Gauley Fest!

OVERVIEW

Gauley Fest is the biggest whitewater kayaking festival of the year. Last year pretty much every major kayaking company was there selling and giving stuff away, and about 3000 people, kayakers and groupies alike. Here’s the link to the American Whitewater website about it: http://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/Wiki/aw:events_gauley

I’m planning to head down Friday afternoon, leaving around 2, and coming back late Sunday. I’ll probably paddle the New River Gorge (class III/IV) Saturday with Coastals (kayaking club in Richmond), and then the Middle Gauley (Class III+/IV) on Sunday with an UVA/Outdoors Club alum. IMPORTANT: I’m not familiar enough with either of these rivers to lead people down them; I’ve never been to the New and don’t know the lines on the Gauley. So, I’m not leading this trip as a kayaking trip, but as a social trip. If you have friends who are going, you’re of course welcome to paddle with them, or if you want to paddle with me either day, email me and I’ll talk to Coastals and to the UVA alum, Quintin Brubaker.

Camping at the campground in Summersville is $5/night/person, but as long as we save the receipts, the club will reimburse us. Same goes for food, the club will reimburse up to $12/day/person.

You provide: kayaking gear if you have it, tent/sleeping bag/stove/camping stuff if you have it, clothes (for on and off the river, especially warm clothes, its much colder in WV than in cville right now), extra $$ for all the awesome kayaking gear that will be on sale

Club provides: kayaking gear if you need it, camping gear if you need it, camping fees, food $$, gas $$ up to $100/car.

Right now I’m setting the max number of people at 5, since that’s how many people my car can hold, but will let people in off the waitlist as people with cars sign up.