Razor clam tides

Dig the low — ideally a minus tide

Razor clams live down in the surf zone, so you need the water gone to get to them. The lower the tide, the more beach is exposed and the closer the clams sit to the surface. Minus tides — anything below the zero datum, like −1.0 ft — are the best digging of all.

Plan to be on the sand and digging in the one to two hours before the listed low tide. In Washington that window is also the legal start time tied to each open date. Get there early; don't show up at the low and start setting up.

How to read a tide table for clamming

• Tide tables list daily high and low times and heights in feet, relative to a zero datum.
• Lower numbers are better. A −1.2 ft tide exposes far more beach than +1.0 ft.
• Find the lowest low of the day, then back up one to two hours — that's when to be digging.
• Always use a table for the specific beach; tides vary by location and need local corrections.

Evening digs in winter, morning digs in spring

The lowest tides of the day swing with the season, which is why Pacific Northwest dig dates do too:

• Fall and winter (≈ October–mid-March): the best lows fall in the afternoon and evening. Washington digs run on evening low tides — often after dark, so pack a headlamp or lantern.
• Spring: the lows shift to the morning, and digs move with them.

Tide references by beach

Washington's open-coast surf beaches don't have their own NOAA gauge, so tide tables reference the nearest official station and apply a local correction. Here's the closest reference station we use for each beach:

Beach	State	Tide reference
Long Beach	WA	Toke Point, Willapa Bay (NOAA 9440910)
Twin Harbors	WA	Westport, Grays Harbor (NOAA 9441102)
Copalis	WA	Westport, Grays Harbor (NOAA 9441102)
Mocrocks	WA	Westport (9441102) / La Push (9442396)
Kalaloch	WA	La Push, Quillayute River (NOAA 9442396)
Clatsop Beaches	OR	Astoria (Tongue Point), Columbia River (NOAA 9439040)

Reference stations are the nearest official NOAA gauges, not gauges on the beach itself — apply local time and height corrections, and check NOAA Tides & Currents for the exact predictions.