Probably the most popular NW launch in our local area is that of Chick's Beach at Lynnhaven Inlet. The beach faces another beach we call Aries and forms somwehat of a horseshoe with the inlet right in the middle. This launch provides some of the best wave riding because of it's exposure to both the open ocean and the long dimension of the Chesapeake Bay. The water is rather shallow which provides many breaking waves to toy with. Here you can see Doug Cullom on a 5.0 day with plenty of white water around him. Because of the proximity ot the inlet, the current here can be treacherous and even in the waist deep water nearing low tide it can be almost impossible to keep from being swept off your feet. Other hazards include the pilot boats that zip in and out of the inlet even when you don't expect any other boats to be on the water. You can see one of them here returning from dropping off a ship's pilot.