Happy as a Clam in Pismo Beach
Though not everyone living and growing up in California knows about a delightful beach town on the Central Coast, this weekend there’s plenty to celebrate at this vacation oasis known for its sandy beaches and fun under the sun. Visitors and locals are “happy as a clam” at the 73rd Annual Pismo Beach Clam Festival.
Overlooking the Pacific Ocean, generations come together one October weekend to celebrate live music, a clam chowder contest, beer & wine gardens, family fun zones, food trucks, vendors and the big Clam Dig.
Pismo Beach Clam Festival
October 18-20, 2019
Friday
Pismo Beach Chamber Wine Walk
Saturday
Clam Festival Parade | Clam Chowder Cook-Off on Pismo Beach Pier | Surfing Contest | Live Musice
Sunday
Clam Dig | Clam Bake | Food Trucks | Beer & Wine Garden | Vendors | Live Music
Why clams?
- Pismo Beach was historically the center of recreational clamming. Over a 75 day period in 1949 more than 2 million clams were caught on a beach that had just been reopened to digging after being closed for 20 years. An estimated 5,000 diggers per day came.
- The largest Pismo clam recorded in California at 7.37-inches across and estimated to be 26 years came from Pismo Beach.
- The oldest Pismo clam on record was estimated to be 53 years old.
- The Pismo clam prefers warmer waters south of Half Moon Bay; it doesn’t fare well in cold waters.
- Humans, sharks, rays, gulls, sea otters and some species of surf fish are predators for the pismo clam.
