hit the bay

[olclamman]

  went clammin today in the barnegat  -  :)water temp 47    wind out of the ssw  10 -20 k     my bud and i each got a limit   150 each     tried to dredge for crabs  but it was a little too windy      only a few days left to dredge      march 31   it ends till next dec   
                                              oc

[crabbygramps]

How did the dredge work???

[tattoo]

Nice . enjoy those clams. 

[rockinchef]

Do they dredge the delaware bay too, or just barnegat in jersey

[plez]

Where can you clam in the barnegat?  Would love to do it?  Someone told me about someplace in Island Beach State Park near Seaside on the bay side of the park but I have not tried it yet.

[olclamman]

 
  gramps
         the dredge worked great pulled well behind my buds 14 ft sneakbox    but we were in the wrong
  area   and i wanted  to clam   before it got too windy   hope to try  monday   the last day

     rock  i thibk you can dredge crabs in delaware bay  but some of the regs  are different   hope this helps --


        pl3ez   i see you are from ststen iland  you are a non resdent  and can only clam  in june july aug  and sept      and if i told you more id have to call my north jersey cousins      well you know
                                        oc 

[tattoo]

Good luck on Mon. 

[nadapesca]

Where can you clam in the barnegat?  Would love to do it?  Someone told me about someplace in Island Beach State Park near Seaside on the bay side of the park but I have not tried it yet.

You can't get a licence to do it until June if you are a non resident. By then, the ancient mariners have scarfed most of them up by slobbering on chowder all winter

[plez]

That seems to be the trend!!! Alot of if I tell ya I would have to kill ya answers.  Thanks.  Enjoy the clams.  Did you ever try them on the bbq?  Delicious.

[madcrabber1113]

I watched a movie called "Diggers" on satellite.It is about independent com. clammers in the Hamptons in the 1970's and how they were put out of business by giant corporate clammers.It is a pretty interesting movie although pretty sad as well.

[nadapesca]

That seems to be the trend!!! Alot of if I tell ya I would have to kill ya answers.  Thanks.  Enjoy the clams.  Did you ever try them on the bbq?  Delicious.

Yeah, the bbq types are good. Look on Jersey's Website for fish and game, they can issue a clam license on-line or refer you to a bait shopthat sells them. The outtastater licences vary by the year but begin in June and end in September. I'm not sure if I'm gonna bother this year, clams are great, but crabs are better and easier to get. We only used the licenses ($20 American) twice last year so it didn't pay well. The cheap rakes are difficult to use. Good ones are hand made and run about $65-$70. Some like to wade up to their armpits (I'd tell ya but have to kill ya) and feel by foot. Good method, but, on Clam Island last July (yes, Clam Island) near the Barnaget inlet, I started that and just as I was easing down on what I thought was a clam, I stopped. Didn't feel quite right. I was right, I worked the sand from the sides and found an upside down and shredded Budwiser can. Looked like a prop had had it's way with it and it drifted in and was buried with tides. If it would have been the other way, mucho stitches and a ruined day. My son, who was about 50 yards away doing the same thing was immediatly ordered to stopped the barefootin'. We got two dozen that day, and it was hard diggin.

In August, I went again and looked around a little. I saw some odd things happening to the north of the inlet. It appeared to be a sea otter or something swimming through the sedges and back to IBSP but not getting out of the water. I checked around when I went to the park the next week and was told that there were no sea otters that anyone had noticed. I suspect then that "if I tell you I'll have to kill you" does his barefoot clammin' there or some other codger. When I think about what I saw, it was probably a head a little above water and from the low freeboard of my boat, I was looking at someone wading in chest deep or so water. Coulda been him or the other old man of the sea. Hrrrrrgh lubber! Leave them to their clams, it's the only thing they can chase down anymore.

