How to Freedive for SCALLOPS in SoCal: Catch & Cook!

This is episode #4 in my new freedive series. This vid focuses on scallops in southern California. The series is aimed at teaching you some tips and tricks that I have picked up over the years while spearfishing and freediving California for a number of delicious wild foods!
If you are looking for a spearfishing or foraging guide, I am your man! catchncookca@gmail
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Here is the OG video that inspired us to make stuffed clams www.youtube.co....
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Shotgun: Remington 870 12 Ga
Elios custom wetsuit: Best wetsuits on the market and custom made (www.eliossub.com/)

[@snasty5]

As a SoCal native and new free diver these videos are absolutely fantastic and have fueled my passion. Thanks for doing these doc, and if you ever need a place to crash down here don’t be shy!

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

Thanks! I have a SoCal octopus vid for you coming soon! I am also thinking about guiding some entry level divers and some coastal foragers down that way soon as well if you know anyone who might be interested!

[@allen2oo3]

@@catchncookcalifornia1574 I'm in orange county and would def be interested in a beginners course.

[@thechokemaster]

@@catchncookcalifornia1574 I'm in San Pedro and definitely game for entry level free diving and foraging.

[@ronniesherpalee4150]

Of course another fantastic video Kevin. Bro I must share it’s been a game changer ever since. I try to do a lot of Ayurvedic cooking(food is medicine) but the first thing you learn is to make Ghee or Clarified butter. Best you can cook with, you can roast it AND it sits (for not to long) on the shelf unrefrigerated for month plus depending on your weather. Fantastic supposed to have a dollop a day for health. I will be sharing some recipes after I start getting on the water to. Got a spot for ya in Ventura as well…

[@cinemoriahFPV]

We always wore pigskin gloves to collect when I was a local.

[@minanada41]

Thanks for sharing! Your material is always informative and entertaining

[@benjovi7007]

thanks

[@Tog_Tastic]

Keep the old ways alive!! Good stuff man, nice scallops

[@vickyellis7887]

Hell yea brother see you out there

[@haroldtakahashi8875]

💛...yum...anticipation (carly simon)...looking forward to upcoming vids...

[@oryratoviz4355]

These videos are incredible, looking forward to seeing the next episodes

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

Thank you! Editing diving for a Dungeness crab catch and cook right now!

[@divinebluesky]

Those scallops look amazing!

[@StevenDelCastillo]

Thanks Dr. Kev! I’ve never free dove but looking forward to getting into this adventure in the future.

[@lu.v3420]

Thank you for this awesome video....mmm i can almost taste those scallops...take care and GB ❤🙏

[@JorgeRamirez-dh6qd]

Thanks for this Kevin, great info 👍🏼

[@jmgeidner]

Yum!!!🤪😉😎👍 I’m so looking forward to my retirement. When free time will be more plentiful. Definitely interested in sea food foraging.

[@desertfairychickres4021]

Amazing as always Kevin! Living in Tucson I wish we had even a thimble of what y'all enjoy. Many Blessings, K.T.

[@zeldanrj3]

I'm so excited to have you back Dr Kevin .. loving this series 🐚🦀🍄

[@rudysison9010]

Now that looks very yummy!!! I love Mushroom also..

[@tblazy3463]

Love rock scallops so fun to find!😁

[@JohnnyFish-y8g]

Nice and educational ! Thanks

[@rileyjones650]

Excellent work, thank you!

[@bobbyj1917]

Thank you for sharing!!!

[@KI-dc9ok]

Nice work Dr. K

[@Jenniferlsweet]

yummy!

[@youtubeuser3182]

I'm binging on your videos and I am smiling ear to ear brother! I have a pen and pad in front of me..taking notes..I can't wait to start diving and foraging! Back in August '23 I bought a good quality open cell suit, a riffe speargun, bag, snorkel/mask, knife and fins...all that and I only tried spearfishing once..it was kinda overwhelming. After watching a hand full of your videos..I've decided I need to start with a 3-prong hand spear and a kick board with a flag along with an orange rope with a pry tool like you have! I am so excited just thinking about it!

