Gauley, |
|
| Usual Difficulty | II-III(IV) (may vary with level) |
|---|---|
| Avg. Gradient | 20 fpm |
| Max Gradient | 40 fpm |
| Name | Range | Difficulty | Updated | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GAULEY RIVER NEAR CRAIGSVILLE, WV | ||||
| usgs-03189100 | 11.00 - 14.00 ft | II-III(IV) | 01h04m | 10.85 ft (rc= -0.1 ) |
Rapids were rated when the Craigsville gauge was between 11.5'(900 cfs) and 12.0'(1460cfs)
Alternative takeouts:
1. Panther Creek - 4.6 miles on river left, class II TO III-, 20'/mile gradient.
Panther Creek comes in on river left and may be reached from Curtin Bridge via WV 20&55 to
Fenwick, then onto WV 39&20 to Panther Creek Road CR 39/15 which leads directly to the river
at the former Marybill Mine site. The road that follows the river left side downstream of the
Curtin Bridge is much shorter but does not save much (if any) shuttle time and is a private road.
2. One rapid beyond Ships Prow Rapid (IV-) - 6.6 miles river right, This additional mileage
contains the steepest mile at 40'/mile gradient and contains several boulder congested rapids of
Class III or greater difficulty.
Take out # 2 is on river right and may be reached from the Curtin Bridge (WV20&55) via the
Crupperneck Road (CR 14), which deadends at a left turn onto CR 14/1) which leads to a fairly
large flat area about 100 feet above river level. There is a road leading downstream of this flat
area. Depending on whether this road is gated or blocked you may have a slight uphill carry for
1/2 mile back to the end of the public road at this large flat area. Note* Since the spring of
2000 these private roads have been gated or blocked. Since the winter of 2001/02 CR 14/1 has been
impassable for the last 1/2 mile above the large flat area.
3. Mouth of Big Beaver Creek - 8.4 miles on river right. Although there is a marginal road down
to the river immediately past Big Beaver Creek boaters should expect a one mile hike up to Nile
Road - CR 8
4. Mouth of Persinger Creek - 12.4 miles on river right. To find this take-out go on WV 41 from
Summersville toward Persinger. Take right on Nile Road - CR 8. Go 1.8 miles on Nile road and turn
right in a sharp bend onto a gravel road that leads to the river at 1.2 miles below and at the
mouth of Persinger Creek. This road looks sketchy from the top but is a solid so motorboats and
their trailers can get to the WV DNR access point at the head of summer pool on Summersville
Lake.
| Name | Range | Difficulty | Updated | Level | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GAULEY RIVER NEAR CRAIGSVILLE, WV | ||||||||||||
| usgs-03189100 | 11.00 - 14.00 ft | II-III(IV) | 01h04m | 10.85 ft (rc= -0.1 ) | ||||||||
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| When | River/Gauge | Subject | Level | Reporter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gauley [WV] |
Top Gauley 02
|
1400 cfs | John Petretich | |
| 4y362d19h32m | Gauley River [WV] |
Top Gauley 07
|
1400 cfs | John Petretich |
No rapids entered. If you know names, and locations of the rapids please contact and advise the StreamTeam member for this run. River Alert
State News
River Links
NWRI - Gauley 6. Curtin Bridge to confluence with Persinger Creek (mobile)
User Comments
11.7 ft. At this level, this is a great section of intermediate water. Gradually increases from
easy class II to a few class III rapids and ends with a challenging class IV that should be bank
scouted. There is an old brick bridge support in river center which indicates that the action is
increasing. After the bridge support there is about a short section of class III before the class
IV. It will be obvious because there is no clear route obvious from the boat. The move is basically
from river left, ferry behind the first large rock in river center to river right. After the ferry,
there was a line down river right. All of the rapids with the exception of the last one were easily
boat scoutable and offered plenty of opportunity to practice river running skills. We accidentally
ran into the land owner for the takeout. He is very kayaker friendly and is willing to work out
both river access and primitive camping arrangements. We tipped him $10 to give us access. He asked
me to pass along his contact information. Call Floyd Dillon for river access 304-742-6237 Edit
there is current all the way to the Rt. 39 bridge. The section below Big Beaver Creek contains
small (class I-II) rapids and a mellow gradient. It makes for a nice long day and simple shuttle
logistics.
I am unsure of how to get this on the AW site, but someone had asked for some info. The far takeout
on Crupperneck Road is still there, but to access it via Crupperneck Road one must negotiate some
2' diagonal washouts and one that is deep enough to fit an S-10 in, call this a class V. As for
making the shorter run of the top section of the Top Gauley. The road on river left, to my
knowledge, is public, although some cabin and property owners along this road may not like it. This
is proven by the large quantities of roofing nails strewn about the pull-off areas. We consider
ourselves locals (WV Tags) and last time we ran it in early June 2002, my buddy ended up with 2 in
one tire and 1 in another. So be on the lookout! The run is sweet, though, okay play down to 1000
cfs, but gets better as it goes up. At about 2000 cfs a honey of a wave hole thingy can be found on
river left about 5 miles down. We consider this the optimal level, and I usually cannot get anyone
off their lazy a@# to go if it is lower than that. A bonus is that I rarely see a person there. If
you opt for the whole run, be wary that a rapid uncharacteristic of the run lies waiting to munch
the unexpecting. Hope this helps.
Mike Vanderberg
I take it the crupperneck 14-1 takeout is out( i looked at that road and turned around)
As for the river left road downstream of the 55/20 bridge we were told it was private (no signs) SO
we paddled nothing
ANY ADDITIONAL INFO. WOULD BE GREAT