Summer Clamming | Oceanside | Documentary Family Photographer
My in-laws have a lovely house overlooking the ocean, outside of the tsunami zone, but not free of the leg aches that come from climbing the road and accompanying staircase shortcut. We all know we need more exercise when our breath comes ragged and our quads are aching.
It was a last minute decision to head to the coast for a day of clamming. The tide was the lowest it had been in many years so we answered the call of muck on our feet and sore shoulders from raking the sand.
Squishing feet through seaweed, mud-like sand, and small inlets of water led us to the clam hideout. The kids worked fast with their rakes and like magic, found clams with ease. There were big ones, tiny ones, and even some baby crabs. We shared our excitement with other families, marveling at how quickly the clams would burrow down once they felt the rake. No really, they are fast!
We only took what we needed to make clam chowder and then squelched back to the car, wiping our feet on the scratchy grass alongside our car. We drove down the road to a small shop to buy fresh oysters and also some delicious salty caramels from Jacobsen.
A game of Uno, Sequence, some oysters shucked by strong hands, and heaping bowls of clam chowder filled our day. Topping off our beach time, we headed down to Roseanna's for the most delicious marionberry cobbler. If you're ever in Oceanside, you have to try it!