Summersville Lake Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

The Transient, Loud, Sparkly And Rowdy Culture Of Fall Boating In W.Va.

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.

National Park Climbing Stewards Educate Climbers About Conservation And Etiquette

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.

Summersville Lake Becomes 36th State Park

Summersville Lake is now a state park, opening the possibility of new recreational activities like hiking and biking trails to the community of Nicholas County and tourists alike.

Gov. Jim Justice signed House Bill 124 into law on-site at Summersville Lake Friday.

“This opens another gateway for West Virginia. I mean, it’s 177 acres, a mile of lake frontage, and climbing beyond belief and all those things,” Justice said. “And now, we’re going to expand splash parks and zip lines and all that’s unbelievable. Every dollar we spend on tourism, there’s a multiplier effect, it could be as many as 14 plus times. It is amazing what happens when you really invest in yourself and that’s what we’re doing.”

The new park is located on the northern shore of the state’s largest lake, located in Nicholas County.

The 177-acre property on the northern shore of Summersville Lake will be transformed into outdoor adventure parks.

*Credit: W.Va. Governor’s Office*

Chelsea Ruby, the secretary of Tourism, said she and others have been working to make Summersville Lake a state park for a couple of years.

“They made it official and today the governor signed the bill, making it really official, so it is,” Ruby said. “This site is now available to folks who are looking to climb, who are looking to hike, to ride their bikes, to come and have a picnic just to enjoy West Virginia and enjoy the lake.”

With the state park designation comes state resources, allowing for amenities such as hiking, biking, climbing and even scuba diving.

Have you ever wondered what’s beneath the surface of Summersville Lake?

For adventurers like Access Fund Climb Steward Nina Sions, a state park designation is exciting news.

“The parking lot and the trails have always been on private property,” Sions said. “So for the climbing community, I think the big win for us is to have a legitimate parking lot and the trails under the state park. That means better maintenance and just a lot better secure access for us.”

Summersville Lake State Park is open to the public for recreational activities.

Summersville Lake Provides Inland Scuba Destination

Ed Skaggs floats underwater on a recent scuba dive at Summersville Lake.

At any given time on weekends during the summer months, there are likely dozens of divers exploring the world beneath the waves at Summersville Lake in Nicholas County, West Virginia. Just watch for their bubbles on the surface.

It may come as a surprise that a lake known for fishing, camping and boating, is also a favorite destination for divers. They come to the lake to take classes, practice their diving skills and just have fun in the water.

The lake, originally built as a flood control project in 1966, and can reach depths of 300 feet, significantly deeper than recreational divers can go.

Bob Sharp, a dive instructor from Charleston, has been diving in the lake for more than 30 years. It provides him a place to dive when he can’t make it to the ocean.

“This is West Virginia’s ocean right here at Summersville lake,” he said.

Divers come from all over West Virginia and the region to dive in the lake. Scott Peterson is from north-central West Virginia.

Christmas trees are submerged in the lake for fish habitat.

“It’s the best freshwater diving in the area for visibility and water and a nice spot to do it here where you can get close to the water,” he said.

Ceclia Peterson likes to come to the lake as well.

“It’s peaceful. It’s pretty,” she said. “It’s nice just to come out here.”

The most common question divers hear as they exit the water is ‘What do you see down there?’ or ‘What is it like?’ Like everything else, the answer is different depending on who you ask.

Ed Skaggs, for example, really loves Long Point, an elbow in the lake that is only accessible by boat. Since there aren’t shallow areas nearby, the water remains clear.

“There’s so much cover for fish. You see a lot of fish, a lot of structure,” he said. “There are places where you can swim underneath fallen rocks. It’s almost like flying.”

Ed Skaggs and Eric Douglas underwater at Summersville Lake.

September 3, 1966: Summersville Lake and Dam Dedicated

On September 3, 1966, President Lyndon Johnson traveled to Nicholas County to dedicate the Summersville Dam and Lake. With a summer pool stage of nearly 2,800 surface acres and 60 miles of shoreline, it’s West Virginia’s largest lake.

The Summersville Dam, located on the Gauley River, was built as a flood-control project between 1960 and 1966 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for nearly $48 million. At 390 feet high and nearly four-tenths of a mile long, it’s the second-largest dam of its kind in the eastern United States. Its drainage area covers parts of Nicholas, Webster, Greenbrier, Pocahontas, and Randolph counties.

Water released downstream through a 29-foot-diameter tunnel produces a spectacular sight from the highway that crosses the dam. Water releases during the fall have spawned a multimillion-dollar whitewater industry on the Gauley River. And the lake, with its stunning sandstone cliffs, is extremely popular with hikers, rock climbers, campers, boaters, and fishermen during warm-weather months.

A hydropower project at Summersville Dam was completed in 2001, generating more than 200 million kilowatt-hours of electricity each year—enough for 50,000 homes.

W.Va. Issues New Fish Consumption Advisories

West Virginia has updated its advisories for eating fish caught in lakes and rivers.

The 2014 West Virginia Sport Fish Consumption Advisory removes limits on consumption of Greenbrier River smallmouth bass and walleye caught in Summersville Lake.

The Department of Health and Human Resources says newer information indicates lower mercury levels in both fish.

A limit on consumption of Shenandoah River smallmouth bass was revised to include all sizes. The previous limit applied to smallmouth bass longer than 12 inches. The DHHR says newer information indicates higher mercury levels in smaller smallmouth bass.

A limit on consumption of Ohio River striped bass hybrid was revised due to increased levels of polychlorinated biphenyls. The limit is now six meals per year. The old limit was one meal per month.