Thought I would share some pictures of Neall harvesting oysters...most people think that they are either dredged or tonged but diving is utilized by a small number of watermen here on the bay...not exactly the safest way but there has to be a lot of trust between the diver and the captain.

Never ate one but some folks like them.

Bet those are some tasty...right out of the basket

Nice!

How deep do you have to go to harvest oysters? Are you harvesting them commercially or for personal use? I don't know a thing about harvesting them, so I find this post quite interesting.

They are delicious!!

Don't know the Chesapeake or that commercial rearing but in the gulf there are places you can walk out from the beach to get to oysters bars and harvest by hand.

Stew with lots of meat for me please.
And those little round crackers.
EEEEYum

That is neat being I used to pick shell I can appreciate whats involved. I also like oysters evey so often.

Mac

They harvest them with a long rake so maybe 6 to 8 ft.

He doesn't dive deeper than 30'...he usually stays around 15'....he is a commercial waterman...weather, water temp and currents are the enemy.

The hand (shaft) tongers usually are 15'-20' long....that is some hard work.

Thank you for the information.

Love them, bet they are real good. Cold and salty!

Rob & Neall, I have gotten the “ salt shakers”. That ‘s what the box said. A buddy Jerry Weikle from York Co PA used to make a long run to bring a few boxes back. You familiar with the salt shakers?

Dive oysters are the best for selecting from shuckers, selects, and large for frying and are generally hand-picked cleaner! :-)

These are dive's.

The “salt shakers” in this area are oysters harvested from the Chincoteague Bay Area…mostly farmed but wild are harvested as well…Chincoteague Bay has a higher salinity and this makes the oysters more desirable in some markets.

Commercial is the future of oysters. Apalachicola is closed to harvest until the end of the year minimum and has been closed the last four years. Alabama has instituted strict harvest regs. Meanwhile commercial leases have grown.

Wild catch is starting to wane from the heydays of the 70s and 80s….Aquaculture is starting to take over (oyster farming) and the over-regulation by the Peoples Republic of Maryland is pushing the commercial out of business.