Razor Clams

[Pignut]

Had a mooch on the beech at Saltfleet-By in lincolnshire yesterday with the intention of collecting a supper of razor clams

however I only found 2 holes in the sand that looked "razor clamy" and putting salt at the enterance did not make the elusive creature apear!

There where thousands of shells littering the beach!

Anyone any idea of what I was doing wrong?

 

[Ketchup]

Was it full moon yesterday?
The razor clams usually occupy the lowest area's on te beach, most of them live in the area that is never uncovered by the tide

 

[Pignut]

Not to my knowledge!

That is probably where I went wrong!

 

[gregorach]

Not full moon for another few days yet...

 

[Stuart]

razor calms tend to live at or just below the normal low tide mark, which means that they are ussually covered with water for a great deal of the time, except during the lowest tides (the best time to collect them)

 

[martin]

Spring tide is 2 days after full moon. The moon will be full on monday so you want to be back at Saltfleet on wednesday.
You get lower and higher tides on full moon and new moon because the gravity from the sun and the moon work together and make the tides flow for longer.

 

[leon-1]

Had a mooch on the beech at Saltfleet-By in lincolnshire yesterday with the intention of collecting a supper of razor clams

however I only found 2 holes in the sand that looked "razor clamy" and putting salt at the enterance did not make the elusive creature apear!

There where thousands of shells littering the beach!

Anyone any idea of what I was doing wrong?

No you weren't doing anything wrong, the salt trick does work, but it doesn't work all the time. As you said "Elusive" is one of the best ways of describing them.

 

[Pignut]

Damn!

Not here all next week!

When is the next good time to go? any clues

 

[martin]

The Evening Telegraph used to give tide times, don't know if it still does! Seafishing Magazines always have tide tables in them for the whole country.

 

[Seagull]

Wotcher Pignut.
Ive found that the surest way to get razors, is to go into a fishing tackle shop and ask for a packet of lugworms!

"No chance, Mate, but we,ve got lots of razor"

Ceeg

 

[Pignut]

Probably not the best to eat though!

Martin,

Fancy tagging along?

 

[martin]

Yeah I'll have a ride to Saltfeet with you, let us know when. It will have to be a weekend though.

 

[Pignut]

Yeah I'll have a ride to Saltfeet with you, let us know when. It will have to be a weekend though.

Will look at the tide times etc and let you know!

 

[jason01]

I find the easiest way to get them out is to dig them out, a big round bivalve shell the size of your palm works well for me. Spot a hole, approach gently, drop to your knees and dig like a nutter, if youre quick enough youll soon feel the top of the clam with your digger, drop the digger, get your hand in, grab the shell and gently pull them out. Have to be quick and they can be fairly deep, but its not that difficult really, when the tides right!

 

[Ketchup]

You can catch razor clams with an umbrella

Take a metal baleen from an old umbrella. Turn the top at a a streight angle so you obtain a crook.

Plunge the baleen into the sand with the crook parallel to both holes in the sand. When you feel the animal, turn tthe baleen 90° and pull.
(that's how the French do it)

 

[jason01]

You can catch razor clams with an umbrella

Take a metal baleen from an old umbrella. Turn the top at a a streight angle so you obtain a crook.

Plunge the baleen into the sand with the crook parallel to both holes in the sand. When you feel the animal, turn tthe baleen 90° and pull.
(that's how the French do it)

Ive read about a similar method using an old long narrow bladed carving knife crooked at the end, never tried though.

 

[Pignut]

Sounds like the next trip out might be an interesting one!

 

[Nemisis]

Hi Pignut I found this on a site i've used in the past thought it might help plan your trips better http://www.7dayshop.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=777_8&products_id=9183
Dave.

 

[Pignut]

Cool!

Yet another gizmo!

 

[pierre girard]

Had a mooch on the beech at Saltfleet-By in lincolnshire yesterday with the intention of collecting a supper of razor clams

however I only found 2 holes in the sand that looked "razor clamy" and putting salt at the enterance did not make the elusive creature apear!

There where thousands of shells littering the beach!

Anyone any idea of what I was doing wrong?

Don't know too much about this. Went digging razor clams three or four times on the Oregon coast while going to college in Seattle. We'd just find the holes and thump near it, two or three times, with the pole end of the shovel. When the hole "dropped" we'd dig like mad and get the clam. Each time we had a great clam bake.

Didn't seem to be much to it.

The only other time I've had any experience with clams was when I was commerical fishing in Alaska. We had a clam bed right in front of our cabin. At low tide we'd go out and dig all we wanted. The "beach" was gravel, and the clams couldn't dig down. They were not razor clams. No idea what they were, but they tasted good. You'd have to be an idiot to starve in Alaska. We had a crab pot out, steelhead in a stream a block away, and all the salmon and halibut we wanted to eat out of the ocean.

PG