Posts Tagged ‘Fun and Adventure in West Virginia’

Songer Whitewater’s New Basecamp

Sunday, May 15th, 2011

From our humble beginnings in 1978 in a small cottage along the banks of the New River, to becoming one of West Virginia’s leading whitewater outfitters, Songer Whitewater has strived to share our love for the river. It’s been our lifestyle, our vocation but mostly importantly, our passion. That passion has driven us to share our culture with you.

2011 has been and will be a year of exciting change for Songer Whitewater. We’ve joined Adventures on The Gorge. Our new home is a world-class Adventure Resort located on the rim of the New River Gorge. You may wonder, “Just what is an Adventure Resort?” It’s where adventure and comfort join to form life-long memories. “All the adventure you can dream of-All the comforts you could desire”.

Our new home boasts 4 restaurants, 3 bars, a wide range of lodging options from rustic camping to deluxe vacation rentals, top-notch facilities and plenty of adventure. Our Adventure Resort is your personal playground, near Fayetteville, voted “Coolest Small Town in America” by Budget Travel Magazine. Our “On the Gorge” campus is nestled in the heart of everything that’s great about the New River Gorge.

We will be located next to TreeTops Canopy Tour, named one of the top 10 places to zip by USA Today and Gravity Ziplines, one of the fastest and longest zip line courses in the East. As part of our move, we also have on-site mountain biking and paintball. Nearby you can enjoy rock climbing & rappelling, kayaking, fishing and ATV tours.

The biggest change for 2011 is that we’ll start all of our trips at our Adventures on the Gorge headquarters on Ames Heights Road in Lansing, WV, just 2 miles from the New River Gorge Bridge. You will continue to see your favorite guides, staff and purple rafts when you raft with Songer Whitewater.

Our commitment to personalized service and to our relationships with you, our guest, will never change. These principles have been critical to our success over the last 25 years. We look forward to your visit to our new home at “Adventures on the Gorge”. We think you’ll be as excited as we are to see how much has changed and how much has stayed the same.

Call us at 877-237-3492 or email us at raft@songerwhitewater.com then get ready for your

 “Adventure on the Gorge”.

(Just tell them Len sent you!)

Len Hanger

Vice President

Songer Whitewater

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Posted in Area Information, Behind the Scenes, cabin vacations, Gauley River Rafting, mountain biking, New River Rafting, rock climbing, Things to Do, Uncategorized | No Comments »

The Secret to Having the World’s Greatest Party (Eddie Style)!

Thursday, July 29th, 2010

Anyone who has come through Songer’s Outfitters store has met Eddie, our store manager.   Two words to describe him:  friendly and crazy.   He loves to have evening get togethers for staff and friends!  And the best part is you can walk to his place from Songer.

One of Eddie's famous cookouts.

The number one secret to having a party at Eddies is to invite your Songer’s friends :-)   Then, make your plan on who’s bringing what.   You can do a little sign up sheet!

Eddie will take care of the meat.  His famous Pork Loin rotisserie on the grill with special seasonings is worth a trip from just about anywhere. Maybe if you ask him nicely, he’ll share his secret ingredients with you (if you get this info, TELL ME!).

Then, be ready for his famous cabbage, “whole head, that is”, with little cuts in it and  lots of butter. Eddie wraps up the cabbage in foil and puts it on the grill. Mmmmmmmmm. Make sure you bring your appetite!  If you leave hungry, that’s your fault.

The famous Pork Loin

Games are the best part of an Eddie party.  Songer has a 14 year old tradition that we can sum up in three words:  always.  play. kickball.   Perhaps a few games of horseshoes, corn hole, or some volleyball, too. Maybe even some charades.

If it’s raining out, you can always go inside and play the Wii.  You probably already know this, but there are always good laughs when it comes to the bowling game. Make sure the strap to the controller is on your arm!  Sure wouldn’t want that controller going through the TV.  (Eddie thinks he’s the king of it!)

The last suggestion we have for you is to make sure you get your picture face on!   Eddie is really bad about taking photos when your least expecting it.

What are your secrets for having the World’s Best Party?

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School’s Out..Now what?

