CHORUS: When the tide goes out, the table is set,
And the sea serves up her bounty bless'd;
Oh, come with me while the sand's still wet -
When the tide goes out, the table is set.

I know some people whose thinking gets stuck;
To them low tide means slime and muck.
But when I go there I'm prepared to...shuck
The oyster, the clam and the geoduck. [`goo-ey duck']

CHORUS:

Now go a little further, put your foot in the sea,
Then try wading out, say up to your knees:
There are crab and abalone, and even seaweeds;
Fix them up right, and they're bound to please.

CHORUS:

The driftwood fire is burning hot,
Drop your catch in the cooking pot;
C'mon everybody, find a place on a log,
Share a steaming bowl, and this grateful thought.

CHORUS:

I was born and raised by Georgia Strait;
She's a part of me and I share her fate.
And all this poison she just can't take;
We've got to stop it now, before it's too late, ['cause]

CHORUS:

FINALE: When the tide goes out, [When the tide goes out]
When the tide goes out, [When the tide goes out]
When the tide goes out, the table is set.

Alternative verse 5:
'Took my boots and shovel down to the sea,
To work the clamming tide, get a fam'ly feed;
But "The beach is closed," a sign decreed,
And these ancient words rang bittersweet:

A few notes from Brian:
Verse 5 is the original and is used by both SOTW and TSW {See notes about CDs} I often like to pluralize this verse as well: "Here we are by Georgia Straight, She's a part of us and we share her fate..."
I can really see this pluralized version being adapted willy nilly to other seaside places on the planet - it's easy to make up rhymes to specific bays, sounds, seas, etc.
Verse 4, the one about the driftwood fire is a later verse, and I tend to use it mostly now [including in my recording of it on Saltchuk Serenade], especially when I'm not specifically trying to get across an environmentalist message. Often I'll sing both verses [in this order] if the crowd seems to be into it.