Essex & Westbrook | Connecticut

The Connecticut River Valley offers an enticing blend of history, culture, beautiful landscapes and nautical flavor that is always a treat for visiting yachtsmen.  In fact, one visit will show why this region has been named “one of the last great places” by the Nature Conservancy.   Here you will find quaint, colonial-era villages that are unspoiled by development and offer fine dining, art, eclectic boutiques and stunning vistas. Among them, a few miles up river from Long Island Sound, is the popular yachting destination of Essex, a scenic village that has been awarded by several independent public surveys as one of the 100 Best Small Towns in America.  Essex was founded in 1648 and was once a major shipbuilding center and port of call for steamboats, a tradition that continues with several highly rated marine services based here as well as downstream in the more developed area of Westbrook.  A trip up the Connecticut River Valley should definitely be on the list of any boat cruising in New England, as it provides a number of coves and inlets, such as Hamburg Cove and Selden’s Creek that should m not be missed.  The river is also easily navigable by relatively large ships as far as Hartford and offers several good marinas and shipyards along the way.