Compo Crowds: There’s room for everyone

Yesterday, “06880” posted 2 photos from July 4th at Sherwood Island.

It was actually the I-95 Connector and exit ramp. Cars were parked all along the road, as well as on Greens Farms Road, as the state park parking lot was full by mid-morning.

Instead of giving up, hundreds of people carried umbrellas, chairs and coolers to shore.

(Photo/John Karrel)

They weren’t the only foreigners enjoying Westport Beach.

The Compo was also packed. The Parks and Recreation Department set a limited number of day passes to sell each day. They reached that number — 125, at $70 each — early and stopped any additional sales the morning of the holiday.

The lucky ones who were able to go headed to South Beach. They set up tents, spread out blankets, barbecued and enjoyed a great vacation with friends and family on a beach with plenty of amenities.

And lots of space.

It was a wonderful scene.

I walked the footpath from the kayak launch to the cannons in the mid-afternoon.

I saw people of all ages playing and swimming. I smelled delicious scents. I heard music and chatter.

Most of the content was not in English.

It was wonderful.

I was happy to see so many people enjoying our beach. They were there for the day and they made the most of it.

The rest of the beach, from the cannons to the wooden pavilion, was crowded, but not at all on the night of the fireworks. There was plenty of space all along Soundview.

I was pleased to see that the jewel of our city is so appreciated, by residents and by those who do not have regular access to a beach.

Welcome to Compo! (Photo/Ed Simek)

Not everyone shared my joy.

Social media was flooded with comments. Many were derogatory. Some were ugly. (The worst have thankfully been deleted.)

But some fought back.

One of the most powerful comments came from Dan Roberti. A 2000 graduate of Fairfield Prep (and before that, Kings Highway Elementary and Bedford Middle Schools), he spent his high school years as a lifeguard at Compo Beach (and Longshore and the YMCA), then returned to town in 2018 with his wife (Hilary Lister, Staples ’05), he wrote:

“After reading some negative reviews about Compo Beach, I want to share my overwhelmingly positive experience, say how grateful I am for Compo Beach, and thank all the city employees who work to make it a great experience.

“As a counterpoint to the complaints about out-of-towners in Compo, let me say that as a resident, I hit the nail on the head yesterday. I had a hard time finding a parking spot right on the beach between the cannons and the pavilion, after being greeted with friendly smiles and waves by several Parks & Rec employees at the entrance and checkpoint. (They no doubt spent a lot of time turning away out-of-town families, which certainly wasn’t easy.)

“Even though the beach was much busier than usual, my family had no trouble finding a comfortable spot in the sand for our chairs, umbrellas and toys. Our friends even had room to pitch a tent.

“It’s great to have a half-mile stretch of beach just minutes from anywhere in town that I have full access to, even on the busiest beach day in the country.

Sometimes, Compo Bach is packed. Often, it’s not. (Drone photo/Brandon Malin)

“The lifeguards, marine police and other emergency personnel did an incredible job keeping everyone safe yesterday (extra thanks to the massive effort on Tuesday night for the fireworks).

“I love being in a city that has a long history of being able to staff its beaches with lifeguards, when so many other beaches have been facing a shortage for decades.

“It was wonderful to see so many people, from the city and out of town, respectfully enjoying the beach yesterday. I saw families playing ball, sharing meals, building sandcastles, walking as far as the sandbars would allow them and discovering shells and crabs in the tide pools.

“It was really nice of the three older children on the playground who, after chatting amongst themselves about the amazing playground and how happy they were to have come to this fun beach today, noticed my 4 year old waiting to use the wheel of the boat they were playing on.

“It’s your turn, little guy,” they shouted happily as they ran to another part of the playground.

Children of all ages, from Westport and beyond, enjoy the Compo Beach playground.

“Yes, it’s true that on that very busy day, some things were inconvenient, like restrooms and concession stands (for a 90-minute period at the peak of the day). But everything went back to normal after that point.

“It was also a truly remarkable place to spend the day. And to think it was only an 8 minute drive from my house, and I spend most of my weekends at this incredible beach where the parking lot is more than half empty.

“And wow, what a job the Parks and Recreation maintenance crews do! The trash cans are emptied regularly; the beach is well maintained (as well maintained as a rocky New England beach can be!); the pavilion, boardwalk, basketball courts, skate park, marina, pickleball courts, picnic areas, and restrooms are clean and safe.

“What a great way to spend the 4th of July. Thank you to the many people who worked hard to make this possible!”

Thanks, Dan. We are so lucky to have Compo Beach right here in (almost literally) our backyard.

And for those lucky enough to find a spot outside of town on Thursday: I hope it was your best Fourth of July ever.

Yesterday, July 5, South Beach was back to “normal.” There were plenty of barbecues to go around. And Westport residents were back to reserving the unreservable picnic tables. (Photo/Dan Woog)