Two deer tested positive for chronic wasting disease in Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, marking the disease’s first documented occurrence in the park.
Two white-tailed deer have tested positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD) in Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, marking the first time the disease was detected in a West Virginia national park.
CWD affects several deer, elk and moose species across North America, and is fatal to infected animals, with no known cure or treatment.
There have been no reported instances of CWD infecting humans, but the World Health Organization advises against the consumption of CWD-infected animals.
All venison from the deer infected with CWD was destroyed, according to a Tuesday press release from the National Park Service (NPS).
NPS said it detected the instances of CWD during ongoing efforts to reduce deer populations “to protect and restore native plants, promote healthy and diverse forests and preserve historic landscapes.”
Similar deer population reduction efforts are being conducted in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C., according to NPS.
In March, three white-tailed deer tested positive for CWD in Maryland’s Antietam National Battlefield and Monocacy National Battlefield, located less than 20 and 25 miles away, respectively.
This also marked the disease’s first documented occurrence in either battlefield, according to NPS.
CWD can cause “drastic weight loss, stumbling, listlessness and other neurological symptoms, though it can take more than a year for these symptoms to present, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“The NPS will continue to participate in monitoring of collected deer for CWD and will destroy venison testing positive for CWD,” NPS said. “If you see sick or dead wildlife, avoid contact with the animal and notify a National Park Service employee as soon as possible.”
U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin’s office said a 40-foot Norway spruce from the Monongahela National Forest will be placed on the Ellipse at the White House.
West Virginia will send a second Christmas tree to the nation’s capital this year.
U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin’s office said a 40-foot Norway spruce from the Monongahela National Forest will be placed on the Ellipse at the White House.
The previous White House Christmas tree had to be replaced after developing a fungal disease.
Manchin says this is the first time the National Park Service and the U.S. Forest Service have partnered to bring a tree to the Ellipse.
“These tree lighting celebrations are wonderful traditions that bring our great country together, and West Virginia’s role this year will be absolutely historic,” Manchin said in a statement Wednesday.
Across the country thousands of park rangers will be furloughed, gates will be locked, and visitor centers will be closed at national park sites, if there is a government shut down, including all of West Virginia’s national park and forest lands.
Updated on Sept. 29, 2023 at 4:14 p.m.
October is peak season for visitors at the New River Gorge National Park, but it may be forced to close as early as Sunday due to the government shutdown.
The Department of the Interior, which is responsible for managing the National Park Service, has announced that if there is a shutdown then the National Park Service will be closed.
Across the country thousands of park rangers will be furloughed, gates will be locked, and visitor centers will be closed at national park sites, including all of West Virginia’s national park and forest lands. Areas that are impossible or impractical to restrict public access to will remain open. The park service is discouraging the public from visiting national parks and forests during the government shutdown.
States, local governments, cooperating associations, and other third parties can donate money to keep the park running during the shutdown but that is subject to the approval of the National Park Service director. However, Gov. Jim Justice says the state has no current plan to support the park during the shutdown.
The park service will continue activities necessary to protect life and property like law enforcement and emergency response, protection of federal land, property, and waterways.
The chance of ending up in the water is higher in those rapids, McQueen said. He believes in the river mantra that a boater is always just in between swims.
As summer winds down, tens of thousands of whitewater rafters and kayakers from all over the country begin their migration to West Virginia. They are here for the Gauley River — which normally only has navigable flows during the fall.
The fall recreational flows are part of a planned effort of water releases in the fall to draw down Summersville Lake and support whitewater rafting and kayaking.
Companies offer guided trips down the river for customers without expert whitewater skills. However, most of the boats on the river are private boaters or individuals who own their own equipment and have the professional knowledge and abilities to navigate the river.
The bright red cataraft and kayak increase the visibility of the crafts.
Credit: Briana Heaney/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
The National Park Service said this year they have seen more private boaters than ever.
Matt McQueen is a park ranger. The Gauley has recreational releases two to four days a week during its six week season. On those days he is paddling down the river in his red kayak alongside a red cataraft operated by another park ranger — Kathy Zerkle.
Chromatic Currents
The colors on the hills change from a bright green in the beginning of the season to vibrant yellows, reds and oranges in the late season. The landscape is interrupted by the bright primary-colored boats, tutus, sequined shirts and glittered faces, all headed downstream from where the river begins at Summersville Dam.
“A lot of different colors, a lot of plastic on the water, a lot of smiling faces, a lot of glitter, a lot of lipstick,” McQueen said. “There’s definitely a whole culture involved in the whitewater industry that is kind of unique, for sure.”
Headed East To West Virginia
The colorful and glittery private boaters gather on this river from all over the country.
Melissa Clivio-Wentrup is one of those sparkling travelers. She started guiding on the river this summer in her home state of Montana.
“A lot of our senior guides had spoken a big game about the Gauley. I had heard this name kind of floating around in the parking lot since I had gotten there,” Clivio-Wentrup said.
Melissa Clivio-Wentrup (middle) is wearing glitter makeup at the put-in for the Gauley River. She is with her friends from Montana, Bair Osgood (left) and Charlie Moseley (right).
