Can Summer Possibly Be Over?

I know that Labor means the End of Summer for most although we all also know that the Autumn Equinox on September 23rd is the official end and turning point into the new season. Labor Day Weekend followed the Irene Hurricane Weekend so walking the beaches was a MUST!

Early Saturday morning I awoke to see the sky turning pink...red sky in the morning, sailors take warning? I worried that the day would become dismal so I got out and down to the Seawall in time for a spectacular sunrise. A lone fisherman and virtually not another single soul. So peaceful...

The next walk we took was a very long one! 5.5 miles out and around Pleasure Beach. We tried our best to NOT look for seaglass on the way out knowing our destination and how far we wanted to travel. Pleasure Beach extends into Bridgeport Harbor and partially encircles it. This is a gem, a place that once was a thriving industrial seaport and this stretch above was once a destination spot for many!

The old McLeevy pier at Pleasure Beach looks directly across the harbor to an old Lighthouse! It is in center of this photo...a small black and mostly ignored icon of Bridgeport's past. I have loved this little unknown beacon for years. Not sure many people have noticed it or have any idea it exists! I will write about this again soon!!! With the nickname Bug Light, you can't NOT want to know more.

 The seaglass I found on my trip around Pleasure Beach and into Bridgeport Harbor was unique! There were very large pieces...and a few with identifying letters. As you can see, the "Cola" was an old Coca Cola bottle but the "DJC" Jersey City piece I will have to investigate. The hurricane may have brought up some bigger, older pieces from the harbor depths. What else lies beneath?

Even when I am working I have to acknowledge the End of Summer or the beginning of any other time of year. It is always hard to see it in print especially if I am the one to design the Point of Purchase displays.  I am hoping for a warm, sunny "Indian Summer" to phase us into the fall.

So Sad at Pleasure Beach

Those who never had the chance to witness the vibrancy, the specialness of Pleasure Beach, the escape from the "city" and the acceptance of us "mainland" folks taking a stroll or a run through their summer enclave won't be able to appreciate my sadness. Pleasure Beach, in part Stratford and Bridgeport, CT was a destination for many, public and private in years past. I walked out there today with my beach walker friend Alex. I don't believe she ever saw the old Pleasure Beach. The place I knew was completely changed. Cottages were gone. I will add a page of many more images to my sidebar but for now, look at the progression I show here...with true tears in my eyes.

These photos were taken before the complete eviction. There was one early attempt and most, who could get there after the only bridge burned...did their darnedest to continue to enjoy the "island".

Some cottages became overgrown, some just boarded up and then the life, the history of the families became subject to vandalism. That is something I cannot fathom. Bridge was out, but access by walking from Long Beach Stratford was possible and the rest is history. Very sad history.

This is the wooden bridge to Pleasure Beach looking from the island towards Bridgeport, scattered with oyster shells dropped by gulls. Quite a while had passed since the bridge was burned out. A large yellow cement barricade prevented traffic from crossing. I suppose it was for those residents still living out there, could they not have heard that their only access to the mainland was out of service???? I guess there were some stranded cars and home owners.

These are the empty lots of bygone cottages. Not a trace of a foundation, a retaining wall, a dock or a walkway down to the beach.

But fortunately, there is peace here. And flora and fauna abounds.

The Osprey!

The Deer! Wow, this was one big buck!

Some reseeded, some wild, the landscape was covered in a natural garden of hardy flowers. This made me accept the fact that life goes on and hopefully the island will become the National Fish & Wildlife Preserve that was promised!

And the remains. A small toy, a day glow ring of plastic and puzzle pieces. Our only finds of humanity left here after the bulldozing. But the history is documented and the memories live on.

the history of pleasure beach