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Sherwood Island

Location

Westport, CT

Anchor Site(s)

Sherwood Island State Park

About the Site

Purchased in 1914, Sherwood Island is Connecticut’s first state park. Its 234 acres are divided into a distinct east side (including a sandy beach, tidal marsh, nature trail, and the popular model airplane field) and west side (hiking trails, picnic tables, marsh, and forest). The division between these areas is Sherwood Point, a rocky area popular for fishing and viewing boats across the New York City skyline, which is also the site of Connecticut’s official 9/11 Living Memorial. The park’s nature center, open late spring through early fall, is a state-of-the-art facility featuring interactive displays, outdoor education programs, and free weekly lectures and special events.

Ecological Importance
  • You can find three different types of sand on the beach — garnet which has a red color, magnetite which has a black color, and quartz which has a white color. The waves tend to separate the sand by type. 
  • The park consists of dunes, meadows, forests, and saltmarsh which provide many different habitats for wildlife viewing.  
  • A colony of Purple Martins nests outside of the nature center. 
  • Birdwatching on the island is possible in all four seasons! Keep an eye-out for year-round birds, migratory birds, and in the colder months, watch for different species of ducks. 
Recreational Opportunities
  • Catch a striped bass while fishing from the shore outside of designated swim areas.
  • Relax on the sandy beaches or picnic areas.
  • Before you visit, review the map of the park’s trails and facilities.
  • Launch your canoe or kayak at the boat launch at the far west end of West Beach that provides access to Mill Creek at the far east end of the park and a paddle through the beautiful Mill Creek saltmarsh.
  • Bring binoculars and a birding guide to identify birds and visit the observation deck on the east side of the marsh behind West Beach to get the best panorama views of the marsh.
  • Visit the nature center (open late spring through early fall) to engage in nature walks, outdoor activities, animal interactions, and engaging displays of the area’s human and environmental history. Private programs are available for schools, camps, family reunions, birthdays, scouts, and other groups as requested.
Dive Deeper
  • Friends of Sherwood Island
    The Friends of Sherwood Island website is the perfect resource for news on upcoming events, the park’s history, learning tools, internships and exciting volunteer opportunities. Explore the island’s many bird species through professional photo galleries and firsthand birding diaries that span 14 years!
  • Check out the eBird page for Sherwood Island State Park to see what species have been seen in the area. When you’ve finished, add you own sightings from your visit. 
  • Watch a video on the Purple Martin colony at Sherwood Island from the Friends of Sherwood Island’s YouTube channel. 
Places to Visit
  • The 9/11 Living Memorial is Connecticut’s official memorial for those from the state who lost their lives in the tragedy on Sept. 11, 2001. On that date, crowds at Sherwood Point watched from across the Sound as smoke clouded the New York City skyline. The gathering spot is now marked by a large black cherry tree, which watches over the memorial.
  • The Sherwood Island Nature Center opened in spring 2009 after dedicated fundraising and organizing by Friends of Sherwood Island and CT DEEP (see a slideshow of the construction here). It features dozens of displays of local wildlife, educational exhibits, an internship program, and speakers and events that are always free to the public. Check its website to decide which events to explore, and remember that it is only open during the spring and summer every year.
  • Visit Earthplace, a science education center in Westport, Connecticut. The center has different animal demonstrations throughout the day, as well as an animal hall. They also manage a 62-acre wildlife sanctuary that is open to the public from dawn to dusk.  
  • Check out the costal access guide before visiting for information on parking and directions.
Get Involved/Events
  • The Friends of Sherwood Island page features an up-to-date events list and always welcomes new members and volunteers. It also manages a Flickr photostream with pictures of the park and related activities and conferences.
  • The Sherwood Island Nature Center seeks out high school-aged interns to work at the facility every summer; contact the center director for details.
  • The CT DEEP web page provides directions to the park, a historical overview, information on facilities, and other useful links.
Field Notes
  • The Park closes at dusk daily.
  • Print out CT DEEP’s portable map of trails and facilities at Sherwood.
  • Dogs are prohibited between April 15 and Sept. 30 every year; contact the park office for details on these restrictions.
  • Swimmers are recommended to wear water shoes to protect against sharp rocks and shells.
  • The nature center is closed for half of the year, from Memorial Day through spring, while the park and beach are open year-round. When in season, the center is open Wednesday-Sunday 10am to 4pm.
  • Be sure to check CT DEEP’s shore fishing guidelines before going fishing at the park.
Credits
  • A Visit to the Purple Martins Colony – Milan Bull and Tina Green. Youtube.com/watch?v=scq4jGwOXSI. Friends of Sherwood Island. Web. July 9, 2021. 
  • Friends of Sherwood Island State Park. Friendsofsherwoodisland.org/. Friends of Sherwood Island. Web. July 9, 2021. 

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Did You Know?
  • Sherwood Island is one of the most popular state parks in CT.
  • Sherwood Island is technically an island due to the small tidal creek separating the beach from the mainland.
  • The CT State Park Commission’s first property purchase (back in 1914) was Sherwood Island.
  • In the 18th and 19th centuries, some of the existing parkland this land was used as farmland to grow onion and potatoes, but their specialty was kiln-dried corn meal. 

Sherwood Island

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Lisa Jarosik, right, a dive volunteer at the Maritime Aquarium, places trash collected on the beach at Sherwood Island in a bucket held by Bridget Cevero, education manager at the aquarium. Among the items the pair picked up were flip-flops, several tubes of lip balm, large pieces of confetti and a cement trowel. Credit: Judy Benson (CT Sea Grant).
Several members of the Y’s Men, a retired men’s association in Westport and Weston, were among the more than 25 volunteers who joined the cleanup at Sherwood Island. Group members walk at the park twice a week. Credit: Judy Benson (CT Sea Grant).
Logan Stollenwerck, left, and Zacharie Aldrich, both volunteers at the Maritime Aquarium of Norwalk, were among the more than 25 volunteers who participated in the cleanup at Sherwood Island State Park in Westport to kick of the #DontTrashLISound - #DoOneThing campaign. Credit: Judy Benson (CT Sea Grant).
The marsh trails are dotted with informational signs about wildlife you might spot when looking over the marsh. Credit: Sibel Güner.
Sand dunes are fenced off to protect their habitat from human interference. Credit: Sibel Güner.
This beach is a popular place to relax, and draws a crowd even on stormy days. Credit: Sibel Güner.
The west side of Sherwood features a beach popular for boating and fishing. Credit: Sibel Güner.
The Nature Center has many animal displays and interactive exhibits; this unusual two-tailed horseshoe crab is used to help explain theories of evolution. Credit: Sibel Güner.
Non-motorized, car-top, boat launching is available on the west side. Credit: Sibel Güner.
Sherwood Island Park has hundreds of picnic tables for family and friends to enjoy. Credit: Sibel Güner.
This foot bridge over a mosquito ditch, constructed in the 1940s, was a failed attempt to control mosquitos. Credit: Sibel Güner.
Enjoy a pleasant nature walk through the woods on Sherwood's west side. Credit: Sibel Güner.
Signage at the observation deck helps visitors appreciate the wildlife in this rich habitat. Credit: Sibel Güner.

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