A splendid time was had by all when the East Hampton Town Trustees held their annual Largest Clam Contest on the grounds of the Amagansett Life-Saving and Coast Guard Station Museum on Saturday.
The contest, a family-friendly celebration of the Bonac tradition of clamming, also included a clam chowder competition. It had been postponed from Oct. 4 due to the more than three inches of rain that fell during the late September nor’easter. This prompted the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to close Three Mile Harbor, Hog Creek, Accabonac Harbor, Napeague Harbor, and Lake Montauk to the harvesting of shellfish.
The rescheduled contest, now coinciding with the Chowdah Chowdown at the Springs Tavern and Montauk’s annual Fall Fest, which also featured a clam chowder contest and tastings, was consequently less crowded than it might otherwise have been, to the delight of those attending. Clams on the half shell, clam chowder, barbecued meats, corn on the cob, and ice cream were in abundant supply.
John (Barley) Dunne, director of the town’s shellfish hatchery, manned a live marine animal exhibition. The Lynn Blue Band provided music, and the East End Classic Boat Society displayed and sold tickets for their raffle boat, a Jimmy Skiff built by the society, the drawing for which will be held at the group’s annual open house on Dec. 5.
Students from the East Hampton Middle School served as volunteers at the contest, and the trustees sold merchandise, the proceeds of which benefit their scholarship fund, which the governing body voted this year to increase from $1,500 to $3,000, awarded to an East Hampton High School senior.
The Largest Clam Contest, David Cataletto of the trustees told the gathering, is “a tradition that brings our community together to celebrate something that has provided for the people here for hundreds of years — our waters and the incredible life found beneath them.” The trustees, he said, “are one of the oldest continuously functioning governing bodies in America. Our story officially begins in 1686, when Governor Thomas Dongan, acting under King James II of England, issued what became known as the Dongan Patent.” The document established the trustees as the town’s governing body and gave them responsibility for the common lands, beaches, harbors, ponds, marshes, and waterways.
“For the English settlers, the trustees helped manage the common resources the people depended upon,” Mr. Cataletto, a teacher at the middle school, said. “The bays provided fish and shellfish. The marshes provided salt hay. The beaches provided transportation and access to water. These aren’t just beautiful landscapes, they were the lifeblood of the community, and incredibly, 350 years later, the trustees are still here, although our responsibilities have changed.”
Today, he said, the nine elected trustees work to protect waterways, beaches, wetlands, and marine ecosystems. “We help safeguard public access to the water, protect fragile shorelines, preserve shellfish habitat, and maintain the natural resources that make East Hampton such a special place. That’s really why today’s Largest Clam Contest is about more than just finding the biggest clam, because a healthy clam is a sign of something much bigger: a healthy bay.”
Shellfish, eelgrass beds, and salt marshes are all connected, he added. “Protecting one means protecting the entire ecosystem. And these waters face challenges that our predecessors in 1686 could hardly ever imagine: pollution, warming waters, harmful algae blooms, coastal erosion, and increasing pressure from development. But the fundamental responsibility remains the same. These waters don’t belong to just one generation, they belong to all of us here and to the generations that follow. We are temporary caretakers of an incredible resource, something much older and much more important than ourselves. We want our children and our grandchildren to be able to dig clams, catch fish, swim in clean bays, walk on beaches, and enjoy the same natural beauty that we’ve enjoyed.”
Finally, the winners were announced and prizes awarded. Chris Hake’s remarkable estimate of 195 seedling clams in a jar, provided by the shellfish hatchery, was the closest to the actual count of 196.
The clam chowder competition was “a hotly debated contest” among the judges — Councilman Tom Flight, Hugh King, the town’s historian, and Assemblyman Tommy John Schiavoni, Mr. Cataletto said. Narihira Kishi was the winner among the New England-style entrants. “I heard it was delicious,” Mr. Cataletto said. Jim Sullivan took top honors in the Manhattan-style chowder category.
In the junior category, for children ages 4 to 11, Narihira Kishi earned a second prize for his 11.2-ounce clam harvested from Three Mile Harbor. Sophie Yang’s 12.1-ounce entry was the largest harvested from Hog Creek in the youth category. Theo Cataletto’s entry, an 8.9-ounce clam harvested from Accabonac Harbor, rounded out the junior category winners.
“Now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for,” Mr. Cataletto said. “This is the senior category.” Jackie Smith’s 14.8-ounce clam from Hog Creek was that water body’s largest. From Lake Montauk, Brad Behrins’s 14.7-ounce contestant was the winner. Clint Bennett Sr. was the winner for his 1-pound, 14-ounce clam, the largest harvested from Three Mile Harbor. And from Accabonac Harbor, Dennis Curles, a docent at the museum, won with his 1-pound, 4-ounce clam from Accabonac Harbor.
“Finally, drum roll please,” Mr. Cataletto said. “From Napeague Harbor, 2 pounds, 5.3 ounces — what? — Demetri Sopkiw!”
Mr. Cataletto encouraged all in attendance to enter next year’s Largest Clam Contest.
