Sycamore Hot Springs was a really nice place to go after a day at the beach. Hot tubs all over the hillside. We had someone's birthday party at "Tubby" the monster tub at the bottom of the hill. Something like 27 people. Still have the T-shirt from 1978 or so.
“My wife is the clam chowder gourmet.”
Next time you’re in Pismo go to a little restaurant just above the peer in the city and have clam chowder at Splash. Some of the best I ever had.
When I was young, we would go to our cabin in the Pismo state park just south of the city a couple of miles after the Grover City stop light on the road where Grover City come out to the beach roads. We would drive in on a Friday night, exactly 169 miles. Have dinner at Plessas, then stop and get our licenses and snacks at Lovern’s and spend the night in the cabin. Next morning, early, we would hit the beach and clam until we limited. Let them rest next to the sink to open up, and drive just south of Oceano and get fresh veggies and dairy. Clean the clams, make the soup, and have it with sourdough.
If you have ever looked at the clammers and seen some out in deeper water standing up straight and backing up, they are using a drag fork which was invented by my grand uncle. He owned the first motel in the state park. He took a drag potato fork, put weights just above the tines, attached a chain to the handle and to a belt he wore, and put a measuring gage on it. Since the tines are reversed from a normal pitch fork, he could stand up and drag the fork in the sand and when he hit a clam, the fork would jump over it. He would them hook the clam with the tines, straighten the fork, and pick it straight up with the clam in the fork never bending over. And if a large wave hit him he could dig the fork in and take the hit.
It allowed us to go into deeper water where the clams were after a couple of large waves pulled them out to the beds at the breakers. There were four of us using them and we almost always limited. We saw a few sharks out there but at that time, jaws hadn’t been screened and we worked in away from them. We were there when about a 6 foot sand shark got between about a dozen clammers and the beach and they proceeded to poke it to death, pull it in, and get it into the bed of a pickup and drove away with it. They ate good that night.
wy69
pfflier, for the wife
Splash Clam Chowder:
Ingredients
1 kg (approx. 2 lbs) fresh clams or 3-4 cans (6.5 oz) chopped clams
5 strips bacon, chopped
1 large onion, diced
2-3 stalks celery, diced
1-2 leeks, cleaned and chopped (optional)
1.5 lbs potatoes, cubed (Yukon gold recommended)
4 tbsp butter
1/4 cup flour
2 cups clam juice (reserved from steaming or bottled)
500 ml whole milk
200 ml double cream or heavy cream
1 bay leaf
Salt, pepper, and fresh parsley to taste
Instructions
Prep Clams & Bacon: If using fresh, steam clams until opened, remove meat, and reserve the broth. In a large pot, cook bacon until crispy, then remove and set aside, leaving the fat in the pot.
Sauté Veggies: Add onions, celery, and leeks to the bacon fat (add butter if needed) and cook until soft.
Make Roux & Base: Stir flour into the vegetables and cook for 1-2 minutes. Slowly whisk in the clam broth and fish stock/milk, bringing it to a simmer until it thickens.
Simmer: Add cubed potatoes and bay leaf. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until potatoes are fork-tender.
Finish: Stir in the clam meat, cream, and cooked bacon. Heat through but do not boil.
Serve: Season with salt and pepper, garnish with fresh parsley, and serve in sourdough bread bowls.
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