New London — All the rain this spring didn't bother Lorraine Hollister Warren of Glastonbury, who said she just kept busy during the overcast days.

But that didn't mean she wasn't appreciating a day like Tuesday.

Hollister Warren was visiting Ocean Beach Park with her boyfriend, Dave Cabrera, and her son from Charlotte, N.C., and three grandchildren, who enjoy going crabbing. They planned to take the children on the water slide and then stop by a hotdog and hamburger stand on the drive home.

"It feels awesome," she said about being outdoors as she sat on a boardwalk bench during the sunny afternoon. "It just feels healthy to be out in the sun and by the salt water and see the kids have such a good time."

Residents said they were ready to welcome the sunshine and summer, which officially begins on Wednesday, after a rainy spring. 

In Groton, rainfall measured 5.94 inches in May; 4.41 inches in April; and 3.74 inches in March, according to Gary Lessor, meteorologist and the assistant director of The Weather Center at Western Connecticut State University. In June, so far the rainfall was 2.09 inches.

"It was definitely a wet spring," he said.

"We've seen the drought alleviated across most of southern New England, especially in Connecticut," he added.

Lessor said the summer is expected to be warmer than usual, with rainfall less frequent and below normal, but likely not significantly dry like last summer or the summer before that.

For some people, the rain this spring interfered with plans for their favorite activities.

"It has kept me from doing a lot of things I like to do," said Bryan Baez of Willimantic, such as riding his bike and being outdoors.

Last night, it was raining in Willimantic and he wasn't sure if it would continue through the morning. But Baez woke up to a sunny day and went to Ocean Beach to spend time with his brother, who was celebrating his birthday.

"It's been awful," Tina King of Storrs said about the rainy weather. "Today is a gorgeous day so we figured we'd take a ride down here."

She was planning to play miniature golf Tuesday afternoon at Ocean Beach Park with her boyfriend and his daughter. King, who recently got out of a leg cast she had been in for eight weeks, also was hoping to go swimming and just enjoy the sunshine.

"We're going to take advantage of the sunshine while we can," she added.

Cynthia Gunn Lazuk of Lisbon, who sat in a beach chair Tuesday on the boardwalk at Ocean Beach, said she was excited for the start of summer after the rainy weather. 

"What spring?" she said. "We're coasting into summer — we're not jumping into it."

Lazuk said she enjoys visiting the beach, where she likes to watch people, read, do puzzles, talk to other beachcombers and watch children at play, while her husband, Alex Lazuk, enjoys walking the entire boardwalk and beach.

With the start of summer on Wednesday, she said she was looking forward to continuing beachcombing, working as a personal care assistant, and fishing by Misquamicut State Beach in a boat with her husband, who is the captain. 

David Sugrue, the general manager of Ocean Beach Park, said that with the rainy weather, the park's attendance numbers are way off so far. But beach season is not over and he hopes to make it up.

On a recent Sunday when the weather was nice, it was a record day and the park filled to capacity about 2 or 3 p.m., he said. Ocean Beach also has been inundated with emails and messages from people asking about the park and for directions to it, which indicates they're ready to go to the beach and be outdoors.

"All we need is sunshine," Sugrue said.

k.drelich@theday.com