BHG Oyster Farms at First Encounter Beach

BHG Oyster Farms at First Encounter Beach Follow the BHG (Big Hairy Guy's) journey of starting and building a new OYSTER GRANT at First Encounter Beach in Eastham, Mass.

Man it is HOT out there! ☀Just a reminder, it's Vibrio Season! ⚠⚠⚠That oyster sitting on the sand is probably at 90°F an...
06/12/2026

Man it is HOT out there! ☀
Just a reminder, it's Vibrio Season!
⚠⚠⚠

That oyster sitting on the sand is probably at 90°F and the vibrio load tripled in an hour just sitting there as the tide went out. ⚠

Let it be.
It's closed season for recreational and commercial harvest, except for Aquaculture.

We have strict harvest protocols that are in place and instead of one tide of work for harvest, it requires 2 tides of work to harvest safely under state and federal sanitation guidelines!!!

It also requires a fast moving clock and rapid access to and from the grant. 🔴🔴🔴

It's time and temperature dependent and exposure to air is a major factor.

Shallow water heats up fast.
Exposure to air heats up fast.

We have to have commercial volumes of ice on hand to stop the growth of vibrio.

So if you see an oyster laying around, leave it.

You may think "FRESH" but Fresh doesn't equal SAFE.

PS tides for this weekend.

Wishing the BHG a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY Monday! 💛💛💛🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀
06/01/2026

Wishing the BHG a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY Monday! 💛💛💛
🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀

Memorial Day Monday. Appropriately quiet with cold gentle rain. Freedom and fighting for rights comes at a great cost. T...
05/25/2026

Memorial Day Monday.
Appropriately quiet with cold gentle rain.
Freedom and fighting for rights comes at a great cost.

Tides and notes on handling Horseshoe Crabs which are mating in our local waters along the shore.

After 3 months of March we are now facing Memorial Day next weekend. Warm temps next week. New Moon this weekend 🌕 makes...
05/16/2026

After 3 months of March we are now facing Memorial Day next weekend.

Warm temps next week.

New Moon this weekend 🌕 makes for good working tides.

I have 3 experimental Quahog boxes out there. The first one sanded in and everything died last year. It now has natural ...
03/31/2026

I have 3 experimental Quahog boxes out there.
The first one sanded in and everything died last year. It now has natural spat growing in it.

The second one was exploding at the seams last Fall and was just about to be legal for harvest.
That batch froze and was bulging out of it's box. I scraped the top few inches of death out and covered it back up last week.

The third box I checked on yesterday. The winds have been ripping the past few days, week etc and it was getting sanded in since the day before.

I scraped off the layer of sand and was surprised with an orchestra of spitting and siphon retreats!
Clearly something survived this winter.

I usually only empty and replant the boxes on days I can wade out and have some water to work with for rinsing and screening and replanting.

It will be a while.

That's all the news on the Quahog experiment for now.
(Our area is extremely dynamic and high in predators so I have been trying to figure out a way to solve this.)

The farm is filling back up. This winter was so harsh. A LOT of death and carnage. Death both on what was left on the fa...
03/30/2026

The farm is filling back up.
This winter was so harsh.

A LOT of death and carnage.
Death both on what was left on the farm (sanding in, freezing, and also the water temps being still warm enough to breathe in sand and die) and in cold storage.

Cold storage was too cold. We had below freezing temps for months. Don't ask. 😭

Quahog experiment that was facing their 3rd year and potentially a success, died from the ice and smothering. So close yet so far away. 🆘

Mad rush for removing gear for an unusually cold winter, that never let up. The flats were not safe to get out on until March.

It's the last days of March and it's 41° which is finally warm. 🍀

Good news: Bill the seagull is back with his fancy new plumage.💛 Somehow he survived this dangerous winter! I think he hangs out at Rock Harbor during high tide.

Anyways, tides are creeping up in the late afternoon sunset tides.

We don't have to wait a week, morning tides are showing up with all the extra daylight!💛

We just have to wait and see what sinks or swims after this winter. 🙏

Morning low tides. Spring. 🍀
03/20/2026

Morning low tides.
Spring. 🍀

I experimented with a.i. to see if it can do what I normally do with the tide chart. Not quite up to par. Think I will s...
03/14/2026

I experimented with a.i. to see if it can do what I normally do with the tide chart.
Not quite up to par.
Think I will stay with analog!

⬛A.I #2
Here are the *partial* low tides that fall within the shell‑fishing window (½ hour before sunrise to ½ hour after sunset) for Sesuit Harbor, East Dennis, starting March 14, 2026:

1. *March 14*:
- Low tide *2:47 PM* (1.2 ft) – _partial_ sunset 6:46 PM).

2. *March 15*:
- Low tide *3:38 PM* (0.9 ft) – _partial_ sunset 6:47 PM).

3. *March 16*:
- Low tide *4:24 PM* (0.5 ft) – _partial_ (between sunrise 6:50 AM and sunset 6:48 PM).

4. *March 17*:
- Low tide *5:07 PM* (0.1 ft) – _partial_ (between sunrise 6:49 AM and sunset 6:49 PM).

5. *March 18*:
- Low tide *5:24 AM* (0.1 ft) – _partial_ (½ hr before sunrise 6:47 AM).
- Low tide *5:48 PM* (–0.3 ft) – _partial_ (within ½ hr after sunset 6:50 PM).

6. *March 19*:
- Low tide *6:09 AM* (–0.5 ft) – _partial_ (½ hr before sunrise 6:45 AM).
- Low tide *6:30 PM* (–0.5 ft) – _partial_ (within ½ hr after sunset 6:52 PM).

7. *March 20*:
- Low tide *7:12 AM* (–0.6 ft) – _partial_ (½ hr before sunrise 6:44 AM).

8. *March 21*:
- Low tide *7:40 AM* (–1.3 ft) – _partial_ (½ hr before sunrise 6:42 AM).

9. *March 22*:
- Low tide *8:28 AM* (–1.4 ft) – _partial_ (between sunrise 6:40 AM and ½ hr after).

10. *March 23*:
- Low tide *9:19 AM* (–1.2 ft) – _partial_ (between sunrise 6:39 AM and ½ hr after).

11. *March 24*:
- Low tide *10:15 AM* (–0.9 ft) – _partial_ (between sunrise 6:37 AM and sunset

There's still some oysters on the farm but they are sanding in. Also, the Quahogs were spitting yesterday. That means th...
03/01/2026

There's still some oysters on the farm but they are sanding in. Also, the Quahogs were spitting yesterday. That means the water and air and sunshine is enough to say WAKE UP!
That means we have to push even harder to get infrastructure rebuilt and out of the sand and get the hibernation livestock back into the field.
Usually Valentine's Day is the kick off for getting the farm in order.

If only the tides were on our side. 🌕
We are heading into sunset/ post sunset tides mixed with warm weather.
This can lead to death of oysters if sanded in.

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1699 Samoset Road, First Encounter Beach
Eastham, MA
02642

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