Harvesting dinner from the beach?

You could probably dig down for pippies? Other than that, cant say Ive harvested dinner from the beach other than good ol fishing!

So I had to Google around -- I take it pippies are clams? And you would steam them open maybe?

It's a bit of an exaggeration to say there is shellfish on every beach. There are pipi and cockles in the sand at low tide in many places, mussels and oysters on the rocks at some beaches. However, there may be restrictions / rules regarding the taking of shellfish in some areas. Other areas it is not advised to take and eat the shellfish because of pollution. So you really need to enquire locally before you start digging!

I think it is better to carry in your own food! Not a reliable source really, I guess you could eat lipids if you got too desperate.

Don't worry -- we'll have our usual dehy meals, just thought it might be a bit of a novel experience to try getting dinner from the beach. You've got some good point fruitbat, especially about the pollution...

Ive attempted getting dinner from a beach while tramping a couple of times. Fishing was great at Supper Cove on the Dusky track (caught 3 edible fish), but terrible at Long Harry Point on Stewart Island. Some Aussies I was with found enough rock mussels to steam at Long Harry to make a snack. I dug around for pipis at Mason Bay when the tide was out but found nothing. With all the trout in the streams you'ld have more luck with a fishing rod (you need a permit though!) then relying on shellfish.

If you have the spare time and some inventive techniques seafood gathering can be quite rewarding. Its all dependant on the area you are in. If I found we were were passing a rocky reef we would often carry some nylon line and an lod pair of tights. Hunt round for any shell fish in rock pools, crush open with a rock (mind your fingers). Put all crushed shellfish and a medium weighted rock into the tights and tieinto a loose ball with the line. Lower it over the rocks and sit back for a while. Crabs and sometimes even a legal sized crayfish are attracted and get all caught up in the nylon of the tights. Haul up every 20 min or and wallah there you have dinner, hopefully. Please remember if you do this keep save, have good footing, dont turn your back on the sea, and please only try this in a calm swell.

Your above technique is borderline illegal I suspect, from memory all traps need 'release holes'... A bunch of nylon does not meet that requirement. There is heaps to eat of same beaches, very little of others. Surf shingle beaches are unlikely to offer up much worth eating, after a big storm maybe but at other times no. Sand beaches can offer cockle and pipi beds. Rocky, stony coastline probably offer the best range of food. You could get Mussels, Paua, Cockles, Large Snails... There is heaps around.... I do not know if it is true or not but always been told it is best to only harvest shellfish which is below the surface at low tide. All shellfish gathering is best down at low tide. If you bring along a Rod it opens up a lot more options... But there are whole forums dedicated to fishing so not going into it in any detail here.

Sorry I'm a bit late but this info could be helpful to someone... Paua - quite often around your knees at low tide in winter -everyone searches far out and misses them. I always have some Zogg googles in my pack. Pretend they are mushrooms and cut and cook the same way and time Pipis etc - make sure you soak them for a day in fresh water or else you will be chewing sand. Simmer or fry few minutes. Mussels - don't need the soak from memory as they aren't in sand. Simmer/fry Seaweed - some seaweed is ready tasty i've read - would need to research Crabs - plenty of big crabs but you will need to put your head under and be quick and wear gloves. Boil for a few minutes