Hama Hama® Oyster Blog

This bobcat was spotted in the Hood Canal uplands earlier this week. Bobcats have nothing to do with oysters, but they are pretty cool, and they do occasionally visit the salt water.

As we watch our shiny-new shucking and retail facility grow bigger and better every day, we thought we’d take a moment to honor the small, funky, and frequently dilapidated oyster shacks that line Hood Canal’s beaches.

The first building featured in this series is the Union oyster shack, located at the mouth of the Skokomish River. We’re guessing it’s been a while since any oysters were shucked in this building, which is currently abandoned, but has been used in the past as an art gallery.

We took these photos on an oyster-colored day.

This empty building may have the best view on the Canal.

An elk herd makes its living in the Hama Hama valley, and when the elk graze in the salt meadows near the highway they cause quite a traffic ruckus. But they’ve never before been seen around the seafood complex.

Eagle-eyed Jesse noticed these elk tracks in the parking lot the other morning. We promise that we’re working on our photography skills, and will remember to include something in future photos to give the viewer a sense of scale. In the meantime you’ll have to make do with tire tracks (top photos) and fir needles (bottom photo) to get an idea how how big an elk footprint is.

Rumor has it that the elk also made a visit to downtown Eldon. Probably on a garden raid.

The elk in question are Roosevelt Elk. Here’s a closeup photo of one:

And here’s a group of them feeding on the Hama Hama delta.

Remember to slooowww down when driving across the estuary, as the elk do occasionally cross the road. (To get to the salt water.)

For Christmas, we wish the following:

1. That it doesn’t get so cold that the oysters and clams freeze to death out on the tideflats.

2. That it snows enough so that we can go cross-country skiing.

One night in early December, 2007, 8 inches of snow fell on the Hood Canal area, with bigger accumulations up in the high country. Then, overnight, the temperature jumped up 20 degrees and it rained 11 inches. The next morning Highway 101 was a complete disaster. There were 15 mudslides, like the ones pictured below, between Hama Hama and Hoodsport, and the road was closed for two weeks.  

Many of our neighbors had their homes destroyed by mud and water, and tragically one young man died when a mudslide came through his bedroom wall.

We’ve been celebrating fall by giving away deliciously tart and pesticide-free locally-grown apples.

Watch the sun set over the Olympic Mountains from anywhere in the world at Dr. Dale’s webcam. (Or check the webcam on a rainy February day and be glad you don’t live here). The webcam looks across Hood Canal towards Brinnon, a small town located about 20 minutes north of the oyster farm. Although the oyster farm itself isn’t in the picture, on the left of the webcam screen you can see the peaks of The Brothers and the headwaters of the Hamma Hamma river.

Dr. Dale’s map of the view from his webcam:

Our friends Rita and Jamie from Wyoming Aero Photography stopped by a month or so ago and took these amazing shots of Hood Canal and the Hama Hama tideflats. All photos by Rita Donham.

Hood Canal, looking north.

Hama Hama tideflats from the north.

Hama Hama tideflats from the south. The cluster of buildings on the left of this photo contains the shucking plant, the wet-storage building, and the retail store.