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Gauley River National Recreation Area
Rafters on Gauley River. Courtesy National Park Service.
Associate Pages
Visitor Statistics
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Gauley River National Recreation Area
272,898 Visitors
#167 Ranked National Park Unit
Park Size
50,082 acres (Federal); 111,483 acres (Total).
Ranking among 398 National Park Units in 2024.
Entrance Fees
Gauley River NRA - Free.
Fees subject to change without notice.
Weather
Remember, this is the West Virginia mountains. Lots of rain in summer with quick moving thunderstorms. Mountain weather is wetter and cooler than most think. Winter snow is prevalent.
Gauley River National Recreation Area. Courtesy National Park Service. Right. Whitewater rafters on the Gauley River rapids. Courtesy National Park Service.
Gauley River National Recreation Area
Gauley River is located north of New River Gorge and is smaller in size. However, what it makes up for in size, it does not give up in adventure. There are twenty-five miles of the Gauley River to explore, and five miles of the Meadows River, too. It has several Class Five Plus rapids. Please only engage those waters with a guide or if you are a very experienced rafter or kayaker. They can be dangerous. This is wild adventure, with limited facilities, and no Visitor Centers. However, there is a campground, waysides, and River Guides. This is West Virginia, one of the most natural and wildest states on the East Coast of the United States. Visit Gauley River, but be prepared. Boating season is officially early September to mid-October. There may be others, dependent on the releases from the Summersville Dam.
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Gauley River Then
The Gauley River region was likely first inhabited by hunters of the Paleo-Indian era, followed up by Native Americans in the Archaic and Woodland (Armstrong, Buck Garden and Fort Ancient tribes) periods. Although fur traders and hunters likely roamed the land prior to the first known habitation by William Morris in 1782 to 1785, it would take the next fifty years before sparse population grew into industrial use of the river as well as the railroad industry that began to dot the forests to haul its lumber to bigger cities. Yes, all to its detriment.
Photo above: Mural of Railroad Heritage by artist Nancy Lane in town of Gauley Bridge, 2015, Carol H. Highsmith. Courtesy Wikipedia Commons via Library of Congress. Below: Another scene of the Gauley River National Recreation Area. Courtesy National Park Service.
Minute Walk in History
Discover the thrilling history and wild beauty of the Gauley River Recreation Area — one of America’s top whitewater rafting destinations in West Virginia.
In this cinematic “Minute Walk in History,” we take you to the legendary rapids below Summersville Dam, where adventure meets American history.
Gauley River Now
The park was established in 1988 and contains two river stuctures, the main Gauley River, and the secondary, Meadows River. It has remained a very remote and undeveloped place to hike, camp, fish, or raft. There is no Visitor Center and very few roads. However, its Class V rapids draw thousands to its water and shores.
T-Shirts and Souvenirs
Gauley River National Recreation Area T-Shirts and Souvenirs from the official merchandise of America's Best History. Great for the national park and whitewater rafting fan.
Gauley River National Recreation Area
Things You Should Not Miss
1. Stand in the area of the Summersville Dam and Lake, and look down the Gauley River below. This structure has allowed the Gauley River to experience water releases that flood the value and create the adventure many rafter take.
2. Get wet. Whether you hire a wildwater outfitter for your time on the river or go yourself, but only if very experienced, the thrills of the Gauley River, for some particularly on the Upper Gauley, are rush worthy, and we're not only talking the thrashing of the river. If you like to get wet slower, fishing along the river is a year round experience.
3. For those with a Civil War history bent, learn more about the Battle of Carnifex Ferry. The Carnifex Ferry State Park is close by and can take you on a Gauley River adventure that led to the formation of West Virginia as its own state.
Photo above: Flowers in the forest surrounding the Gauley River, 2025, Victoria Stauffenberg. Courtesy National Park Service.
