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Charlie Leddy, 3, of Fairfield, runs along the shore Wednesday at Penfield Beach in Fairfield.
Sitting alone in a beach chair, hat on, umbrella by her side, Mary Lou Fenick soaks in the first few days of beach season at Bridgeport's Seaside Park. For 60 years, Fenick has been loyal to Seaside and continues to appreciate what it has to offer.

"Thanks to P.T. Barnum, he made the stipulation that the park would be used for the public, otherwise someone would've swooped it up by now and put condos on it," Fenick said.

Although Fenick lives in Trumbull, she has seen Seaside through its reconstruction projects where a bathhouse and playgrounds were added. Besides sunbathing, Seaside is a great place for families to picnic on the weekends, she said.

"This beach has made a real comeback," Fenick said. "People don't appreciate it

BEACH GUIDE
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because of the area. I think the park is pretty secure. The crowd is more ethnic than it used to be with the influx of people coming into the area."

"There are grounds for soccer and baseball. Leagues and teams play down here," Fenick said. "This is probably the nicest beach around."

Seaside Park is just one of a number of area public beaches, each with something to please any type of beachgoer.

It's the quiet atmosphere at Sherwood Island in Westport that appeals to Kellie Finch and Derrick Kirkpatrick, both of Milford.

They said they like the beaches in Milford, but were looking for a change and ended up in Westport.

Sherwood Island, a 235-acre park, is open seven days a week and has multiple beach areas, food concession stands, bathrooms, showers and picnic tables. Pets are not allowed.

The big draw at Silver Sands State Park in Milford is Charles Island, Kirkpatrick said.

"You have the sandbar to the island, which is rare," he said. Legend has it that there's buried treasure on the island.

There's also a boardwalk at Silver Sands, as well as saltwater fishing. Swimming is also allowed.

But beachgoers should bring a picnic lunch. Unlike Sherwood Island and Seaside Park, there is no concession stand at Silver Sands.

Connecticut's beaches officially opened on Memorial Day, with little fanfare and little pedestrian traffic. But with the start of summer this week and schools letting out for the season, that will all change, said lifeguard Ryan Haight of Shelton.

"We know the numbers will increase," he said.

Haight works at Silver Sands and Indian Well State Park in Shelton. A shortage of lifeguards early in the season had Haight working up to 48 hours a week, he said.

"Not that many people want to do it anymore. We were short, but I think we may have just gotten what we needed," he said.

Dwaine Gardener, state Department of Environmental Protection spokesman, said all of Connecticut's public beaches and state parks are fully staffed and ready for the park season. Most area beaches have lifeguards, with the exception of Long Beach in Stratford.

"Sometimes we've had difficulty [with lifeguard recruitment]," he said, adding that an increased effort from the governor's office recently aided the recruitment process.

"The emphasis is to get the word out earlier so the state doesn't have to scramble to get lifeguards," Gardener said.