Poodle Beach

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Poodle Beach is the informal name for the section of Rehoboth Beach's Atlantic oceanfront at the south end of the boardwalk — beyond the main run of concessions, amusements, and family activity that characterises the central boardwalk beach, at the point where the strand curves south and the crowd thins. The gay community has been gathering at this end of the beach since at least the 1970s, and the designation "Poodle Beach" has been in use long enough that it appears in national gay travel publications. There is no formal gay designation, no signage, and no enforcement; the beach belongs to anyone who chooses to use it, and the gay section is maintained by the simple social mechanism of community knowledge. On a summer weekend, Poodle Beach is a substantial gathering: a long stretch of sand occupied by several hundred gay people, the Atlantic surf running in from the east, the Delaware sun overhead, and the kind of relaxed outdoor social scene that is the best thing a beach town has to offer. The contrast between the crowded central boardwalk and the somewhat more spacious Poodle Beach end gives the gay section of the beach a relatively comfortable density on most summer days. Poodle Beach is a five-minute walk south from the boardwalk's main entertainment area.