The Gauley gets tough
Photo courtesy Wildwater Expeditions

It's known as the Beast of the East and is considered by many grizzled river guides to be the epitome of the whitewater challenge. And although California's Kern or the Colorado Green might take the prize for sheer scenic splendor, West Virginia's Gauley River is one helluva classic whitewater run.

Running through a gorge in the relatively undramatic forested surrounds of the Gauley River National Recreation Area, the upper 25 miles of the 107-mile-long Gauley River transform into a cauldron of fizzing, raft-eating rapids come the first Friday following Labor Day (and for six subsequent weeks through October). Fed by the annual opening of the upriver Summersville Dam, a churning mass of boat-flipping water pounds at 3,000 cubic feet per second down a butt-clenching, 668-foot cumulative drop. Rafts and kayaks bounce through a series of Class III to Class V rapids, getting tipped, snarled, and rinse-cycled in cataracts with butch names like Iron Ring, Shipwreck, and Lost Paddle.

Sure, it's a bit of a zoo with some 80,000 river rats converging on the area in those short six weeks, but it's one zoo where you'll leave feeling you've experienced the real-deal wild thing. Around 20 outfitters ply the Gauley's upper and lower legs, and you can choose from a variety of half- and full-day trips. The region's preeminent outfitter is Wildwater Expeditions (800-982-7238, www.wvaraft.com), which has been in the business of taming—or at least riding—the beast for over 30 years. Trips run $89 to $229, and can include overnight camping at the company's Lansing, West Virginia, HQ.

RELATED GORP LINKS
GORP Paddling
GORP West Virginia
Top 40 U.S. Whitewater