For thousands of years in western Washington, Native American tribes have lived on and harvested oysters and shellfish on Puget Sound, also called the Salish Sea, and coastal areas.

In the mid-1800s, shellfish farming began and was focused on the native Olympia oyster which was found in Willapa Bay and South Puget Sound. The industry revolved around the Olympia oyster reaching its peak in the 1890s and then crashed and by 1915, it was almost non-existent in Puget Sound. Happily, today Olympia oysters are a priority species for restoration efforts and over the years additional species have developed.

We invite you to experience Washington’s Oyster Trail for yourself from Blaine in the far north of the state, south through Puget Sound to the Hood Canal and over to Willapa Bay and the Long Beach Peninsula in the far southwest.

LEARN MORE: http://www.pacshell.org/washington.asp.