Visitor FAQ
What's There Now
Gauley River NRA
Visitors Centers
There is none within the confines of the Gauley River National Recreation Area. Visitors, if they need orientation or assistance, can use the Canyon Rim Visitor Center of the nearby New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. It is open year round, except certain holidays, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Cell phone service within the Gauley River area is not reliable.
Access at four trailheads for boating and fishing.
Whitewater Rafting
More than sixty thousand adventurers take the challenge to whitewater raft during the release season of Summersville Dam. Some are very tough and not for beginners. There are age limits to the various areas. The Upper Gauley River is replete with Class 3 to Class 5 rapids, including chutes at Pillow Rock, Iron Ring and Sweet's Falls. It is a six hundred and sixty-eight foot drop from the top to the bottom of the twenty-five mile stretch of West Virginia river. There are various commercial outfitters that can accomodate you. Check on the National Park Service website.
Photo above: Summersville Dam. Courtesy National Park Service. Below: Sign for Gauley Bridge, noting the Civil War camp and battle that occurred near the site. Courtesy National Park Service.
Lodging and Camping
There is no lodging within the park, but is available in Summersville. Camping is available at Tailwaters Campground below the dam with eighteen sites for vehicles and tents. Primitive camping is allowed in the park, but be careful to adhere to the rules and regulations, as well as keep off private property. The park is narrow and private property is very close. For other camping options, there is full service camping at Summersville Lake provided by the Army Corps of Engineers, as well as primitive camping at nearby New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. This is a bring your own food and take it with you park. There are no restaurants here.
Photo above: Camping at Gauley River Trailrunners Campground, 2025, Victoria Stauffenberg. Courtesy National Park Service.
Directions
The main entrance is located off US Route 19 south of Summersville. Turn off US Route 19 onto West Virginia Route 129 toward Summersville Dam. Take the second left after you cross over the dam and follow the signs to Gauley River National Recreation Area, Gauley Tailwater River Access.
There are three other access points; Mason's Branch (15 miles west of the Summersvillle Dam), Wood's Ferry (2 miles past Mason's Branch), and Upper Swiss (off Route 39 and Upper Swiss Road, which is narrow and winding), far western end of park. Please check your GPS or area maps for the exact location of these public access, parking, and boat dock areas. The physical address for the park is 104 Main Street, Glen Jean, WV 25846-0246.
History of Gauley River Area
For ten thousand years, the Native Americans of the area hunted and fished around the river. As the period of white intervention began, the sparseness of the population there, which still remains today, is that it was a buffer zone between the Iroquois and the Cherokee tribes. In 1782, William Morris began to buy land near Peter's Creek, only to be followed by land speculators over the next decade. Industry would find the area in the 1800's when the Kanawha valley provided salt, timber, and coal.
In 1861, the Battle of Carnifex Ferry occurred on September 10, 1861 when Union troops attacked, after a defeat in August at Kessler's Cross Lanes to Confederate troops, two thousand, under General John B. Floyd. Floyd had remained in a camp at Carnifex Ferry when General William B. Rosecrans and three brigades, five thousand troops, moved south from Clarksburg. Although the Confederates repulsed the infantry attacks, Union artillery held the upper hand and Floyd retreated. It was a strategic victory that eventually led to the Confederate Army abandoning the area of western Virginia, and the area separating from Virginia to become the state of West Virginia. The Union troops would camp on the hills above Gauley Bridge.
Expansion of industry in the area continued after the Civil War, with large scale logging operations, the arrival of the C&O Railroad, and other polluting industries degradading the Gauley River at such a high level, it became known as the River of Ink. Clean up of the river began with the West Virginia State Wildlife League in 1922. The Summersville Dam was completed in 1965, and in 1988, the area was designated the Gauley River National Recreation Area.
Image above: Lithograph of the Civil War Camp at Gauley Bridge, 1862, Ehrgott, Forbriger & Co. Courtesy Library of Congress. Bottom: Mountain residents playing checkers on a porch, 1938, Marion Post Walcott, Office of War Information. Courtesy Library of Congress.
