Thinking About Living in WesternConnecticut? Start With the Lakes.

Six lakes. Six very different lifestyles - and a few stories you won't find in a relocation guide.

I started writing this because of the memories. We recently shared a post about six lakes in Western Connecticut, and as I was putting it together, I realized I wasn't just thinking about which lake was biggest or where you could boat, fish or swim. I kept thinking about the memories I have tied to these places. Tubing on Lake Zoar while my husband waterskied. Spending hours at the sandbar - and then, years later, knowing my son was doing the same thing. My son's summer days at a rope swing on Lillinonah. Canoeing on Bantam Lake and going to Beverly's. Watching a friend race crew on Waramaug. A first date at Hopkins where I was probably paying more attention to Walter Matthau at the next table than I was to my date. And Quassapaug - first the Quassy years, when it seemed like half of Pomperaug High School worked there, and later watching my own kids learn to sail at the Quassapaug Sailing Center. They're not just pretty places on a map. They're part of our lives here. So if you're thinking about living in Western Connecticut, the lakes are actually a pretty good place to start. Each has its own personality, its own way of life and, for many of us who have lived here a long time, its own collection of stories.

1) Candlewood Lake

Danbury · Brookfield · New Fairfield · New Milford · Sherman

Candlewood is the big, busy summer lake. At roughly 5,420 acres, it is Connecticut's largest lake, and on a beautiful weekend there is a lot happening: powerboats, pontoons, tubing, waterskiing and fishing. Summer camps and waterfront homes add to the vacation-lake feeling, and its proximity to New York and lower Fairfield County brings plenty of weekenders.

If you saw our Go Fish Candlewood summer post, this is where that idea goes deeper. You do not have to own a boat to make a lake day of it. Rent one, bring your own, or hire a private fishing guide who knows the lake.

Cruising is half the fun, too — coves, waterfront homes and, depending on the day, maybe even a glimpse of a wedding celebration at The Candlewood Inn. And the history still surprises people: Candlewood is man-made, created in the 1920s for hydroelectric power. Remnants of roads and the former settlement known as Jerusalem remain beneath the water.

Best for: Fishing · Big-water boating · Tubing · Waterskiing · An active summer-lake atmosphere

2) Lake Lillinonah

Brookfield · Bridgewater · New Milford · Newtown · Roxbury · Southbury

And then there is Lillinonah. Just a short distance away, it feels like another world. It is quieter, more wooded and, in places, surprisingly secluded. The lake winds through steep hills along the Housatonic, with long stretches that feel much less developed than Candlewood.

Lillinonah has a lot of memories for us, too. When my son was younger, he and his friends could spend practically the entire day at a rope swing on the lake — swimming, jumping in, climbing back out and doing it all over again. I do not know whether that rope swing is still there, but that is the kind of summer day I think of when I think about Lillinonah.

Do not mistake quiet for uneventful. Lillinonah has long been known for serious fishing, including a 29-pound Northern Pike caught here that remains tied to Connecticut's state-record history. Bald eagles are also a familiar sight around the lake, particularly in winter.

Best for: Quiet boating · Fishing · Paddling · Wooded scenery · A slower lake day

3) Lake Zoar

Southbury · Oxford · Newtown · Monroe

Zoar is the backyard lake. For Southbury, Oxford and Newtown, this is the kind of place where a lake day does not have to be a big production. We had a small motorboat, my husband would waterski, and I was perfectly happy being pulled around on a tube. Our lake days were casual. We would call Lorenzo's in Sandy Hook for a pizza, pull in nearby and walk up the hill to grab it. If we needed ice or drinks, there was the tiny River Shannon package store near the Silver Bridge. Both are gone now, but they were part of what summers on Zoar looked like for us.

Today the logistics are a little more modern. I have watched boaters arrange for DoorDash or Uber Eats from area restaurants to meet them at the Southbury town boat launch. Down by the Stevenson Dam, Lake Zoar Drive-In is a popular current stop; boaters can come close to shore and walk up to pick up an order.

Kettletown State Park sits right on Zoar in Southbury, so you can camp, hike and make a weekend of it. Fishing is serious here, too. One practical boating memory: keep an eye out for floating sticks and branches. Debris on the water was simply something we learned to watch for while tubing and waterskiing.

Best for: Boating · Fishing · Tubing · Camping · Easy local lake days

4) Lake Waramaug

Warren · Kent · Washington

Waramaug might be our bike it, paddle it, swim it — then sip wine overlooking it lake. The scenery is the experience here. People bike the roads around the lake, paddle and swim, camp at Lake Waramaug State Park on the Kent end, and head up to Hopkins Vineyard for a glass of wine overlooking the water.

I will never forget my first date with an architect who worked at the business next to mine. He designed pools and landscapes and took me to Hopkins for an early dinner. I was in my early 20s and, I am embarrassed to admit, spent a good part of the evening completely preoccupied with the people around us.

Walter Matthau was at the next table with a group of writers and creative types. I could not stop looking. Looking back, it feels very Waramaug. This part of Litchfield County has long had an understated mix of country and culture — artists, writers, actors, designers and Manhattan weekenders. Christine Baranski is among the notable people with a documented Lake Waramaug connection.

The lake itself remains the star: quieter water, beautiful hills, public access at the state park and one of those Western Connecticut afternoons that can easily stretch from a bike ride to a swim to a glass of wine.

Best for: Biking · Paddling · Swimming · Camping · Scenery · Sipping wine with a view

5) Bantam Lake

Litchfield · Morris

Bantam is Connecticut's largest natural lake — but some of my favorite memories there have nothing to do with that piece of trivia. My friend Kevin had a cabin on the lake, and some of my best summer days were spent canoeing around Bantam and going to Beverly's.

Beverly's is gone now, but its history is pretty incredible. Before Beverly's, the property was The Music Box, a dance hall and skating rink associated with the big-band era. Later Beverly's became a lakeside restaurant, dance hall and nightclub with decades of live music. And here is the part I think is pretty exciting: the old Beverly's property is now a public boat launch.

You can launch a boat today from the same general place where generations of people once came to dance and spend summer nights on Bantam Lake. Bantam still has that outdoorsy feel, with fishing and paddling plus White Memorial nearby. And if a lobster roll sounds like the right finish to a lake day, West Shore Seafood on Bantam Lake Road is the kind of casual local stop that fits perfectly — lobster rolls, fried clams and chowder.

Best for: Canoeing · Fishing · Nature · Lake history · A lobster roll afterward

6) Lake Quassapaug

Middlebury

If you grew up around Southbury and Middlebury, Quassy was more than somewhere your parents took you for rides. It seemed like half of Pomperaug High School worked there at one point or another. My friend Janine was a lifeguard, and there were always stories — who was working that summer, the friendships, the parties and all the fun that came with having so many local teenagers working in the same place.

And then there is the carousel. Quassy has changed over the years — today there is the waterpark and Wooden Warrior — but some things still feel wonderfully familiar. That is what makes Quassapaug different from the other lakes on this list.

For a lot of local families, it is not just a lake or an amusement park. It is part of growing up here. Now many of the people who grew up going to Quassy are bringing their own kids — and grandkids — back for the beach, the carousel, the rides and the waterpark.

Best for: Kids & grandkids · Beach days · Carousel · Rides · Waterpark · Local nostalgia