Thursday, June 10th, 2010

Don’t panic.  Take a deep breath.

Set the alarm clock one more time.  Get in the car, plane or train and come to the New River Gorge in West Virginia.

Southern West Virginia is an outdoor mecca attracting rafters, hikers, bikers, climbers—well, you get it—of all ages and all skill levels.     And here’s the best part: KIDS LOVE IT!  You could actually stay for about a month, but I realize you have to visit grandparents and maybe go to camp.  So here are my Top 5 Things to do on Vacation:

Go swimmin’.  Do it on a raft trip, do it at Summersville lake, do it while you are rock climbing at Summersville Lake.

Go campin’.  This has different definitions for different folks.  We have it all.  Tent camping, rustic camping cabins, lovely deluxe cabins with hot tubs, 3 bedrooms, kitchen and screened in porches.  Also, if your idea of camping is a room that doesn’t face the pool, we have those too.

Play in the woods.  Wow, we have lots of woods.  We’re 20 minutes from Hawks Nest State  Park and Babcock State Park.  We are within the New River Gorge National Recreation Area and the Gauley River National River.  So, we know woods.  Believe it or not, your entire family (over 6 years old) can climb, rappel, ride horses, ride ATV’s, or hike on miles of great trails.

Get a little culture.  Visit Theater WV.  It’s a huge outdoor ampatheater  that has hosted “Honey in the Rocks” and The Hatfields and McCoys” for years.  These plays depict the history of West Virginia in song and dance.  1000’s of visitors have attended and they love it.

Be lazy.  Let the kids look under rocks while you contemplate the beauty and majesty of the New River.  Sit on that screened porch or by the pool while the kids play.  All you have to do is react when they say, “Look, Mom!”  Visit Tamarac, the Best of West Virginia to see local artisans at work as well as purchase juried WV crafts.  Don’t forget to have a meal—the chefs are from the Greenbrier Resort—5 star eating!

Hope to see you this summer!

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The Secret to Going Rafting in West Virginia on Memorial Day

Monday, May 24th, 2010

If you are a secret sharer, are they still secrets?

I don’t know the answer, but there are still some good ones around the New River Gorge.  Like, well, like how you can go white water rafting on the busiest day of the year and have the river to yourself (totally true; put on early or late- you’ll see.)

Sweet!

Sweet!

But what about for Memorial Day?  Let me give you some secrets about whitewater rafting in West Virginia on Memorial Day weekend:

#1: Raft on Friday or Monday. Less crowded and a lot less expensive: Half price Mondays: $47.50

#2: Stick around for lunch on Monday, we always have a cookout on the porch.

#3: It’s a great idea to add in another activity for your Saturday and Sunday. I would suggest a bike ride, horse back ride (don’t you just love the smell of a horse?), or climbing/rapelling on the tippy top of the 1,000 ft New River Gorge.

#4: Songer Olympics on Sunday afternoon: no training required. To put it simply, an obstacle course with teams of four. Rally your friends now!

#5: The Camping Package: we like simple and are sure that you like simple too, especially when it comes to planning logistics for you and your friends.  Package includes: two nights camping, country breakfast buffet, full day raft trip with lunch & BBQ chicken dinner.  We like making it easy for ya.  Use this package as a starting point and then add on any extras individuals might want: cabin, another breakfast, other activities.

#6: Live music at the High Water Lounge Saturday night (on site): 40 lb Snapper.  Get your party on!

So, those are the specials, the extras, the goodies.  But here’s the real secret:

Rafting on Memorial Day is way more fun than a cookout with your cousins.  Sorry, it had to be said

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Spring Time Rafting 101

Tuesday, April 27th, 2010

Flowers are starting to bloom, the temps are rising, and the wonderful stinky neoprene is coming out of storage. Yes, Spring has Sprung!

Spring is a fantastic time to go rafting on the New River, you get fewer crowds, higher water, fine looking wildflowers, green trees and mountains.

