Last low tide of the summer ahead in WA. Here’s where to explore:

Seattle Times staff reporter

Next week is your last chance to see tides low enough to harvest geoducks this summer, Seattle beach combers.

Tides will get below minus 2 feet Monday through Saturday, with the lowest lows of minus 2.9 feet coming Wednesday morning, July 23, and Thursday morning, July 24, according to a chart from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. That’s a good opportunity to harvest geoducks, along with clams and oysters.

The primo sea-critter exploring conditions only come a few times a year and can reveal not only the tasty shellfish, but also a variety of intertidal creatures such as starfish, anemones, crabs, sea cucumbers and jellyfish.

Low tides are the product of the earth’s tilt, its position in its orbit around the sun and syzygy — when the earth, moon and sun align, building up their collective gravitational pull.

We’ve been treated to a couple of rounds of the year’s lowest tides already. May 28 saw tides as low as minus 4.1 feet in Elliott Bay, bringing out tide pool fans to pursue the receded shoreline. June 25 saw tides as low as minus 3.9 feet while an overcast sky rolled in.

But 2.9 is the next best thing, right?

If you’re looking to comb some beaches next week, and could stand to be educated about the slimy, colorful creatures resting in Puget Sound, look out for volunteers with the Seattle Aquarium’s Beach Naturalist program.

Local experts will be stationed at beaches across the Seattle-area at certain times to teach tide poolers about sea creatures and how to explore the shoreline while keeping the animals safe.

Beach naturalists will show up at these parks:

Olympic Sculpture Park / Pocket Beach