Credit: Briana Heaney/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Kevin Fitch agreed. He has been guiding for nine years in Colorado and has come to West Virginia for the past few falls to work and play on the river.
The parking lot for the put-in is like a big family reunion. It’s dotted with hugs, and “hey, how you been?” Every once in a while, someone will run across the lot towards an embrace from someone they haven’t seen in weeks, months or years.
Credit: Briana Heaney/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
The Big Pushy Water Of The Gauley
The rafters said they come here because of how massive the whitewater is. The “White Water Guide Book” said the Gauley is the best river for a single day trip. The river has many of the qualities that create big whitewater: a steep descent, lots of water and lots of obstacles.
During the release, it runs at a minimum of 2,800 cubic feet per second, or CFS. A cubic foot of water is about the size of a basketball. If there was a line going across the river, every second 2,800 basketballs worth of water would cross it during the recreational release.
The Gauley is a pool drop style of river. This means that the rapids are separated by calm pools of water. Credit: Briana Heaney/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
“Because of the style of the Gauley, 2,800 ends up being a large amount of water for a relatively small river,” Fitch said.
Fitch said the combination of those features make the waves reminiscent of a big ocean swell.
“You’re looking ten feet above you, at the crest of the wave. Your only perspective, your only visual at that point, is the water around you and the trees that poke about above them,” Fitch said.
Rating The River
Those waves, rocks and water all factor into a whitewater classification system that rates rapids from 1-6 on level of difficulty. Park Ranger McQueen said that you can think of class one as a choppy day on a lake, and class six as a nearly impossible run.
McQueen kayaks around the bottom of rapids looking upstream in case any rafters or kayakers need his help. Credit: Briana Heaney/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
“Class five is more of an expert level where significant hazards are present,” he said. “Navigation and the route are not always easily apparent. There are some solid navigational skills that need to be required to get through and strengthen, strength for sure.”
The Gauley has five class five rapids: Iron Curtain, Pillow, Lost Paddle, Iron Ring and Sweets Falls.
The Sounds Of White Water
The chance of ending up in the water is higher in those rapids, McQueen said. He believes in the river mantra that a boater is always just in between swims.
“No matter how good, or skilled, or experienced you are as a whitewater paddler, eventually something is going to happen where you’re gonna find yourself in the water, taking a swim,” he said.
That’s why the park service is out there kayaking below rapids, or standing on rocks with throw bags.
Boaters perched on rocks below some of the rapids, boats tied to trees, watching other rafters and kayakers paddle the rapid. When a raft or kayak has made a few mistakes and flipping or swimming look likely, cheers erupt from bystanders.
“Cheers generally mean that you have messed up your line. Cheers generally mean that somebody is going in the water,” Fitch said.
Throw bags are used to assist swimmers in getting to land. They are always thrown from land to a swimmer who then grabs the rope and is swung into the bank of the river. Rope is often a last option in helping a swimmer because of hazards associated with using it.
Credit: Briana Heaney/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
However, he said that if the swimmers are in a dangerous position then the rock-perched boaters immediately take action.
“What is absolutely epic about those times is everyone will cheer as things are going wrong,” Fitch said. “But if things end up going weird, the cheers immediately stop. And the concern for the individual and getting them out of the scenario that they’re in becomes paramount. And that is one of the aspects of a phenomenal community here.”
The Gauley River usually gets 20,000 to 30,000 visitors each season. Rangers are predicting that the numbers this year could be their highest yet.
The 2023 Gauley season started Sept. 8 and will end on Oct. 22.
With the rise in the popularity of climbing in the region, the national park hired some ambassadors to educate climbers about climbing etiquette, conservation and safety.
The National Park Service is hosting two climbing stewards at the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve and at Summersville Lake.
With the rise in the popularity of climbing in the region, the agency hired some ambassadors to educate climbers about climbing etiquette, conservation and safety.
Chief Ranger Frank Sellers said these stewards have worked to educate more than 5,000 park visitors since this program started six months ago.
“These folks, you know, are climbers themselves, and they’re passionate about their sport,” Sellers said. “And you know, they’re passionate about the parks, and about where they climb and about protecting rock climbing areas for the future.”
The stewards will also be helping climbers bridge the gap between climbing indoors and climbing on natural rock.
“People bring dogs to the park, people have to use the restroom,” Sellers said. “You know, if you’re in a climbing gym, that’s easy. If you’re in a natural setting that’s maybe more difficult. You got to have a plan.”
The climbing stewards are hosting “climber coffees” at popular trailheads on Fridays and Saturdays in the national park and Sundays at Summersville Lake through the fall.
They will also be visiting popular climbing spots and continuing conversations with climbers about conservation. The program is an alliance between the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, the New River Alliance of Climbers and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Visitors and spending increased after the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve gained national park status.
In late 2020, the New River Gorge became the newest unit of the National Park Service. Last year, and in 2021, national park visitor spending in the state topped $100 million for the first time.
Park visitation increased to 1.6 million in 2021 and 2022, up from 1 million in 2020 and 1.2 million in 2018 and 2019.
The Harpers Ferry National Historical Park also registered an uptick in the past two years: 400,000 visitors last year, and 300,000 in 2021.
More visitors came to New River last year and in 2021 than went to Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park, which charges an entrance fee.