In order to not freeze your booty off, you need to dress appropriately.   Here are a few basics you need to know:

  • Avoid cotton at all costs (yes, it may be comfortable but when it gets wet it does retain water, think wet sweatshirt)
  • Wear wool, poly pro or a fleece
  • Splash Jacket
  • Wetsuit
  • Wool socks
  • Neoprene booties

Don’t forget your Chums glasses strap and a water proof camera to capture all of those thrills. Lastly you may want to bring a little sunscreen, the sun is hard on you after a long winter. You are now ready to experience Big Time Splashes on the New River.   See you on the river……………

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Why Rock Climbing and Pontoon Boats are Made For Each Other

Friday, May 29th, 2009

Here’s a guest post from Erin Yakim at Hard Rock Climbing, our climbing partners over in Fayetteville:

Can I just tell you how excited I am about the summer?  We’re getting ready to put the pontoon boat on the lake and I can hardly wait. We usually have a fist fight as to who gets to take the first climbing trips out on Summersville Lake.
summersville_lake
That’s right- I said get the boat ready for climbing.  This isn’t your typical climbing trip.

This one is special (well, at least worth getting into a fist fight over). We start out at 9:00 am picking up our guests and making our way north on US-19.  There, we load up the boat with climbing gear, swimming gear, suntan lotion, food, and us. All the makings for a perfect day.

scan00031

The water is beautiful and clear at Summersville Lake (aka The Little Bahamas of the East).  After we boat our way to the first set of cliffs, the guides set the pontoon up so that we are able to climb directly out of the boat on to the rocks.  Cool, huh?

A top rope anchor is used to protect the climber as they ascend the rock.  As they climb, the slack is taken out of the rope, so that if they happen to let go or fall, well, they actually won’t fall at all; they’ll be held up by the rope. The views from up top are incredible!

There is no soloing (climbing without a rope) when climbing above the boat. However, later in the day, there are chances for swimming and water bouldering, and climbing out of the water directly onto the rocks. The Army Corps of Engineers has prohibited diving or jumping from the cliffs into the water, so we advise down climbing.   Oh, and we know some oh-so-scenic spots for lunch, too.

We travel to several different climbing sites through out the day. Some cliffs are 35 ft tall and others maybe as high as 70-80.  The difficulty of the routes varies from place to place, but there is something for everyone.

lakecavern

We take people climbing that are absolute beginners. We take people that had climbed for years and want to expand their knowledge. We take everyone in between, too. We have had families, school groups, boy scouts and team building groups that absolutely love this trip. This is a trip that’s appropriate for kids as young as 6, and people as old as, well, me.

Who doesn’t love being chauffeured around one the state’s most beautiful lakes?  You get to climb up high above the water, knowing that there only a few people who actually get to experience this!  Awesome.

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Spring in New River Country

Wednesday, April 1st, 2009

Ski resorts are closed. Snow is melting. Daffodils are blooming. Red Bud and Maple trees are in bud. What does this mean? Spring has sprung in West Virginia. Yep, and the rafts are being blown up and are getting wet. Whitewater rafting season is here!!!!

Songer Whitewater has been on the river since March 14 with hardy rafters. People have a pent up desire to get out and play. The guys and girls on March 13 (camping in tents) woke to 6 inches of fresh snow. Though it warmed up nicely that afternoon and the snow melted, giving them great water conditions on Saturday. They loved it!!!

Spring here in New River Country is value season. Great water and rates make it an excellent time to visit in West Virginia. Waves are 4 to 6 feet high with great hydraulics to blast through.

What else is there to do while you are here? Let me suggest something. Our state park system has been rated one of the best in the nation. With natural beauty, scenic sites and historic wonders, visiting these parks should be on your list to do when in our area.

Hawk’s Nest Park has a nice tram ride down into the gorge to the river. Carnifex Ferry Battlefield Park is a historical site telling of the Civil War battles that raged here almost 150 years ago. Babcock Park has a working grist mill that shows how early settlers ground grain into flour. All are within 20 minutes of Songer Whitewater.

Babcock holds a special place in my heart. As a young boy growing up here, my friends and I swam in the creek just below the mill. The dam is still in place that created our swimming hole. Even in August, that water was cold!!, but huge fun!!

Guess what else makes these park special? Entrance is FREE!! Just the right price during these difficult times.

Come out and play in West Virginia and enjoy the great whitewater and our parks. You won’t be disappointed.

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