As Peter waked along the water's edge, he felt relaxed and happy. It was so peaceful here and the only sounds made were those by the seagulls circling overhead and the gentle lapping of the waves on the shore. He waded into the water and found several smooth rocks of the ideal size. He carried them expertly to the spot his father had indicated to him earlier where the seafood was going to be cooked. Peter dug a shallow pit and arranged the rocks in it.
After that he went to help his cousins to gather clams. The tide was low and it was the perfect time to do that. He waded into the muddy water and felt around the bottom of the bay with a bare foot. When his foot touched something that felt like a small rock, he would pull it out. Sometimes it was a clam and it would end up in the basket. If it were a rock, Peter would throw it into the deep part of the bay so that he would not be tricked again. When the basket was full, Peter put it in the shade to keep it cool.
Next, he had to dig for another type of clam. Peter scrutinised the sand to look for air holes. When he saw a small fountain of water shooting out of one of the holes, Peter used a pitchfork and dug in the sand. Then he scooped the clam one by one out of the sand. When another basket was full, there were numerous holes all over the bay. The children washed them in the warm water to get rid of the sand.
The children decided to go for a swim before attending to the next task, that of gathering the rockweed. By then the tide had come in and water washed over the holes on the sand.