Pismo Beach Clam Festival: Bivalve Bash

Chowderists wanted: The 71st annual classic coastal party celebrates a briny gift of the sea.

AN AUTHENTIC CLAM DIG? It's a common bucket list entry for those who live in the Golden State. Along with learning to surf, and breaking into the entertainment business, and visiting every winery (or taco shop or doughnut stand), there are California-specific must-dos that continually intrigue and tempt those who call the state home. But joining a clam dig isn't always as simple as showing up at a stretch of sand with a small shovel and bucket in hand. Knowing where and when to go, and having a few tips and hints in your back pocket, are essential. And, more often than not, the "where" end of things tends to involve a storied spot on the Central Coast. It is, of course, without a doubt, or further quibble,

PISMO BEACH: And it is at Pismo Beach where the annual Clam Festival is held each fall, a tradition that unspools back over seven delicious decades. The 71st annual festival finds bivalvean bliss from Friday, Oct. 20 through Sunday, Oct. 22, and the line-up of briny events is as classic as a Pacific sunset. There's a clam dig, if that's on your bucket list, so join up if so (and consider that a clam dig is just about the only bucket list to-do that really involves a bucket). If supping upon the salty delicacies is more your style, join the clam bake, or make your way to a steamy bowl of clam chowder (yep, there's a chowder contest, as you might expect). Tunes, food trucks, face painting, and other beachy, bliss-out, no-worries, no-hurry to-dos are on the three-day roster. Ever dug for a clam? Call 2017 the year you put shovel to sand, finally.

Copyright FREEL - NBC Local Media
Contact Us