Chester, East Haddam and Haddam form a cluster of small communities downriver from Middletown that have a taste of both the bustle of the city and the cache of Essex. Yet, they clearly have their own distinct character, geological features and community life.

Take exit 16 off Route 9 from the west or ride the ferryboat across the Connecticut River from Hadlyme to the east—either way, you’ll find yourself in the picturesque river village of Chester.

The peaked rooflines, gaily-striped awnings and window boxes brimming with bright blooms define Main Street where you’ll find a mélange of shops, eateries and galleries. Among them are some great downriver destination spots including Restaurant L & E and French Bar 75, which the New York Times says is a very worthy successor to the acclaimed Restaurant du Village that occupied the spot for years. Up the street, The River Tavern is a slick little eatery with exceptional food and behind it, where a fast moving brook flows under Main Street, is Brushmill by the Waterfall, housed in a restored brush factory that offers lovely views of a the river cove and a waterfall. Local arts and crafts galleries, part of a growing lower Valley arts scene, are here and there in and around the center of town.

Theatre arts thrive in Chester. Out North Main in the original Susan Bates factory, the musical reigns at the Norma Terris Theatre. Part of Goodspeed Opera, this intimate, 200-seat theater that opened in 1984, develops and presents new musicals for the stage.

Back on Main Street, sits the Pattaconk Bar & Grille, a casual spot in a 19th century wooden storefront that brings in bikers, bankers, families and kids for the food and unpretentious ambience.

Chester has always been closely connected to the Connecticut River, but the Pattaconk, and other streams dammed to harness waterpower for small mills as early as 1790, also influenced its history. In 1888, U.S. Congress-funded navigational aids along the Connecticut River included Chester Rock Lighthouse. Over a million tons of goods were shipped upriver to Hartford by steam and sailing vessels during the late 1800s, and steamboat travelers from New York and Hartford disembarked at Chester.

Today kayaks, canoes, fishing boats and yachts crisscross Chester Cove to and from the Chester Marina, Castle Marina and Hays Haven Marina in the sheltered waters of Chester Creek.

Nestled in the hills of the lower River Valley, the Haddams — Haddam and East Haddam — share a riverfront heritage. Along with Middletown, Portland, East Hampton and towns downriver, river trade, shipbuilding, quarrying and manufacturing were the foundations of their wealth and history.

The Haddams lie fifteen miles above the mouth of the river and about 30 miles south of Hartford. Haddam covers 46.7 sparsely populated square miles; about 7,760 residents live in the only Connecticut town bisected by the River. Five villages — Haddam, Higganum, Tylerville, Shailerville and Hidden Lake — lie on the west bank south of Middletown. Haddam Neck, on the east bank, is tucked between East Hampton and East Haddam.

Higganum was always the town’s center of economic activity. Since 1911, on Labor Day weekend, Haddam Neck has marked the end of summer and the growing season with the Haddam Neck Fair. Other landmarks here include the site of the Connecticut Yankee nuclear power plant and Higgie’s Hot Dog Stand.Built in 1966, Connecticut Yankee generated over 110 billion kilowatt hours of electricity before being decommissioned in 1997 amidst safety and environmental concerns.Higgie’s (circa 1950) however, is still there and recently underwent a total renovation.

East Haddam became a separate town in 1734, and relied on ferry service until the swing bridge was built in 1913. That local landmark, the oldest operating swing bridge in the U.S., is also reputed to be the longest of its kind in the world. As its name implies, East Haddam lies along the east bank of the Connecticut.

In New England certain areas of a town gain their own identity—Millington, Hadlyme, North Plains, Leesville, Johnsonville, Moodus, Little Haddam and the East Haddam Landings—are all part of East Haddam. Some have become so well known that even Google can’t tell if one is a separate town or part of East Haddam. Hadlyme, home of the Chester-Hadlyme Ferry that crosses the river to Chester, is one of those village-within-a-town imposters.

Moodus was once known as the “Catskills of Connecticut” because of family vacation destinations such as Sunrise Resort, which closed in 2006. Moodus is a contraction of the Indian word Machimoodus, “a place of bad noises.” The rumblings heard for miles over the centuries were attributed to Hobomoko, a tribal god; to Satan and to witchcraft. It’s now known that there is a seismic explanation—micro earthquakes near the confluence of the Salmon and Moodus Rivers.

East Haddam Landing—Upper and Lower—ties the town to its early seafaring days. Upper Landing encompasses the town’s Main Street and Lower Landing, once known as Goodspeed’s Landing, enjoys the resurgence of the Goodspeed Opera House as a state and local landmark.Small shops and the rambling Victorian-era Gelston House restaurant sit above a pretty section of the river.

The Victorian theater was built in 1876 by ship builder and banker, William Goodspeed. Typical summer plays include Li’l Abner, High Button Shoes and Camelot, and the annual Festival of New Artists highlights early winter. Patrons are cautioned to allow time for an unexpected delay should the swing bridge open for boat traffic as they approach, thus foiling their on-time arrival for a performance. In Hadlyme during warm months, the Chester-Hadlyme Ferry lands at the foot of the hill where Gillette Castle looms as an imposing landmark. The castle, built by William Gillette, a multi-millionaire actor of Victorian fame, is the centerpiece of Gillette Castle State Park, which encompasses the original castle grounds.

The Haddams and towns downriver to Old Saybrook were recently named one of the 40 Last Great Places in the Western hemisphere, acknowledgement of the nearly untouched river and surrounding forest and wetlands.

Al Ferreira Photo