Tourist Information

Tourists can enjoy activities like bird-watching, clamming, fishing, hunting and kayaking. Tidal currents are gentle, the mainland is always visible and the electric power plant on Manressa Island helps with navigation. One can find fishes like bluefish, bonito, dogfish, fluke, flounder, false albacore, Striped bass and trout on the coast line of the islands. Hunters can hunt below the mean high-tide line in duck-hunting season. Deer can be hunted on the privately owned islands with the owner's permission. However, the Marine Mammal Protection Act prohibits harassing the animals and sets limits on how close observers may get. The largest islands are the Chimon Island, Cockenoe Island, Shea Island and Sheffield Island. The smaller Islands include Betts Island, Calf Pasture Island, Copps Island, Crow Island, Grassy Island, Goose Island, Hoyt Island, Little Tavern Island, Long Island, Sprite Island, Tavern Island and Tree Hammock Island.

General Information

Some historians have speculated that rocks from these islands were used as ballast for sailing ships returning to New York, where the rocks may have been used for cobblestones. Various laws protect the islands, including town ordinances, the Coastal Barriers Resource Act and the National Wildlife Refuge.

Demographic Information

The Norwalk Islands is a chain of more than 25 islands situated at about a mile off the coast of Norwalk, Connecticut and southwest Westport, Connecticut, in Long Island Sound. The islands are located at 41°3′54″N, 73°23′24″W. The islands are used for several different types of recreational activities, including bird watching, boating, camping, kayaking and swimming. Some Islands are owned by the governments of Norwalk or Westport and some are part of the Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge.