Field Notes: Clam digs set for next week

Razor clam diggers will have opportunities to hit the beaches starting next week, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife coastal shellfish managers confirmed Thursday.

“This next round of February dates should offer plenty of daylight harvest opportunity, just like the last tide series earlier this month,” said Bryce Blumenthal, a WDFW coastal shellfish biologist. “Hopefully the swell and weather cooperate to allow for lots of successful digging.”

Not all coastal beaches are open for every dig, so diggers are encouraged to make sure their intended destination is open before heading out. Optimal digging occurs between one and two hours before the listed time of low tide.

The following digs during afternoon and evening low tides (noon to midnight only) will proceed as scheduled, after marine toxin results from the Washington State Department of Healthy showed razor clams are safe to eat:

Wednesday, Feb. 21: 4:56 p.m., Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks.

Thursday, Feb. 22: 5:33 p.m., Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks.

Friday, Feb. 23: 6:05 p.m., Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis.

Saturday, Feb. 24: 6:34 p.m., Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis.

Sunday, Feb. 25: 7:02 p.m., Long Beach, Mocrocks.

Additional tentative dig dates for late afternoon/evening digs have been set for March 7-11. Tentative morning/early afternoon digs have been set for March 12-17; and tentative morning digs have been set for March 26-31.

On all open beaches, the daily limit is 15 clams per person. Each digger’s clams must be kept in a separate container, and all diggers must keep the first 15 clams they dig, regardless of size or condition to prevent waste.

All diggers 15 or older must have an applicable fishing license to harvest razor clams on any beach. Licenses can be purchased from hundreds of license vendors around the state or from the WDFW’s licensing website fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov.

Bus options available for Mt. Hood ski resorts

For winter sports enthusiasts who don’t want to deal with winter driving conditions or crowded parking lots, there are other ways to get to the slopes.

The Mt. Hood Express is a public bus service administered by Clackamas County that can take skiers from Sandy, Ore., all the way to Mt. Hood Skibowl and Timberline Lodge. The Express, which serves communities along Highway 26, operates seven days a week and costs $2 for a one-way trip or $5 for a day pass.

The bus departs Sandy Transit Operations Center at 16610 Champion Way at 5:15 a.m., 7:45 a.m., 9:15 a.m., 11:15 a.m., 1:15 p.m., 3:15 p.m., 6:15 p.m. and 9 p.m. There are eight returning bus trips down the mountain, departing Timberline at 6:45 a.m., 9:15 a.m., 10:45 a.m., 12:45 p.m., 2:45 p.m., 4:45 p.m., 7:45 p.m. and 10:20 p.m. All buses leave SkiBowl 18 minutes later. The 10:20 p.m. departure from Timberline only runs Friday and Saturday, but the 10:38 p.m. departure from SkiBowl operates seven days a weeks.

If Mount Hood Meadows is your skiing destination, the Gorge-to-Mountain Express operated by Columbia Area Transit offers trips from Hood River to the mountain.

The GTM Express departs the CAT office at 224 Wasco Loop in Hood River with stops at Hood River Event Site, Odell and Parkdale. It leaves the CAT office daily at 7:30 a.m., 8:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. It returns from Mt. Hood Meadows at 8:40 a.m., 9:40 a.m., 12:10 p.m. and 4 p.m. On Wednesday through Saturday, there is one more departure from Hood River at 6:30 p.m., and two more departures from Meadows at 4:40 p.m. and 8 p.m. The cost is $5 roundtrip.