John F figures out the clam dig

Same place as yesterday, but a much warmer day. poor digging in the wet sand where the waves wash in--very few clams telling us they were home. I'd brought the shovel today b/c the clam gun seemed to mangle most of the clams. I'd had a much gentler dig before using the shovel.

I walked away from the surf & dug on the ocean side of some "shows" , but found no clams down to 15-18 inches. John F had it figured it out. Dig right on top of the show. Most likely, the clam will be far below the depth of the shovel blade. You might see a squirt of mud if the clam is close, if so, you should grab it (preferably with a gloved hand). Dig deeper, putting the blade in the bottom of the hole & scraping dirt up with the blade. As the blade goes across the hole, it may graze the clam--grab it. After about 10-15 inches, get on hands and knees, dig a few more inches. Feel around the bottom of the hole until your fingers sweep across the clam. Find and firmly grab the clam's neck with thumb and finger. Slowly extract it from the sand. I haven't lost any clams--they don't seem to dig much.

Vern H. confirmed the situation at Grayland--no shows in the wet sand zone