Sunrise State Park

Sunrise State Park is a public recreation area occupying the site of the former Sunrise Resort in the town of East Haddam, Connecticut. The state park encompasses on the east shore of Salmon River and shares an entrance with Machimoodus State Park to the south. The park is managed by the Connecticut [Department of Energy and Environmental Protection].

WWW Official Site

History

The property came to life as Ted Hilton's Vacation Hide-A-Way in 1916, before becoming the Frank Davis Resort, and finally Sunrise Resort, when the property was purchased by the state in 2009 for $3.2 million. At that time, the state planned to maintain the resort as a meeting place with camping and other recreational facilities in place. After failing to find redevelopers, in 2013 the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection began demolishing the dilapidated resort buildings—more than 80 in all, allowing the land to return to its natural state and leaving only patchy vestiges of asphalt basketball courts and a filled in swimming pool.

Activities and amenities

The park offers hiking, fishing and concessionaire kayak rentals added to the site in 2016.