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Connecticut Marinas
I have docked my 23' boat at slips in a few different marinas over the last 3
years in Connecticut. My comments on each marina are listed below.
Marina Reviews
 Thamesport Marina, New London (2001 Season)
This marina is
located on the lower western side of the Thames river across from Electric
Boat. I liked this marina because it was fairly close to Fisher's Island,
Block Island and the Race. It's just a short ride from the docks to get to
open ocean, just watch out for the high-speed ferry on the river. The accommodations
were good but the only drawbacks are there is no launch at the marina and there
is limited help available from any mechanic. One big word of caution here,
steer clear of "Junk Island", it's a nasty pile of debris and rocks in
the river near the marina that is not marked all that well. Give it plenty
of room! Thamesport is a decent marina for the price, if I remember right
I spent about $1250 for the slip.
 Pine Island Marina, Groton (2002 Season)
I learned about Pine Island
the first time I needed repairs done on my boat. I stripped off the prop
and put a small tear in my bellows after hitting something floating in the river
and needed to get the thing out of the water in a hurry on a Sunday
afternoon. Pine Island is a bit more pricey than Thamesport, a slip cost
me $2000 for my 23 footer. The nice thing about this marina is that they
are a good bunch of guys and have a top quality repair shop and a nice
lift. I had them re-power my boat in 2002 and they did an excellent job, I
haven't had a single problem yet. After hearing some horror stories from
some of the other people docked there about repairs and re-powers they had done
elsewhere I was glad I decided to go with Pine Island. Good
location, great repair shop, bait store on premises, and a good bunch of people.
 Pier 76 Marina, Westbrook (2003 Season)
I would describe Pier 76 this a
no-frills marina. It cost me $924 for a floating dock slip for the
season. No electricity although you could run an extension cord if you
really had to. Water was about the only amenity and there is a boat launch
on the premises. It takes a good 20 minutes to get to the ocean but on the
other hand you're in a sheltered spot if a hurricane blows by. I have to
say that the floating docks are really easy compared to the non-floating.
You just pull up and tie off, nothing could be easier, just pull in under power
and hit reverse when you get the nose in. If you are thinking about
docking here the only thing you have to keep in mind is that you have to go
under the singing bridge. Most days this isn't an issue even at high tide
but if you get a really high tide it's possible you may not get under the
bridge. The closest I came was about a foot above the windshield.
These guys have mechanics but they don't look like they do alot of major work
on-site and there are at least a half-dozen other places in the area so you can
bet every repair is covered within a short distance. It's not where I like
to be location wise so I doubt I'll go back but I really have no major
complaints about the place.
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