[olclamman]

   i for one DONOT  go clammin barefoot - mainly because of the shells  - we dont find too many cans or bottles any more except old   old botttles  -   that may have been me neck deep cammin  - as i deep water clam  -  this time of the yr i wear a wet suit   and rake  -  yes a good rake is costly but when clams are 4- 6 $  a doz  you can justify the cost  -   obtw i wear neoprine   socks that cost from 12  to 30 $ a pair  -
  but i get 3 - 4 yrs out of them  - maybe ill see you in the bay   clammin  - give me a shout
                                                    oldclamman 

[nadapesca]

Neoprene socks? I guess if their thick enough that should do it. I think if you do this, a good rake is a must. The $20.00 black cheapos from Dick's and others are a burden to use. You feel like a plowhorse! Where'd you get your rake, you can tell me that without bloodshed, right? I start crabbing down there in June/July, always a Thursday. I'm off that day and it avoids the mad crowds. I give you a holler.

[Ronster]

Neoprene socks work very, very well for clamming.    They keep your feet warm, protect them against sharp objects (for the most part) but still allow you to feel the buggers so you can rake efficiently once you step on em, as opposed to at random just hoping to here that tell-tale "tink."

[olclamman]

  nada
         kmart  and walmart   at times have neoprene  socks  12 -15 $  i get mine at tips in weat creek
         or tonys  b&t  in mamahawkin   about 30 $   but you can get 3 yrs or more ouy of them   as for
         rakes  stay away from the dark metal  looking ones   too heavy     most b& t carry some type 
        25-  and up     i got mine from   ra ribb   a 10   or 12 tooth    we had them weld a 3/8  x 12  rod
         to the basket     went to home depot  bought a handle  foe 8 $   and drove the basket  in to the handle     it costs too much to ship with their handle     ill post some pics if i can figure out  how   
                                                oc
              m ribb@ribbrakes.com

[Ronster]

Fisherman's Headquarters in Ship Bottom has good neoprene socks and other clamming supplies for sale.     They do mail order if making the trip there is not an option.   there info is below.

Fisherman's Headquarters
280 West 9th Street, Ship Bottom, NJ 08008-4613 USA
Phone: 609.494.5739    Fax:609.494.9271
Outside of New Jersey Call Toll Free: 877.984.5400 
URL: http://www.fishermansheadquarters.com
Email: info@fishermansheadquarters.com

[nadapesca]

Thanks for the replies gents. It's renewed my interest. I've got a black rake and it needs a plow horse to operate. I don't mind hard work, but I've had two shoulder separations, and that bugger screamed like a demon on both days after using that thing. Foot'n it sounds the better of the two methods.

Thanks again.

[olclamman]

  na da 
           take it back if you can or sell it    the regular ones  with a wire basket
they are far more superior
           contact me when you as an out of stater    can clam and ill hook up with you     but get rid
          of that piece of iron                   
                   oc

[anchor]

clams down here this time of year are deep, no feeling then with your feet when the water is this cold.

[Ronster]

Incorrect.    You can absolutely still tread on them then rake on what you step this time of year.   

[olclamman]

   give the man a cigar - he is correct  - clams DO NOT  move once they set -  some times the tide will make
   a difference   wether   you can feel them or not - higher water as opposed   to lower water -  mud  is better than sand  any day   
                                           oc

[anchor]

i have a commercial clam license for delaware and i can guarentee that down here we cannot feel them with our feet this time of the year, since most of our clams come out of the sand and not the mud.

[Pinchy]

...You can absolutely still tread on [clams] then rake on what you step this time of year.   

This sounds right to anyone who understands how clams live. The basic biology tells us a clam burrows beneath the seabed, and uses its siphon (sometimes called a pisser) to circulate water and food. It is impossible to believe that a clam would bury itself so deep in the mud that it couldn't be felt - its siphon wouldn't reach water and it would suffocate. Opinion open to revision.

[WIMPY]

That's one Helluva BIG HEAD!! Is that your PREP School Pic? Wondered were all that info was stored.

[Ronster]

i have a commercial clam license for delaware and i can guarentee that down here we cannot feel them with our feet this time of the year, since most of our clams come out of the sand and not the mud.

There are plenty right out in the mud at low tide here in NJ.    I was just out about two weeks ago and used the tried and true method of treading through mud at low tide, allowing my feet to tell me where to rake.   Worked like a charm.   Got enough for a meal in an hour and went home.