West Virginia’s Gauley River (or as we like to call it, our backyard) is a fickle beast. All year, we wait, salivating, for Autumn, when the Gauley Starts to roar.
And it does. For four days (Friday through Monday) every week until late October. Rockin’, right?
Well, that leaves three days each week when the river is- yep- dry. Not bone dry; there’s enough water for the fish. But you can pretty much forget about Gauley rafting every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday during Gauley season.
How does it work? The Army Corps of Engineers uses a little device called the Summersville Dam to cut the water on and off like a faucet. It’s actually kind of a good thing. If it weren’t for the dam, we wouldn’t be rafting at all in the fall.
But still. That leaves us with three whole days to fill. So what do we do?
Go Rafting We’re lucky. We have this whole other river called the New River where we are. You may have heard of it. Class V rapids? Big Ol’ Bridge? Yes, THAT one. It’s still running. So we get out on it whenever people want to go. A good way to do it is to bookend your Gauley trip with a trip on the New.
Hit Up Some Other Activities We’ve got a lot of what I like to call, “Activities”. Horseback riding? Activity. ATVs? Activity. Mountain Biking? Climbing? Activity. Sitting around in the hot tub and watching movies in the cabin? Around here, that’s an activity.
Chill Say you go down the Gauley on a Monday, and you want to stick around on Tuesday. Here’s what you do: Nuthin’. Go for a walk. Shop. Eat at four or five or six different restaurants. Lots and lots and lots of disc golf (our personal fav). Do it up, but, you know, relax.
Travel Did you know that West Virginia is one of the coolest places in the world? A good way to find out is to grab a map and go. After all, you’ve got three days. There are literally as many places to go as there are places to be, so don’t hesitate. Just get rolling.
What would you do with three days off?
Tags: Adventure Vacations, Gauley River Rafting, Songer Whitewater, West Virginia Whitewater Rafting, white water rafting