Hammonasset Beach State Park is located in Madison, CT. We arrived here on a cloudy, but sunny day,…read moreso the beach area wasn't super busy. For Connecticut residents admission is free. For non residents it can be as high as $22, per day depending on time of arrival and the day of the week. They had a substantial amount of campers and tents on the park side of the beach! They also have restrooms and showers. You can also find a snack and ice cream bar here. The walk to the beach from the parking was pretty short, since there's no boardwalk here. I found the sand to be pretty soft, the shells were the most prominent and the most aggressive the closer to the water. Unfortunately due to the wind and the cloudy sky, it was too cold for a swim. We used an SPF 70, and still walked away with a red back! The beach was clean and the water was clean. There were lifeguards on duty. I would return here again.

I love coming to this beach. It's close and convenient. The only downside is there are no waves…read more It's compared to that of a still lake. My favorite beach thus far has been West Beach with the pavilions due to the amount of parties and get-togethers I'm able to have in this area. Middle beach I rarely visit while Meigs point is more of a popular spot with the nature center.

A beautiful free quiet preserve along the inlet allows for gentle relaxing walking trails, and you…read morecan bring your dog. It's an 18 acre natural meadow that can be explored. This acreage overlooks the Indian River, marsh and Long Island Sound in the distance. It's a quaint little gem lots of parking, adjacent to the also free McCuster Landing, a small boat dock and cupola called McCusker Landing.

This was a nice shell beach and there was even a walkable maze. We spent about an hour here…read moreenjoying the beautiful view of the ocean on one side and the lagoon on the other.

Lots to learn! Very interesting experience for all ages. Awesome learning experience about the…read morewildlife and nature in our own state! Variety of animals and pictures to inform yourself about wildlife and how to preserve our planet

Going to a beach in CT was the reason we took our overnight trip. My husband and I have not been to…read morea beach in 15+ years mainly because of body image issues, and never wanted to run into people we know. This is the perfect spot. We actually felt liberated, and it was worth every penny. How do you get there? Go down past all the houses, and you will see a parking lot midway as you drive along the coast. Its $20 for non residents to park in the lot. This beach is small, with not much sand, but not very crowded. We enjoyed our time here as we didn't feel embarrassed, were far enough away from others and could just relax. The sand has many shells, tiny snails, and is quite shallow. When the tide is low you can sit way out, and watch all the little snails head towards the water. There is a little bbq hut incase you are feeling hungry. Our only disappointment is that we tried to come back here at night to just hang out, eat ice cream with a view of the water because the sign says the beach closes at 10pm, but the gates were closed up when we arrived around 9pm. We would definitely take a trip back here to feel comfortable, and pretend like it is our own private beach. Quite the opposite from the beaches on Long Island. Although tiny, well worth the privacy and relaxation.

A town with a…read more history from the sea The town of Clinton, Connecticut was founded in 1663 and is located about 25 miles east of New Haven. It's one of the smallest towns in all of Connecticut in terms of size and once contain the area of Killingworth to the north. Clinton is very much still a beach town and the population of around 15,000 more than doubles in size during the summer months with the influx of tourists. Clinton's history is closely connected to the sea. Shipbuilding, fishing and tourism has long been a part of Clinton. The shipbuilding and fishing have pretty much disappeared but tourism is still the main source of income. Even though it takes only about a minute to drive from one end to the other, you will see a fair number of antique shops and nice restaurants on Main Street. One the interesting things about Clinton is the absolutely huge variety of houses. For such a small area you can find multi million dollar mansions on the beach, cool old historic houses on Main Street, modest ranches in the north and even a couple of trailer parks. It seems every single house in Clinton is different. One of the things that you won't find unless you look very hard is the water. They keep that a secret and that is one of the problems. There is a town beach but that's in the harbor but it's frequently more mud than water. The real beach is on Shore Road and that is very private. Being private is fine but most other states in New England have some public access to the water, in Connecticut it's frequently difficult to even get a glimpse of it. I lived in Clinton for 15 years and over that time I have seen many changes. The street where we lived used to be a community, we had block parties, had a little grocery store and had people walking along the beach all the time. Everyone knew each other. Now the store is gone, the social events have stopped and people have become even more possessive of the water. Walls and fences, even through illegal, extend down from the beaches into the water. No trespassing signs have appeared. Many of the smaller homes and cottages along the beach have been replaced by huge, looming and impersonal homes. Quite a few were built during the housing boom and now have for sale signs. The arrow to time moves forward, you can never go back. Places have to change and frequently the changes aren't particularly pleasant. But I still have a modicum of hope that shoreline Clinton can go back and recapture the sense of community and closeness that it once had. We shall see. I have added old postcards of Clinton many years ago instead of any contemporary photos.

Beautiful, smooth bike trail through a wooded area that goes to Hammonasset Park and campground…read more I only wish it continued to the town of Madison as originally planned.

Great trail to run, bike and walk. The trail is not strenuous with little to no inclines. Shoreline…read moregreenway is kid friendly with plenty scenic views. It can smell during low tide, it's the price we pay for such beauty.

Went on a half day (morning) fishing trip with these guys. Had to get up and leave Boston wicked…read moreearly in the morning, but the captain suggested getting there for a morning run... Once we got out to the middle of the sound, it was NON STOP. There were four of us, and we must have reeled in at least 20 bluefish each. Didn't get any stripers, they are pretty outnumbered. The captain and mate do most of the work, all you really have to do is reel the fish in. I think you can take turns driving or preparing bait if you want. $550 for a half day (5 hours or so). Four of us was perfect. Bring beer, snacks, etc! Boat was great too, good condition, and the captain and mate know there stuff. Highly recommended!

Love fishing, and the mate was really helpfull.read more

I can't review the entire complex, but I am A Baileys Dog Park user. I have been coming every day…read morefor the past year, and I can't say enough about the socialization that occurs between large and small dogs. We have a small starting at 8 lbs and a large at 95 lbs. They all play together with the toys. Running back and forth. There is almost no aggression because the owners are on top of any sign of it. Our regular group comes at about 10 AM, and the owners are friendly. Go to Baileys Dog Park on Facebook for lots of pictures. The town has some great restaurants and near Hammonassett State Park