Yachts For Sale In Portland

Portland is a beautiful little town in Middlesex County of Connecticut with more than half of its perimeter on the Connecticut River where the river bends. The town of Portland’s Main Street is typical of southern New England villages and is a short drive or 15-minute walk. Portland is directly opposite Middletown, CT via the historic Arrigoni Bridge. Incorporated in 1841, Portland was named for the Portland in Dorsetshire, England, known for its quarries. Portland is a great town for outdoor activities; 3 golf courses, visit a winery, kayak a lake with view of mountain, zipline adventures, watersports in historic quarry, hike through state forest, bike the historic Air Line Trail, boating on the Connecticut River, strawberry picking, apple picking, enjoy free outdoor concerts at Riverfront Park, and much more. Some of the town’s annual events are the Summer Concert Series at Riverfront Park (July/Aug – Tuesdays), 25th Annual Townwide Tag Sale slated for Aug. 8, 2021, Portland Agriculture Fair in October, Halloween Downtown and Haunted Trail in October, Christmas Tree Lighting and Holiday Parade in December, and the Mid-winter Chocolate Festival that is usually hosted by the Portland Congregational Church in early February.

United Yacht Sales can help you find the perfect yacht for sale in Connecticut. Give us a call today at 1-772-463-3131 about purchasing a new boat or listing your current yacht on the brokerage market.

To search for more boats for sale in Connecticut and narrow by city, you can begin here:

• Branford, Connecticut
• Bridgeport, Connecticut
• Clinton, Connecticut
• Essex, Connecticut
• Greenwich, Connecticut
• Milford, Connecticut
• Mystic, Connecticut
• Norwalk, Connecticut
• Old Saybrook, Connecticut
• Westbrook, Connecticut
• Westport, Connecticut
   

Notable among the town of Portland’s attractions are the Portland Brownstone Quarries (National Historic Landmark), Brownstone Exploration & Discovery Park (ziplines), Arrigoni Winery, Ruth Callander Museum of Portland History, Portland Air Line Trail, and more.

The Wangunk tribe, whose name refers to the bend in river that circumscribes nearly 50% of Portland’s perimeter, inhabited the area prior to European settlement in the 1690s and during the Settler period. Wangunk tribe descendants still live in the area today. European settlers were attracted to the brownstone, a natural resource mined for construction and grave headstones. Being located on a major river allowed a wider distribution to New York, Boston, San Francisco, Canada, and England. Quarrying became the town’s major industry in the 19th century. Portland was known for shipbuilding (Gildersleeve family were prominent shipbuilders in 1800s) before quarrying became the primary industry. But by early 20th century, quarrying industry faded out as it could not compete with concrete. Then in 1936 the Connecticut River flooded the quarries, effectively ending the industry. Shipbuilding also tanked at that time as the whaling industry ended. The vast majority of Connecticut’s and New York’s brownstone buildings were built from brownstone quarried in Portland, CT. Today, one of the freshwater-filled quarries has been transformed into an adventure park for a variety of watersports and more.

Brownstone Exploration & Discovery Park is an historic, tree-lined, freshwater-filled quarry outdoor adventure sports park featuring rock climbing, cliff jumping, 14 zip lines, a guarded beach for swimming, wakeboarding, kayaking, snorkeling, scuba diving, water obstacles, and a rope swing. Visitors can explore the quarry’s 100 ft freshwater depth, traverse its 85 ft solid brownstone walls, and much more. Amenities include full concession (or bring your own picnic), free parking, and restroom facilities. Open Memorial Day to Labor Day.

The Portland Air Line Trail was built along the abandoned rail bed of the once glamorous New Haven to Boston Air Line dating to the 1870s, that ended in 1955 after 82 years of service. The railway was named Air Line for its straightness, like a “line drawn in the air.” After years of discussion and planning the first phase opened in 2018. The Portland Air Line Trail now links to East Hampton for the full 53 miles of hiking, biking, horseback riding, and cross-country skiing in the winter months. The Trail’s northern terminus is Thompson in the northeast corner of the state, where it borders Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The Air Line Trail runs through Portland, East Hampton, Colchester, Hebron, Columbia, Lebanon, Windham, Pomfret, Putnam, and Thompson in Connecticut.

The historic Arrigoni Bridge that links Portland with Middletown directly across the Connecticut River, is a beautiful steel through-arch bridge with wide pedestrian walkways on both sides. Built in 1938, the 1200 ft bridge cost $3.5million to build, the most expensive in Connecticut at that time. It features 600 ft arches with the longest expanse of any bridge in Connecticut. Currently the Arrigoni Bridge is in the middle of a major rehabilitation project. Costing over 13 times the original construction cost, the project was begun in 2020 and final phase is expected to be completed in Feb. 2022.

Portland’s Arrigoni Winery is considered the best in Connecticut. The enterprise includes the winery, vineyard, wine, wine tasting events, and cider company. John “Jack LaSalle” Gherlone, boxing champion and passionate winemaker, taught the art and science of winemaking (oenology) to his grandson and great granddaughter who shared his love of winemaking. He passed away in 1997 before the winery started on 200 acres of farmland between the Connecticut River and Route 66. His family runs the winery keeping Jack’s love of wine and winemaking alive. The winery is named for the historic Arrigoni Bridge (Route 66 crosses the bridge).

Portland has 8 marinas and boat clubs along the Connecticut River. The Connecticut River is New England’s longest river with its headwaters in northern New Hampshire’s Fourth Connecticut Lake, running 407 miles south to Old Saybrook on the southern Connecticut coast, where it empties into Long Island Sound. Once polluted by industries along the river, steps taken in the 1960s and 70s to restore the river have been quite successful and today the great Connecticut River is largely pollution free. Eagles and other raptors have returned, and fish populations (striped bass, Atlantic salmon, catfish, and eel) have increased.
A couple of marinas in Portland offer summer dockage and may have transient slips available.
Yankee Boat Yard & Marina is a full-service marina with a long history as a boat-building yard in the 1920s and 30s, and as a service boat yard since then. The yard offers summer dockage and winter storage. 3 docks with a total of 75 slips are on the picturesque Connecticut River in deep water. 53 slips are available with 50 amp and 220 power, freshwater, cable TV and WiFi. Amenities include full-service gas dock (diesel is available—call ahead), showers/restroom facilities, family friendly picnic areas, and Ship’s Store. Mobile pump-out station is available in summer. The marina has 40 mooring balls and can accommodate 30 boats on ball moorings during summer months.

Portland Riverside Marina is one of the oldest marinas on the river and owned by the same family for over 40 years. The marina is on 25 acres with ¼ mile of river frontage and is an ideal stop for boaters cruising the Connecticut River to Hartford. Marina manager lives onsite. The marina features 74 deep water floating slips with freshwater and electric, along with a quantity of moorings. Fuel dock is nearby; diesel fuel delivery can be arranged. Transient slips or moorings are available at most times during the summer season. Amenities include shower/restrooms, ice, and food. Center of Portland is a short walk from the marina; walk across Arrigoni Bridge for Middletown. Features a well-stocked marine store. Customers can DIY repairs. A large open travel lift can haul out most sailboats without mast removal. Large crane can remove or re-step masts if needed. Portland Riverside Marina hosts the popular Annual Catfish Tournament in August and celebratory party.