Most experienced white-water lovers
consider West Virginia’s Gauley River National Recreation
Area to contain some of the best rapids in the world. 25 miles
of the Gauley River and 6 miles of Meadow River flow fast and
free through the cramped and twisting canyons of the area’s
scenic 11,500 acres between the Summersville Dam and the town
of Swiss. The rugged beauty and relative inaccessibility of this
incredible nirvana for white water rafting in West Virginia draw
more than 60,000 paddlers every year.
The complex and technically difficult class V+ rapids at the Gauley
River National Recreation Area are for skilled and experienced
paddlers only. These rapids are both famous and infamous for their
steep gradient and huge waves. Starting a week after Labor Day
the Army Corps of Engineers does the autumn Dam releases over
6 weekends, pouring an enormous volume of water into the river
to jump-start the rapids. In the spring, depending on snow and
rainfall, the water volume can quadruple even that of the Dam
releases.
It takes more than a lot of water to make for good rapids, though,
and Gauley River National Recreation Area has got the goods. There
are rocky routes with telltale names, such as Lost Paddle and
Shipwreck, and swift, tumultuous chutes like Pillow Rock, Iron
Ring and the breath stealing 12-foot drop at Sweet’s Falls.
The Lower Gauley, starting at the base of Panther Mountain, is
like nothing so much as a wet and stony 12-mile roller coaster.
There are about a dozen river touring companies
that operate in the Gauley River National Recreation area with the approval
of the National Parks Service. Primitive camping is available at the Summersville
Dam tail-waters area. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers runs a full service
campground at Battle run on Summersville Lake. The closest airports to the Gauley River
National Recreation Area are in nearby Beckley and Charleston West Virginia.