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

Right on! Be careful with those float lines though as they are very prone to entanglement and cary a sharp knife on your leg and practice using it! If you would like to come on a guided freedive-spearfishing outing with me to get the basics down, I will start guiding them again on the 24th. catchncookcalifornia.com for more details.

[@youtubeuser3182]

@@catchncookcalifornia1574 I just signed up to stay in the loop. I would love to join in on one of your guided adventures. I’m in SoCal

[@ItsChristina7]

Great video! I look forward to the day when I'm finally confident enough to give this a try myself. Those scallops look delicious :D

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

I hope you do give it a try! Freediving is incredible fun!

[@shinuizabusa2180]

Legend! Amazing food 🥰 much love from austria buddy.

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

Thanks!

[@Bmwqxtmop]

Always good stuff!

[@tbsbstrd521]

Ho Mr Kevin FINALY second itleast 😁

[@aimega860]

🔥🔥🔥

[@jrcdesigns9175]

Hey Kevin, you inspired me to go out and look for scallops in Malibu. Found a few, only managed to bring one home since the others were stuck on there solid and my bar was too flimsy. Watched your other video on octopus and was very jealous. I’ve never even seen one here but would love to get one. Any tips on finding them?

[@JohnnyFish-y8g]

Wow when did they change the legal length of the calico and sand bass ?

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

Maybe 10 years ago? It was 12" when I was doing my MA down there but I think it went up to 14" minimum right before I left to come back to NorCal for my PhD.

[@SirKibblestein]

Can’t get enough of these diving videos!

[@scottyplug]

Where is this? I wish you would share your actual locations so we could go try this ourselves.

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

It is my policy not to share exact locations as poachers absolutely watch KZbin and will ruin spots overnight. Any rocky reef in Southern CA will likely have scallops though, especially those with offshore wash rocks and tall pinnacles. Hope that helps!

[@jpcelestino5143]

Where was this in Socal?

[@smithh3196]

I'm not asking to give up specific spots, but I've been diving in San Diego for a couple years now. Do rock scallops come down this far south and I just don't know how to find them properly? Or are they more up north by LA and beyond. Again, not trying to hear specific spots but are you diving near LA or more north/south?

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

They are common all the way down into Baja. They are defiantly in San Diego. Look for larger offshore pinnacles with cracks and caves. If you still have trouble, I guide down in SoCal frequently and could do a guided scallop dive with you to show you the ropes.

[@joesgotya9930]

Are you diving a 7mm wet suit for SoCal?

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

Yes, but that is only because I only have one suit. Most folks use a 5mm suit down there. In the summer a 7mm does feel a bit warm down there, but I just pull down the hood and flush some sea water inside now and then to cool down when needed when I dive SoCal in summer. Most of my diving is in Nor Cal where a 5mm will work but a 7mm is much more comfortable, especially for a long dive.

[@user-dc1dr9kr8x]

Pacific scallops no swim around?

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

Pacific rock scallops are free-swimmers in their early stage of life. They settle onto the reef when they are so small that they would be barely visible to the naked eye. Then they cement themselves to the reef where they spend the rest of their lives filter-feeding until (if we are lucky enough) we invite them to dinner.

[@mathias3985]

Love the series! food looked amazing also! :D

[@dsavage8751]

Were you at the mission bay jetty?

[@Katarjana]

I always tell my friends that say they don't like to eat mushrooms to try some lion's mane. At least here in Seattle, we have a nice mushroomery that offers it at the farmer's market every sunday. Foraging and finding those honkers in the wild is a feeling you can't beat, though! : )

[@LostCoastLiving]

Perfect timing, I think one of the first things I want to find are scallops when I start diving. 🙂

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

One of my all time favorite CA wild foods!

[@broomstickcowgirl]

So infomitive and amazing!! Please keep them coming!

[@seanbreed8248]

Scallop pasta! Looks awesome. Is there a taste difference between the two types of scallops?

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

It was quite tasty! I have never noticed a difference in flavor between them. But they are definitely on my top five list of delicious wild foods here in CA!

[@h20bymotorcycle]

I love the sweetness of our scallops down here in SoCal. And that pasta is ridiculously good!

