Nine-days of razor clam digging proposed for April; Diggers will need new license

OLYMPIA - Fishery managers have tentatively scheduled two razor clam digs on morning tides April 6-9 and April 19-23, provided marine toxin tests show the clams are safe to eat.

If approved, Twin Harbors will be open all nine days during the April opener. Long Beach will be open April 6-8 and April 19-20. Copalis and Mocrocks will be open April 19-20.

Kalaloch Beach will remain closed.

To participate, diggers must purchase an applicable 2008-09 fishing license, since March 31 marks the end of the current license year. A license is required for anyone age 15 or older. Licenses can be purchased at http://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov, by telephone (1-866-246-9453) or in person at more than 600 license vendors throughout the state. A list of vendors is available at http://wdfw.wa.gov/licensing/vendors/vendors.

"We strongly advise diggers to purchase their new license before they head to the beach," said Dan Ayres, coastal shellfish manager for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). "Morning digs are very popular, and no one wants to be standing in line to buy a license at low tide."

Under WDFW rules, harvesters may take no more than 15 razor clams and must keep the first 15 taken, regardless of size or condition. Each digger's limit must be kept in a separate container.

For those going to Copalis and Mocrocks, another factor to consider is the likelihood of a traffic revision due to continuing work on the Simpson Avenue Bridge on eastbound U.S. 101 in Hoquiam, Ayres said. "This is the only route to those beaches, so people should allow extra travel time to make sure they don't arrive late."

Ayres advises diggers to check the Washington Department of Transportation website, which provides project updates and traffic cameras: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/US101/SimpsonBridgeRehab/camera.htm

No digging will be allowed after noon on any beach.

Tentative early-April dates and low tides are:

• Sunday, April 6, 7:23 a.m., -0.7 ft: Long Beach and Twin Harbors only

• Monday, April 7, 8:09 a.m., -1.2 ft: Long Beach and Twin Harbors only
• Tuesday, April 8, 8:55 a.m., -1.5 ft: Long Beach and Twin Harbors only
• Wednesday, April 9, 9:43 a.m., -1.4 ft: Twin Harbors only

Tentative mid-April dates and low tides are:

• Saturday, April 19, 6:40 a.m., -0.1 ft: Long beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis and Mocrocks

• Sunday, April 20, 7:18 a.m., -0.4 ft: Long beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis and Mocrocks
• Monday, April 21, 7:55 a.m., -0.6 ft: Twin Harbors only
• Tuesday, April 22, 8:30 a.m., -0.6 ft: Twin Harbors only
• Wednesday, April 23, 9:06 a.m., -0.5 ft: Twin Harbors only

Locations of Washington's razor-clam digging beaches are:

• Twin Harbors, which extends from the south jetty at the mouth of Grays Harbor south to the mouth of Willapa Bay.

• Long Beach, which extends from the Columbia River to Leadbetter Point.
• Copalis Beach, which extends from the Grays Harbor north jetty to the Copalis River and includes the Ocean Shores, Oyhut, Ocean City and Copalis areas.
• Mocrocks Beach, which extends from the Copalis River to the southern boundary of the Quinault Reservation near the Moclips River, including Iron Springs, Roosevelt Beach, Pacific beach and Moclips.