All beaches have beauty, but not all of them are safe. Before traveling beaches, it’s best to do your research. It’s been discovered that 10% of water samples from US beaches do not pass that test for swimmer safety. The states with the best beaches are:
- Alabama (Gulf Shores, Gulf State Park Pavilion, Dauphin Island Public Beach)
- California (Newport Beach)
- Delaware (Dewey Beach)
- Florida (Bowman’s Beach, Coquina Beach, Fort De Soto North Beach)
- Georgia (Tybee Island North)
- Hawaii (Hapuna Beach, Po’ipu Beach, Wailea Beach Park)
- Massachusetts (Singing Beach)
- Maryland (Point Lookout State Park, Assateague State Park)
- North Carolina (Ocean Pier, Sunset Boulevard, Beach at the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Ocean Pier)
- New Hampshire (Hampton Beach State Park, Wallis Sands)
- New Jersey (Margate, Avalon, Sea Isle City, Point Pleasant Beach)
- New York (Long Beach)
- Virginia (Virginia Beach, Back Bay Beach)
- Washington (Westhaven State Park)
The Great Lakes area has a very poor rating, with 13% of samples failing to pass the purity test. Ohio came in at a 35% failure rate (EW) as the state with the worst water purity rate. Traveling beaches can be tricky. The states with the worst beaches are:
- California (Malibu Pier)
- Indiana (Jeorse Park Beach)
- Massachusetts (Cockle Cove Creek)
- Maine (Goodies Beach)
- New Jersey (Main Street Beach, Wright Park East, Ontario Beach)
- Ohio (Lakeshore Park, Arcadia Beach, Euclid State Park, Noble Beach, Sims Beach, Villa Angela State Park, Edson Creek)
- Wisconsin (South Shore Beach)
It is best to do your research before traveling beaches. Also, avoid traveling beaches with visible discharge pipes and avoid swimming at beaches after a heavy rainfall.
Written By: Meghan Lundin, and intern at Advantage Fundraising Online and a Finance student at Michigan State University.