Gauley

Posted on 6/27/02 to the AW Massage Board:

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