Everyone who paddles the Summer Gauley agrees that it's simply the best ducky trip in the country. Due to widely varying water flows from the dam, however, we can not tell you in advance what kind of boat you'll be in on the Summer Gauley. This is because the US Army Corps of Engineers posts each day's dam release at 8:00 that morning…not before. It's at this time that we make the determination as to boat size and type, as well as the put-ins and take-outs we'll be using that day. Summer Gauley paddlers simply have to live with the fact that we don't know what type of boat we'll be using, or even what section of the river we'll be paddling, until the morning of the trip. What we can promise you is that we'll use the right boat for the day's flow and that you'll have the time of your life!

At around 500 cubic feet per second (cfs) of water or higher we will usually use 12-foot rafts and begin our trip on the Upper Gauley at the base of Summersville Dam. Above 2500 cfs we will switch to 14-foot rafts. Below 500 cfs, or thereabouts, we will use inflatable kayaks (duckies) and will put in at the top of Lost Paddle rapid. It's at these common summertime levels, between 200 and 500 cfs, that we consider this to be the best ducky trip in the nation. This is not a trip for the out of shape couch potato as it is our most physically demanding trip. Our professional Guides will show you all you need to know about paddling your ducky before the trip begins and our high "guide to guest" ratio insures you lots of personal attention throughout the trip.

In a normal year, we will be in 12 foot rafts about 60 percent of the time. Many factors enter into what constitutes a "normal" year. Of course, heavy rains mean we will be in rafts, but lack of rain does not mean we will necessarily be in ducks. The New River and the Gauley River are both operated by the Corps of Engineers to maintain a specified flow and dissolved oxygen content (for water quality) downstream of the confluence of the two rivers at Gauley Bridge. If the New is running too low to supply the bulk of this desired flow, the Corps will release water from the Gauley to make up the shortfall. This is called "augmentation." Normally if they have to augment, the flow on the Gauley will be high enough for rafts. Heavy (or even normal) rain in Virginia, southern West Virginia, or North Carolina will mean that the New River is high enough to provide all the necessary water, so the Corps may hold back the Gauley during rain and we will be in ducks.

All this is enough to drive our River Manager crazy so please be patient as our Adventure Consultants try to explain all this over the phone.

So what about the Lower Gauley? At summertime flows equivalent to Fall dam releases (1900 to 3000 cfs), we will put in at Mason Branch in rafts and will duplicate the Fall Lower Gauley trip. At slightly lower flows, we will put in at Woods Ferry in rafts. Woods Ferry is about three miles downstream of Mason Branch. At flow under about 1100 cfs we put in at either Bucklick or Koontz Bend. These put-ins are a couple of miles below Woods Ferry. If the flow is over 600 cfs we take out above Pure Screaming Hell if we are in duckies. As you can see, the lower the water flow, the shorter the trip has to be. Again all of this is determined after 8:00 the morning of the trip.

It's very important that everyone in your group understands that there's no way we can tell you what type of boats you'll be in prior to the morning of the trip. If the Summer Gauley is unrunnable, which only happens one or two days all Summer, we'll switch the trip to the New River and run it in the Gung-Ho (small boat) format. Make sure everyone knows that, whatever the Gauley's doing that day, it's going to an exciting, physically demanding day…and a trip you'll remember for the rest of your life!