🏖 Third Beach in Middletown sits on the calm side of the peninsula. It faces east over Third Beach Harbor near the mouth of the Sakonnet River. The water is gentle and usually flat, great for families, swimmers, kayaks, and paddleboards. The town beach area has a concrete boat ramp for small craft. Grills and picnic tables sit near the ramp. Norman Bird Sanctuary is up the road if you want to pair a quiet beach morning with an easy hike. When you visit, do you launch a kayak, float in the calm

The 63rd annual Coastal Edge East Coast Surfing Championships resumed Friday in Virginia Beach, drawing more than 800 surfers from around the world. This year, participants got to enjoy larger than normal waves because of Hurricane Erin. The competition, which had been delayed Thursday because of the storm, kicked off at 10:30 a.m. Friday. The event, founded in 1963, is one of the oldest running surfing competitions in the world, offering seven days of beach culture and adrenaline-pumping waves.