White Water Rafting the Gauley River!!!!

“Thought I'd post a quick TR about our weekend to WV. In a word...WOW!!!

We had signed up to do the Lower Gauley white water raft trip on Sunday. What a rush that was!! It was a series of Class III, IV, and V rapids that got our hearts pumping. This was our first time, so I was quite nervous. We were part of a group of 7 people plus 1 guide, all women except for Jon. The other 3 boats in our entourage were comprised of mostly guys, so we wanted to prove that we could do this without dumping or losing anyone. Unlike some of the other boats, we succeeded. Our guide Sarah was awesome and guided us through each rapid expertly in textbook fashion. Unfortunately, one of the other boats lost it big time in the Class V rapid called Pure Screaming Hell. Everyone went overboard except two people (even their guide). One of their people broke her foot in the process.

There are many outfits who run the river. We went with Class VI. They were awesome in every step of the way. Our lunch break was fantastic. They had a huge spread of hot food and drinks waiting for us. After our trip was over, they had a cooler full of beer waiting for us. Their lodge/resort is beautiful. Their people are friendly and helpful and enthusiastic. They are located on the New River right near the big bridge. You can sit on their decks and watch the base jumpers on Bridge Day.

We are already talking about going back next summer, but this time doing a 2-day trip. We want to try the Upper Gauley next time, the most intense portion of the river. I was thinking that this would make a great TT trip as well although it isn't as inexpensive as backpacking.”

“Lucky Jon!

I would do another rafting trip!”

“WK, I know you told me, but I forgot. What did you raft before?”

“I have rafter the Wolf River in North Central Wisconsin and a part of the New River in Beckley WV.

That was a great trip.”

“i love whitewater. i've done the upper and lower gauley twice, the cheat twice, the upper yough, the lower yough, the new river twice, and the stonycreek river.

one time we were surfing hell hole on the lower gauley, we were in there for over a minute, but the hole is very powerful and flipped us end over end.

i've done the lower yough at flood stage- unbelieveable rapids. i've done the cheat at flood stage, during a powerful thunderstorm. dozens of side streams exploded down the canyon walls because they were so full of water. i never saw anything like it. i've also done the cheat in a ducky and actually made it through coliseum rapid, a class V.

i hope to start whitewater kayaking.”

“I'm glad you enjoyed my river ;-) I've been there several times, only about an hour from my house in WV. Now that you've had a taste of WV you should plan on coming to the next WV wilderness trip ;-)”

“Sounds like fun!

Thinkbubelz & I went on a trip to Ohiopyle, PA a few years ago (much tamer, I think). We lost 2 people out of our boat, and another one next to us lost everyone... Luckily, no one got hurt, although it was pretty difficult to pull one of the guys out of the other boat (he was about 6'-6" and probably 250 lbs).

We had a blast! :-)”

“it's awesome isn't it?!! I did the upper and lower Gauley a few years ago. I've also done the New.

I'd definately do it again. It was a blast!”

“Anyone gonna be rafting the Gauley this year? This weekend specifically?

I will be doing the Lower on Friday, then the UPPER on Saturday with my dad and brother this weekend.

There's something about rafting the Gauley that makes it different from other rivers I've been on. I can't put my finger on it, but everyone seems to be extra excited on that river.”