For everyone coming to West Virginia the weekend of the 24th..

For anybody going to the WVU game in mid-September, I highly suggest you make a pit stop to do some whitewater rafting while you're in our state.

West Virginia is home to the Gauley River, which is consistently rated as one of the top 10 rivers in the WORLD when it comes to whitewater rafting. This is an absolute thrill unlike any other, and this is coming from somebody who doesn't like roller coasters or heights. But there's absolutely nothing like the rush from whitewater rafting IMO.

For only 22 days each year, you're able to raft the Gauley River for several weekends in September and October. Our game happens to fall on Sep 24th, which is right in the middle of Gauley season. You can do it on Friday, Saturday or Sunday. Obviously, Saturday is out of the question so I would suggest the Friday morning 1/2 day trip before you head back to Morgantown for some late night tanking Friday night on High Street.

With the limited availability, almost all of these trips sell out every year. And with that being a football weekend, a lot of people may go that Friday before the game to spend the day on the Gauley. I would suggest booking your trips extremely early if you're interested. I can assure you this is something you will not regret and I would not be posting it here if it was the least bit lame. If you're looking for some fun, excitement and thrills while you're in WV, you HAVE to do this!

You can raft the Upper New River, Lower New, Lower Gauley, or Upper Gauley. Since this is in the height of Gauley season, however, I would highly recommend taking advantage of that and rafting the Gauley River.

The Lower Gauley is the least dangerous of the two and requires no previous experience. However, you definitely need to know what you're doing because it's a huge step up from either the Lower or Upper New. My first time whitewater rafting was on the Lower Gauley and it was an incredible rush for 5-6 hours. I've probably been rafting a total of five times since then, but nothing has come close to my first run. There are plenty of Class III - V rapids on this runs, and apparently they've lengthened it now to around 13 miles. It will probably last anywhere from 8-9am to 1-2pm.

The Upper Gauley is world renowned and one of the top 10 runs in the world. You have to be over 18 with plenty of previous experience because is can be extremely dangerous if you don't know what you're doing. I wouldn't advise this unless you've been before and you're up for a HUGE rush. While the Lower Gauley isn't the Upper in terms of difficulty, it's still a fantastic run with incredible scenery. Even if you choose the more tame Lower or Upper New, you really can't go wrong with any of these.

Just some info in case anybody is interested. There are all kinds of various river companies, but I have linked one below that I usually take. North American River Runners (NARR) is legit and they have been doing this forever. I've always had a great time using this company and never had a bad tour guide.

Hope you guys make the trip. You really couldn't ask for a better way to start out a road trip and get a sense of the culture and scenery in West Virginia. Trust me, you WILL NOT regret it!

LINK

LINK

Go Mountaineers!