Kayaking In The Gauley River ( West Virginia, US)

Every year the American Whitewater Affiliation and the American army release 2800 cubic feet of water into West Virginia’s Gauley River, turning one of the best rivers to kayak in the world, into the world’s most sought after whitewater playground. For the next six weekends, paddlers descend on the upper and lower Gauley River to test their skills and skirt danger. Kayakers love the river for its difficulty and feast of big water heart-thumpers: the entire gamut—from Class 1-5 scale rapids—is up for navigation. Neither section is without its dangers but it’s the Upper Gauley that really gives the river its reputation. ‘Pillow Rock’—the first big drop is like an arena. The trail leading down from the gorge rim is awash with sadistic onlookers eager to see rafts flipping and kayaks crashing. The rapid itself consists of the entire flow of the river piling into an ‘L’ shaped, house-sized rock on the left side of the river—forming the famous ‘pillow.’ Finding the right line can be tricky and Pillow takes down its share of kayakers every year. Another good time to go is during the annual Gauley River Festival at the Nicholas County Veteran's Municipal Park outside Summersville, West Virginia. This one-day paddler's cornucopia brings kayakers from around the world together for gear swaps, good-music, games, and an all-round capital time.
Expert Tips
Kayaking requires continuous paddling and can be physically taxing. If you’re planning a kayaking trip then make sure that you get into decent physical shape a few weeks in advance. This may sound silly, but you should ideally know how to swim: even though you will be wearing a life jacket, it is important to feel comfortable in the water. Learn how to launch your kayak and some basic paddling strokes. Also it’s a good idea to begin kayaking with a group of 3-4 experienced paddlers. This will help you to learn a lot about kayaking—like reading the water, kayaking techniques etc. Planning a kayaking adventure all alone can be disastrous as you may be unable to handle any contingency.