Gauley River

Gauley River Rafting!

Also Available on the Gauley River:
Summer Gauley Trips
Fall Gauley Day Trips
Fall Gauley Overnight and Two Day Trips

Whitewater rafting attracts over 50,000 people to the Gauley River each year. Dropping more than 668 feet through 28 miles of rugged terrain, the Gauley River features more than 100 whitewater rapids. The Gauley River offers tremendous class III-V+ drops such as Pillow Rock, Iron Ring and Sweet’s Falls. Gauley River rafting in West Virginia brings a whole new meaning to outdoor fun! Whitewater rafting on the Gauley River is a treat for everyone, with white water rafting trips available summer and fall.

Gauley River whitewater rafting trips in the summer will give you a whole new perspective on the Gauley. Your trip will must likely be run in a duck or one person inflatable boat.
Then in the fall the Summersville Dam releases water to create one of the most sought after thrills of West Virginia, from the Upper Gauley and the class V+ rapids to the Lower Gauley that covers everything from class III to V. The Upper Gauley River trip with Appalachian Wildwaters is a full day on the river, covering 15 miles of river and eating a grilled lunch at one of the most famous spots on the Gauley River, Sweet’s Falls. We put in the river at the Summersville Dam and take out at Woods Ferry covering 60 named rapids. The Lower Gauley River trip covers 16 miles of class III – V whitewater and puts in the river at Woods Ferry and takes out at Swiss.

Appalachian Wildwaters has a number of trips that we take on the Gauley River; everything from One Day trips with lunch to Overnights. If there is a trip that you would like to do but can’t seem to find on our web site or in our brochures call one of our whitewater consultants and they will be more than happy to set it up for you.

Many interesting historical events happened in the 1900’s on the Gauley River. Commercial industries started operating on the Gauley River causing over 20 years of pollution. Only in 1927 did the West Virginia State Wild Life League obtain the funds to clean up the Gauley River. Sayre and Jane Rodman, two mountain climbers from Pennsylvania made the first attempt to raft the whitewater of the Gauley River in 1959. High water forced the group to return later. Two years later, the Rodman’s successfully rafted the Gauley to Swiss, WV. In 1965 the US Army Corps of Engineers completed the Summersville Dam, which allows us to have 21 days of whitewater for Gauley Season in September and October. It wasn’t until 1985, however, that Congress added recreation to the list of purposes defined for the Summersville Dam maximizing the number of potential days for boating on the Gauley River.

Gauley Festival

Gauley Fest started in 1983 to celebrate the derailment of a hydroelectric project that would have disrupted the whitewater on the Gauley. Gauley Fest focuses on the outdoors, bringing in vendors that sell kayaks, climbing equipment, t-shirts, etc. This Festival usually lasts three days with something interesting and exciting going on each day. This year Gauley Fest is on September 19-21.