The 61st Essex Annual Shad Bake relies on dozens of volunteers as servers, setup crews and cooks. Judy Preston / Connecticut Sea Grant
The 61st Essex Annual Shad Bake on June 1 drew hundreds to the waterfront at the Connecticut River Museum to dine on this spring’s catch of Connecticut River shad. Co-sponsored by the museum and the Rotary Club of Essex, this year’s event included Connecticut Sea Grant, Eating with the Ecosystem and the Connecticut River Conservancy information tables, along with live music and an educational display about the shad fishery by Tim Visel, coordinator of The Sound School in New Haven. Judy Preston, Sea Grant’s Long Island Sound Outreach Coordinator, gave a talk about the ecology and significance of the lower Connecticut River.
Fillets of shad caught on the Connecticut River by commercial fishermen during the spring is cooked on wooden planks over a wood fire. Judy Benson / Connecticut Sea Grant
Judy Preston, Sea Grant’s Long Island Sound Outreach Coordinator, gave a talk during the Shad Bake about the ecology and significance of the lower Connecticut River. Judy Benson / Connecticut Sea Grant
Hundreds of people enjoyed a meal of shad, potato salad, green salad, chicken and apple pie at the Shad Bake. Judy Benson / Connecticut Sea Grant
Judy Benson, communications coordinator for Sea Grant, gave out copies of Wrack Lines magazine and other Sea Grant publications during the Shad Bake. Judy Preston / Connecticut Sea Grant
