the Clatsop beaches soon! :grin:

Thanks Again Clamman

 

[Clamman]

WDFW is funded and Oregon up until 1/1/04 was not. That is the main reason. WDFW also has some tribal obligations on some of the mid to northern beaches that mandated resource managment. As money from the new shellfish license rolls in ODFW probably will start doing more.


Clam

 

[Play'n Snooky]

ahh, makes sense. Thanks for the info.

 

[monoman]

Clam
"doing more" would be closing it? I hope not. What is the take between sports and commercials on the clams, does anyone know?

 

[MasterMariner]

Actually, there are several reasons behind why the seasons are different in Washington and Oregon. To start with, the Eco-system in Washington is totally different than that on Clatsop Beaaches... sand and currents are different and make a huge difference to the life cycle of a razor clam. Additionally, the Washington hotel/business lobby has worked WDFW into managing for economic gain for the business community... a few short seasons to get a huge economic inflow.
The razor clam poplulation on the Clatsop Beaches depend on several factors... amount of seed drifing down from Washington, severity of winter erosion, amount of upwelling from continental shelf to name a few.
I'm very happy about the new license. It will definately help fund Matt Hunter (the North coast shell fish biologist) study the Clatsop Beaches.

 

[Fish_N_Russ]

Where is there any info on the shellfish license? I have looked all over ODFW's website and can't find it........was it even written into law or ?

 

[Clamman]

Fish-n-Russ,

ODFW is in the process of getting information out to the public and in the 2004 synopsis. The license will be available at *** agents by December 1st. The governor signed the bill August 14th or 15th. Doesn't give much of a head start to do PR work with budgets being extra, extra tight.

MasterMariner hit the nail on the head by being a bit more specific than I was. Clatsop Beach and Longbeach are pretty similar in alot of respects but even though they are geographically almost the same they are geologically quite different.

Monoman, just because information is gained about a resource certainly doesn't mandate restrictions. In cases where that has happened, the research came at times of impending crisis. Had some of the key research been done for the Columbia River Salmon fisheries decades earlier (I know some technology wasn't available) can you say the fisheries would still be in the depressed state they are in? From the 2001 ODFW report "Life History of the Pacific Razor Clam", the sport take averages between 85%-90% and the commercial take is between 10%-15% of the total harvest. It also states that this varies depending upon market condition and clam abundance.

Hope that answers some of the questions.


Clam

 

[Clamman]

FYI

Clatsop Beaches will open on October 1st for Razor Clamming. Clatsop Beach is the stretch of beach from Tillamook Head north to the South Jetty of the Columbia River.


Clam

(edit) I'm sorry, I edited your title. It sounded like they were open now, and I wanted to make sure no one drove all that way to go after them, without reading! Jen)

[ 09-28-2003, 08:27 PM: Message edited by: [email protected] ]

 

[Play'n Snooky]

:cheers: Thanks for the info Clamman. How long of a season will Oregon have?

 

[Slugranch]

If it were up to me, I'd hold out for the Oregon beaches rather than go to Long Beach. We dug last night, and really were disappointed in the size of the clams. Out of two limits we had a couple that were nice ones, but for the majority, they were a lot smaller than the ones of the past few years. The surf was really pounding too, so it was not as lucrative as it has been in the past. Tonight, we are going way up north beyond Oysterville and see if we can do any better,, :shrug:

 

[freespool]

Slugranch,I dug about 2 miles north of the Oysterville approch. Small clams and not very many of them. If I were you I'd try way up north by the point. The word I got was a huge die off was caused by clam overpopulation.

 

[Bobber Down]

We dug last night as well as tonight. Went above Oysterville rd. Last night it took us one hr. to get our limit. Tonight it was alot better, we were on our way home by 4:45 (dug 10 min) with our easy limits. They were really showing, one pound sometimes 1-4 holes per pound. Maybe we just happened to hit it lucky...........Bobber Down

 

[Born to be Wild]

Clamman,

Are the beaches down here in Newport open right now? I know they are open all year, but is the toxin closure still in effect down here? I want to go tonight if it is open. :dance:

I still got a half a dozen limits vacuumed sealed from last year. Guess I better start enjoying.
:wink:
Dan

 

[Born to be Wild]

Well, I just found this thread at the bottom and it appears that the local beaches down here remain closed.

Guess I'll just have to get me some razors in Gearhart when moving my belongings up to Longview.

Dan

 

[freespool]

MM,any predictions as to how the digging will be in Oregon?

 

[live to fish]

Can you clam 24 hrs in oregon? :shrug:

 

[freespool]

When the season is open you can clam 24-7.

 

[Born to be Wild]

Yes, you can clam day and/or night in Oregon. At the central coast where I live, you normaly can clam day or night 365 days a year but it has been closed since last October due to high toxin levels.

I heard from two different locals that there were a lot of clams down here on the beach a few months back but unfotunately we were blessed with the high toxin levels.

Last year you didn't have to wait for a minus tide on the Clatsop beaches. There were so many and they were located so far up the beach that I was told by a local that the locals were getting them 7 days a week regardless of the tide.

Last year I gat an easy limit of razors on the 4th of July and it was only a plus 3 tide if I reclooect. On top of that I got there an hour late an hour into the flood tide. The clammers were already gone (the beach looked like it had been rotor-tilled) and I had very little sucess locating any in dry sand but once I started pounding I would sometimes see ten to twenty clams show at a time! Pretty amazing! Glad I took advantage of them with this toxin closure this year.

I'm surprised to hear the many dismal reports coming in from the Washington beaches because Washington has its razor clam fishery down to a science and manages the seasons up there on the availability of the razors with test digs.

I heard the surf was pounding and it was rough down here and from my limited experience with razors (mostly last year), when the surf is up, the clams are down.

I am hoping for some improvements in management and testing here in Oregon with the up coming clam license next year. Last year the clamming held up all year here on the central coast with the exceptional clamming but durring normal years the clams get fished down early on in the season and aren't able to hold up to the 365 day season here.

Dan

 

[Bill Monroe]

The regulations may say it opens Oct. 1, but my information is that the decision to allow the opening won't be made until Monday (tomorrow) and then only for Clatsop beaches...all others will stay closed...and Clatsop only will be allowed to open if the acid levels are down...

Dan's right...high surf sends clams deeper...