Mountain Biking and Other Adventures at Gauley Fest

OVERVIEW

Yo yo yo! What’s up Outdoors at UVA?

For those of you who didn’t read the description of Hannah’s adventure, Gauley Fest is basically a gathering of all the raddest whitewater enthusiasts and vendors the Eastern U.S. of A. can muster. But while the whitewater aspect of the festival is inescapable, it is vital to note that you don’t have to be an intermediate/advanced kayaker to have a great time up in the ever-gorgeous West Virginia. I’m only not that level of a kayaker, but I really want to go to Gauley Fest…. so this adventure was born!

WHAT WE WILL BE DOING:
– DAYTIME:

The woods of West Virginia hold many secrets besides the Gauley. On Saturday, I plan on doing some mountain biking on the Pocohantas Trails which are about an hour east of the festival (see below link for details). Hannah and her goons are planning on running the Upper Gauley on Sunday and so I think it would be cool to find a couple points with good views of the Gauley (Hannah says that at the very least there is access to Sweet Falls and Pillow Rock) to which we could hike and where we could take some pictures/videos and just generally appreciate the fury and power of serious whitewater without actually boating through it.

http://www.bicyclewv.com/trails.cfm?func=getTrails&id=245

I would also be totally amenable to some bouldering or climbing (note that I have no experience in either), or hiking, or really anything else that people want to do. The trip is meant to be flexible, relaxed and played by ear. Finding a nice swimming hole would also be pretty clutch.

Note: There will probably be commercial rafting companies offering trips down both the Gauley and New Rivers so if you have some ca$h to $pla$h then that something you could do as well — we don’t all need to do the same things.

-NIGHTIME:

I’m gonna bring up my banjo, a hatchet, matches, cards etc. so we should be set to have some good times around a fire Friday night and Saturday night.

TRANSPORTATION:

We will be leaving at 4:00pm on Friday from the Echols brick wall — the same time as Hannah’s parallel adventure. We will also return at the same time as them (roughly 10:00pm on Sunday night). I do not have a car, so I am putting everyone on the wait list until someone with a car signs up (they will have priority). I am planning on us taking up a maximum of two cars. If someone has an SUV that would be PERFECT! Especially because of the bike rack.

FOOD:

The Club will not be providing food. What that means is that everyone will have to either plan on buying food at the festival or in the nearby town of Summersville, WV. You could also just bring a cooler of food up with you from C-ville. If we all want to go in together on stuff to cook over a fire, I know some recipes.

CAMPING:

The plan is to camp just outside the fenced in area where the festival is held (so stumbling distance away, but far enough where everyone should be able to get some sleep). Festival entrance is included in the camping fee:
-Thursday, Friday, and Saturday: $30
-Friday and Saturday: $25
-Saturday only: $20
The club may reimburse $10 of the camping fee per night, so plan accordingly. Always safer to bring extra cash –especially with all the sweet deals on boats/gear going on. I’m setting the fee to $20, but that won’t be paid to me.

WHAT TO BRING:

Tent/sleeping bag/stove/camping stuff if you have it, clothes (for on and off the river, especially warm clothes, it’s usually colder in WV than in Cville right now), water, your own knife, fork, spoon, cup, plate, bowel and extra $$ for all the awesome gear that will be on sale. NOW IS THE TIME TO GET A SWEET DEAL ON A BOAT!

If you have your own mountain bike bring it along.

CLUB PROVIDES:

Mountain biking gear if you need it, camping gear if you need it, camping fees, gas $$ up to $150/vehicle.

DISCLAIMER / LEGAL:

I am NOT “leading” on any adventures done during Gauley Fest, I am only coordinating some logistics and transportation to the festival site, you are responsible for your own safety and the activities you choose to participate in while on this trip.