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Got the itch and left work early on Wednesday to go get some scallops. Put in at the lighthouse and everything was a success until we realized it was a really low, low tide at approximately dark. Had to drift, slow troll, and pole our way back to the hill. Luckily, we brought enough beer. Cleaned and kept the scallops on ice until they could be enjoyed on the 4th at a friend's poolside bbq.

Decided to give it another go on the 5th. Put in at TNT, thinking that the fort was closed and the lighthouse was full. Saw that the fort was open...it was a nice boat ride anyway. Made it out of the channel and headed east. Decided to go a little east of the scallop armada of which I was now a part. I'll tell ya, there is no better cure for a holiday hangover than some swimming and more beer. Collected the scallops in short order. Eased out to deeper, more lonely waters and fished for a minute. Caught two short trout, one on top-water and one on cut bait. 1st mate got into a shark and had a Spanish bite the lower half of a pinfish. Decided to head-in to beat the rush in the event of a storm. Besides, we had scallops to clean. 1st mate had never been up the wakulla so we rode to the upper bridge and went for a swim.

Its all fun and games until we get home, so I present to you the joy of scalloping:












...There has got to be a better way

There is.

Use a spoon.

Open the scallop by leaving the meat in the BOTTOM shell. When you do it right, the meat will be offcenter to the RIGHT of the shell.

Run the spoon around the base of the muscle and the guts will slip off like a sock leaving the meat in the shell.

Nice job B, yeah what Tom said go with the spoon much easier!

That's why I do my scalloping at the seafood market.

Glad y'all had a good time.

Another thing to help is to put them on ice. This helps open them up. It works better if they're ON ice, not IN ice.

They're still a pain in the butt to clean.

Bailey

To clean them after opening, try a ShopVac with an inch of sharp metal taped to the edge of the nozzle to cut off any tissue. Bleach the filter after.

cooler 1/2 full of fresh water, I chill it with ice jugs before dumping the scalllops in. Once scallops (just out of the saltwater) are dumped into the icey water, wait about 15 minutes (drink a beer). They will all be open and easy to clean with your scallop knife, similar to oyster knife, but curved at the tip.

Tom Keels wrote:There is.

Use a spoon.

Open the scallop by leaving the meat in the BOTTOM shell. When you do it right, the meat will be offcenter to the RIGHT of the shell.

Run the spoon around the base of the muscle and the guts will slip off like a sock leaving the meat in the shell.

Yep, figured that out after about scallop 20, though I didn't have a spoon. Funny you say slipping off like a sock. I had a different thought, Tom. I kept thinking the guts slipped off like a shirt (and I don't mean a dude's shirt).