Williams
2. Tea Creek to Three Forks of Williams
| Difficulty | III-IV |
| Length | 11 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 53 fpm |
| Gauge | Williams River at Dyer, Wv |
| Flow Rate as of 1 hour | 2.21 ftbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | April 23, 2026 |
River Description
This is a great small stream with lots of laurel and trout fishermen. The latter are particularly abundant after stocking. If you like intimate water with lots of eddy-hopping you will find it here.
This stretch begins with a short section of class II water after the putin just below the bridge crossing the Williams at Tea Creek CG. After this the Williams is almost constant class III eddy-hopping and playing. At higher levels it is a solid class III/IV run. Almost the entire run is scoutable from the road (FS 86). It is also quite possible to shorten the run - just find a convenient pull-off on FS 86 as far downriver as you want to paddle and park your takeout vehicle.
Our first run on the Williams was just before Memorial Day, 2000. We saw that the Craigsville gauge was running about 13 feet and the Cranberry gauge was too low to run so we headed over to the Cherry. When we got there the Cherry was too low to run. Let's see - there are 4 major streams that provide water for the Craigsville gauge - the top reaches of the Gauley, the Williams, the Cranberry, and the Cherry. Since the last two didn't have much water it had to be the Williams or the Gauley. We took a chance and headed to the Williams. The folks at the Cranberry Visitor Center verified our suspicion when they told us that there had been a significant, isolated thunderstorm in the upper reaches of the Williams.
Putin: Bridge on FS 86 (off WV 150) at Tea Creek CG.
Takeout: Bridge on FS 86 at Three Forks of the Williams.
River Features
Put-In
Bridge on FS 86 (off WV 150) at Tea Creek Campground.
Take Out
Bridge on FS 86 at Three Forks of the Williams.
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportThis is one of the areas tht was hit hard by the flooding in June 2016. As of 8/30/16 FS 86 is closed from Tea Creek campground to the bridge about 11 miles downstream. I didn't get to see that stretch of river, but there's an enormous amount of wood in the general area
FYI we were down there spring of 2018, road is open again. Jay
A cold winter day on a great river.
A great day on the Williams with the Keelhaulers
I vaguely recall running this on a day when everything else was too high. I shuttled on my mountain bike through a steady, day-long moderate-to-hard rain. It was a good day for it. If everything else nearby is runnable, this may be too low. Or, at least, that was my perception---not for sure, but just FYI, for you to think about.
PAddled this with a group on 5/15/2010 at a level of 3.7' or so and dropping very slowly. Water was perhaps a foot under the low water bridge at the TC Campground at the put in and it looked semi low there but was enough downstream for a good Class 2-3+ run.
This is definitely a strong intermediate run at this level although intermediate paddlers can probably do it as long as they are with a strong paddlers who can help and know the river.
Rapids are numerous and very very little flatwater on this section. We did 8 miles or so before taking out along FS86 road that runs along on the left side.
Rapids can be ledges, boulder gardens, and holes and a mix of all of these. At this level the route ewas not always easy to find. Very little wood seen. Need to stay alert for rocks as they are everywhere.
Very scenic and a great run on a sunny day. We were lucky to have sun and low 70's. Other paddlers said it was often raining when they paddled it. At 4.5' and higher this seems like it would be a definite run for advanced and expert paddlers only as swims could be long and painful.
Level was around 3.7' on gauge at Dyer and was falling very slowly as it had rained the night before. Lots of small feeders coming in along the run. Seemed somewhat low at the put in but best rapids were fine as the river tends to narrow at these and the flow seemed to pick up after each mile. Lots of ledges, rocks, boulders, holes and not much flatwater to be seen. Good level for intermediate ot strong intermediates to be challenged. Enough action to keep stronger paddlers interested.
Went and ran an 8 mile section today at the Williams with a couple of friends and WOW! it was at 5.07 and man it was running fast and big! But it was a ton of fun and we had a great adventure.
anyone interested in paddling this sunday the 29th of march meet at the put in around 1 pm feel free to contact me on boater talk my s.n. is snowshoe scooby
Teakwood..
The road is paved NOW......All the way to 150........ a fishermans and boaters dream. I was there trout fishing on the 18 of march 09...... if anything it is a beautiful ride.
The crux rapid is not really visible when driving along the road, so be aware of this. The river veers right a bit, and there's a narrow slot between boulders leading to a tight left turn before a hole--at least when it was high, a few years ago. I remember this being the only rapid that is not visible from the road, more-or-less.