Look up northern California coastal diving and one is bound to find information regarding Abalone. This sea mollusk is the gourmet gastropod highly regarded and valued for its delicate flavor held in the large muscle that comprises the majority of the body and foot. Imagine a “sea snail” on steroids living in 40-50 degree pounding surf.  With its empathy for clinging to often impossible to reach locations, you can imagine the environment it lives in.

What do you need to catch this gourmet treat? The first thing you’ll need is a fishing license. The second most recommended item is a 7 mil full wetsuit complete with hood, boots, gloves and snorkel. State law states that abalone can only be taken free diving- diving as long as you can hold your breath. While holding your breath, use a slightly curved piece of flat metal bar, with its edges rounded and a band attaching it to your wrist. With your other hand fending off the urchin-covered rocks that the abalones inhabit, hold on to the kelp that the abalone feed on.  This will help keep you in the same area code during your trip some meters below sea level.

A gauge or caliper is also require as the minimum size cut - 7" in the case of the Red Abalone, the world's largest and the most prevalent in the northern California coastal area. Hang the gauge from your kayak, itself tied off to the kelp marking the location of the rocky bottom often just dozens or hundreds of yards from shore.

Be careful of the six to twelve foot swells that can reduce the visibility under water to mere feet. Just remember that if you can see your hand, you’re relatively safe.  

Under water, abalone often resemble the rocks they inhabit. They attach themselves with their giant foot. To identify abalone, look for a row of small holes that circle a portion of the shell's perimeter or a thin red rim of newly forming shell, which gives the Red Abalone its name.

Don’t let prying an abalone off a rock be a formidable effort. A simple practice in the kitchen will help you master the technique. To practice, place a dinner plate upside-down on the counter. Insert the tip of a knife under the lip of the plate. Lift the handle of the knife. The suction of the plate is broken and the plate is yours. While this technique is easy in the kitchen, it's no fun upside down at 30 feet. Practice at it in the comfort of your kitchen. This technique is really important as the abalone lack a clotting agent in their thin blood. If you stab, nick or cut them, they'll die. Because of this, it is very important that you make sure the abalone is the right size and that you can replace it on the bottom if it turns out to be too short. Frequent practice of the prying technique will help you also as the abalone like their existence in the murky water and often times will clamp down on the rock remarkably quick. So you thought this was a slow moving snail.

The limit for abalone in possession is three, with a yearly take of 24 permitted. The season opens the first day in April and ends the end of November. There is a breeding break in July, so pick them carefully and big.

Once you have selected your prize, work your way back to shore. It is very important to not become an integral part of the topography and celebrate your success on the beach. Never leave an indelible mark underwater. You will have a climb back to the car, but not commute to Shelter Coves’ Tides Inn. In your kitchen you can begin the process of removing the meat from the shell. Tenderize the meat into steaks and never forget the all-important act of garnishing the platter.