Comments on: Monster Clams

Monster Clams

rebent — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 08:25:37 -0800

Razor clam digging with Captain Milt Gudgell. Follow Milt as he takes you clam digging on the Long Beach Peninsula.

Via Cracked.com's The 12 Most Strangely Satisfying Videos on the Internet

By: biffa

biffa — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 08:40:01 -0800

Using some kind of special digging tool seems kind of cheating. Where I live its all salting, as in this video, though just for personal use, not seen anyone doing this commercially. The captain's clams are a lot fatter than the ones we have mind.

By: broadway bill

broadway bill — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 09:42:36 -0800

I'm giving a paper at a conference this afternoon, and as usual I am suffering from pre-presentation jitters. I just spent a few minutes watching clam digging videos and now I'm oddly and totally relaxed! Thanks!

By: Keith Talent

Keith Talent — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 09:54:40 -0800

Longbeach Washington is one of the greatest places on earth. The town is terrible, bad motels and worse restaurants, but the beach is magical. You can drive on the beach, and likely get stuck, (I did) but it is so worth it. The beach is huge, when the tide is out the sea is barely visable from the dunes. Almost always foggy, cool and damp. We played Aerobie over such a distance that we needed a spotter in the middle of the two throwers directing the catcher which way to start running. So fun. I love Longbeach. I also would have liked to see what was going to be done with the clams.

By: exogenous

exogenous — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 09:59:18 -0800

That was pretty soothing. I wonder what the white pole he carries is used for.

By: sebastienbailard

sebastienbailard — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 09:59:48 -0800

Run for it, little guy!

By: Jikido

Jikido — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 10:05:00 -0800

My father's family (Finnish) is from Astoria and when I was very young (circa 1964) we visited them for my first time. My father was in the air force and stationed at Altus AFB, OK and we drove and stayed for a week. One morning we got up early and headed out to Long Beach for a day of clam diggin'. Coming back we were stopped by the authorities and reminded that there could only be a certain amount of clams "harvested" (total # of clams divided by buckets). We were over the legal amount. To my Finnish relatives' surprise, my mom (Kansas girl had never been to an ocean before) grabbed our little "kiddie" sand buckets and offered them as part of the total count! That got us under the maximum amount. The ticket was destroyed and we had a feast that night. Long Beach is a great place! I recommend visiting the east side of the peninsula to see Oysterville a quaint and tranquil place facing Willapa Bay.

By: agentofselection

agentofselection — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 10:06:12 -0800

I just watched the rest of the strangely satisfying videos, and while many of them were, the last one did not satisfy. It made me...uncomfortable.

By: blurker

blurker — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 11:32:52 -0800

Wait, you're seriously telling me that this guy's name is Milt? Really? Milt??

By: calamari kid

calamari kid — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 11:39:25 -0800

Boy, that stirs up some old memories. My grandparents lived in Ocean Park, just north of Long Beach on the peninsula. As a young lad I would be tasked with stomping around finding holes while the adults manned the digging hardware. I couldn't wait until I was big enough to operate the clam gun. The job is as satisfying to perform as it is to watch. One of my aunts would game the system by going out and getting their limit twice a day. Boompa did not approve of this practice, and as a dutiful grandson I also disapproved. Man, I've got a serious hankering for razor clams now.

By: vespabelle

vespabelle — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 11:46:29 -0800

Watching this seemed weirdly familiar. Then I realized that he sounds like Grant McOmie who had/has a TV travel show about the NW. I'm guessing this is the elusive Pacific NW accent? I've wanted to go clamming for several years now since I decided I don't hate clams. So thanks for sharing this. I've looked up and found a guided trip to harvest clams later this month that I'm going to sign up for!

By: prodigalsun

prodigalsun — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 13:10:17 -0800

That was pretty soothing. I wonder what the white pole he carries is used for. You use the white pole for stabbing the sand, which then puts pressure on the clam, causing it to fart up a little air, causing the hole to be revealed. I use a clam gun, just like the captain. My buddy jim used a clam shovel, as he's more of a purist than I am. I usually limit out before he does.

By: wotsac

wotsac — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 14:10:42 -0800

Long Beach is pretty charming as towns on the Washington coast go. FWIW I found the Arcadia motel to be rather nice - it's an old place from the 30s that's been given quite a bit of love by its current owners. The milk glass light fixtures and the shocking carpet pattern quite delighted me. Not a place for people who want everything just so, but very clean and satisfyingly unmodern. Much of the rest of the coast I've seen (having driven the coast south of Aberdeen before Christmas, and north from Aberdeen last week) is grim in a way that matches the winter weather.

By: six-or-six-thirty

six-or-six-thirty — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 23:47:42 -0800

Aha!

By: jrochest

jrochest — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 23:54:56 -0800

BC and Washington beaches are special places, and this captures that. He's delightful, too. What do you mean, accent?