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

100% agreed!

[@h20bymotorcycle]

And those wavy turban snails are delicious too sautéed in butter and Italian herbs. Of course after tenderizing them.

[@happytam]

Alright Jun, ready for our next dive?

[@rigo9301]

video was dope bro! love watching your vids

[@benjaminerrico6760]

Way better than the cooking channel. Ty!

[@mdevil12]

Yes!! My favorite thing to dive for!!

[@SnackyChan42k]

These puns at the beginning make my day every time

[@BananaAfterlife]

What do you do about the fisherman on the jettys? do you just dive in the spots where they arent fishing?

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

That is a great question! I always get their attention first and let them know I am just passing them to be sure I do not entangle their gear. I try not to splash or disturb the water near them and then once passed them by about 20 yards or so I keep diving as I move further from them. They always seem happy with the gesture as we all go there for the same reasons: space and fishing. If they are snagged I offer to free the snag to save their tackle.

[@BDCF100]

I wore two small knives that had line cutters. One on my leg and one on my rleft upper chest.

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

Smart!

[@PacificCoastHunterz]

Good stuff, man! I gotta join you some time.

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

Please do!

[@richardso3226]

Amazing video Kevin! Definitely on my list to learn from you.

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

Thanks Richard! I've just started teaching the basics of diving again for folks who have no experience. You will see a synopsis at the end of the crabbing and fishing vid I am about to drop if you are curious.

[@sandcrab805]

Another interesting video thanks for producing this . Of course there are a couple of things that I differ in opinion on, being a diver and all.....Because you are only eating the muscle and not the guts like you do with Other Filter feeders notably musssles you can take and eat them even During a red tide when other filter feeders are not safe to eat. Also You Can eat the lips on a scallop as they are also a muscle and not part of the viscera that has toxins. There's not that much meat in the lips but on a good sized scalp there's a nice strip of it and if you get a limit or even half a limit it does add up. A knife on the leg is also not without its drawbacks. A hot fish can also become entangled Or circle around your legs and pull you down. Julie riffe gave a talk at our dive club and showed a video of a diver being pulled into the depths by a shooting line that had become tangled around the knife on his calf and he could not Easily free it. I carry 2 knives. 1 on My game bag on the right hand side and one on my weight belt on the left hand side. If you ever Do become entangled and either your shooting line Or Mono filament and you have to cut your way free it's not unusual to have an Awkward grip and drop one of your knives. I also would take exception to your description that any knife will do and that even diving with the sharpened butter knife is fine. Try cutting your Mono Filament on your shooting line with your dive knife and see if you think that that's such a good idea. I use the 400 pound mammomi Is flores and yellow And you need a good sharp knife preferably Fully serrated in order to get through that stuff. Additionally the 804 stainless that most kitchen silverware is made out of is extremely soft and will bend easily. When I used to carry my dive knife on my leg I lost several of them. I haven't Lost one since I started carrying them on my waist and this makes me less hesitant about Purchasing and carrying a high quality knife

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

Fair points. Thanks for chiming in. There are also occasional plankton blooms that are toxic enough to even make the white meat of clams (and even scallops) unsafe for human consumption. I agree that they are usually safe year-round but people should still call the biotoxin hotline first just to be sure.

[@sandcrab805]

@Catch N Cook California Thanks for that info. I didn't know that it could also contaminate the muscles of the bivalves. I Was wondering about the contamination of the muscles of the scalops from a place like a jetty wall and a Harbor. I was wondering if heavy metals or that kind of thing could build-up in them, although I'm sure you're not eating that many scallops from there. A number of years back I had some of the mussles the Gaviota coast, that I was feeding a lot up to my family tested for heavy metals. They were clean . In the process I learned that some of the most contaminated shellfish comes from areas where there's a seal hall out or rookery, Because of the heavy metals that concentrate in their stool, and then are further concentrated in the filter feeders of the area. I love your channel and all the information that you provide. I've been watching you since way back, and even made a stone bowl once after watching your video on how to do so

[@k4x4map46]

delish!!

[@catchncookcalifornia1574]

It certainly was!