NY Times: Connecticut’s Quiet Coast

Sunset on Hammonasset Beach Madison, Connecticut

Photo: Hammonasset State Park, by Jan Nelson

For those of us who live here, we understand the breath of beauty and peacefulness our part of the Connecticut coastline offers.

Some visitors stumble upon it just getting from point A to B, others hear through word of mouth, and some, like reporter Amy Thomas from the New York Times, revisit their childhood memories. The Madison EDC is delighted to share her article.

Published by the New York Times
“On Connecticut’s Quiet Coast”
July 19, 2012
Reporter Amy Thomas

“WHEN New Yorkers dream of escaping the city in the steamy summer months, the Hamptons, the Catskills and the Berkshires are the kinds of places that usually come to mind. For others, it is the Jersey Shore. But few think about the Connecticut coast, which is generally seen as a commuter’s domain, not a vacation spot. Except for me. I am having a renewed love affair with my home state….”

“…The stretch along Route 1 from Guilford to Old Saybrook is one of my favorites. Roll down the window, get a whiff of salty air and feel your tires ripple over the steel drawbridges that cross the inlets and marshlands. Canoes flit along tributaries, and cruisers and sailboats decorate the Sound. You may want to hit the state’s largest public beach, at Hammonasset State Park.

Beyond the maritime influence, what makes this drive so distinctly Connecticut is the mix of antique and bric-a-brac stores, 17th-century homes and cemeteries, ice cream stands and book barns. There are bait-and-tackle shops, and farm stands selling strawberries and squash. Town centers — like the one in Madison, where you’ll find the beloved independent bookstore R. J. Julia — are lined with American flags. Roses poke their heads through white picket fences while lush oaks and elms and the occasional purplish orb of a massive copper beech collide beautifully with the blue summer sky. It is small-town America at its best.

To Read the full article by Amy Thomas, please visit The New York Times Travel Section on line.