Family Whitewater Rafting Trip & Exploring the New River in West Virginia

Family Whitewater Rafting Trip & Exploring the New River in West Virginia

First, some context about whitewater rafting in West Virginia:

Over 150,000 visitors get in a raft and hit the white water in West Virginia every year. The New River in West Virginia is one of the world‘s oldest rivers (estimates are 65 million years old), runs about 360 miles long, and dumps water at an average of 8,730 cubic feet/second. (The river that runs through our town, perfect for tubing, is an average of 832 cubic feet/second, by way of comparison.) Those are a lot of impressive numbers and statistics.

How could we not want to experience a family whitewater rafting trip on the New River in West Virginia?! All of those factors were calling our name. It turns out, this family trip was fun, exciting and certainly memorable! We’ve been asked if it was dangerous, too.

We hit up this adventure during our “tri-park trip” this past summer, and this was the first stop we made, before the Creeper Trail.

Given the intensity of rapids on the rivers in West Virginia, no matter how spry and willing you are, kids have to be a certain age before they can participate. Family trips start at age 6 (but more on that below). Big trips down bigger water start in the teen years. 

Those large rapids and the “epic” trips most write about are going down the Gauley River. That, it seems, is where the Big Kids play. Along the Gauley there are 22 predictable whitewater rapids – with over five Class V rapids on the Upper Gauley. If you are going through an outfitter, they don’t take kids down those.

But, lucky for us, many adventure shops have family packages which run the upper part of the New River. This river gets less flow and is less intense than the Gauley, but is still full of rapids (up to Class III when we went) and is a ton of fun.

Of course, it’s not tough to find something to enjoy on the water in this state. There are over 2,000 miles of rivers and streams that flow out of the Appalachian Mountains [source] to make whitewater rafting in the wild and wonderful West Virginia famous. 

We elected to go through ACE Adventures. This was mostly due to pricing, options, reputation, and availability. But we really enjoyed them. Our guides (and there were four for our group of about 20 people) were fantastic – knowledgeable and friendly.

For running the Upper New River, ACE Adventures strongly recommended “duckies,” which pretty much amount to inflatable kayaks. They were stable, flexible, but also really hard to steer. If you go with a child, parent, know that you will be doing some hard work. It’s doable, but not exactly a flatwater paddle where you can drink a beer and float along.

And hear this: if you want to take your family whitewater rafting at this level, I believe you absolutely must go with a guide. We are comfortable paddling and we have plunked our kids into kayaks since they were bitty. But navigating whitewater is an entirely new set of skills that require training.

My biggest tip for whitewater rafting with the family in West Virginia?

Adventure outfitters in the area know the rivers. They know which sections to paddle based on flow and water level. Each day the river is different; they select what will be most successful based on local knowledge and experience. 

Guides will also tell you HOW to get through a particular portion of whitewater. Each rapid has a name and a personality (Duckie Muncher, Whale Hole, etc.) and knowing where to approach the rapids and where to avoid the rapids makes for a higher probability you’ll make it through inside the boat.

These adventure companies seem to know what they are doing. The Upper New River was a great paddle for our family. While our day was LONG — we did over 15 miles and 8 hours in duckies — we enjoyed every moment. There were flat areas to simply float and swim. We were fed a picnic lunch on a beach.

Let me add a personal note that 6 years old seems young for a trip like this. It is a long day on the water, the rapids are actually pretty large and can be quite intimidating. Plus, again, if there are two in a boat and one of them isn’t pulling much water…

And the odds are high that you, or someone in your boat, will fall out. Again, without experience, it’s tough to know how to conquer that white water perfectly. Many (including Mr. Family Trip and The Bug) got dumped. 

Let me pause here and say that seeing my tiny child, all of 50 pounds, predominantly knees and elbows, get swept down river by a Class III rapid was not a great experience. His little yellow helmet bobbed up and down while Mr. Family Trip went the opposite direction, also swept by some intense currents and trying to find his son, who he couldn’t get to.

While an overwhelming feeling, I never once felt as though I needed to get out of my boat to get him. The reason? I completely trusted our guides. Two of them were right there, sitting in the white water, waiting to help anyone who needed it. Within probably 30 seconds (which were long seconds), they had The Bug safely inside a boat with our lead guide, and Mr. Family Trip was righted and back in his boat with the help of the other guide.

In fact, I felt so sure of their ability, that it seemed clear to me that yelling directions to my son or getting in the water myself would have simply complicated a situation that was under control.

If you don’t have confidence in your guides, don’t go. And if your child is not comfortable in the water, definitely wait.

We made the “boat dump” part of our story, and The Bug seems to have fun telling it even if he was, of course, a bit spooked by the moment. But he wasn’t the only one to go over. While we didn’t feel nervous, and felt as though we were safe, that experience (and watching the other families in our group tip out) is why I advocate going with an experienced and well-reviewed outfitter and guides. 

The New River itself will leave you breathless. It is protected by the National Park Service, and for good reason. There is nothing like it.

We paddled through a gorge that, at its deepest, is 1,600 feet, with layers of rock that show over 300 million years of earth’s life. [source] It is impossible to be unimpressed with this.

If, for a moment, you take a deep breath as you look around, it is easy to be astounded by the Earth’s artistry. It is easy to be reminded that humans have survived a lot, and trees keep growing and birds keep flying. It is easy to remember that we are only but a speck of dust in time, and all we can do is to sit back and enjoy the ride. It is easy, in the New River gorge, to have both perspective and a sense of the enormity of it all.

The New River bridge is the opposite display of artistry: a masterpiece of mankind. It’s over 3,000 feet long and 876 feet above the river. You can, incidentally, walk it. But just the thought makes me nauseous. 

Instead, we enjoyed the bridge with our feet planted firmly on the ground – from the New River Canyon Rim Visitors Center and from the end of the Long Point Lookout hike. Those views were awesome enough. (And, honestly, the cliff at the end of the hike felt riskier than our day of whitewater rafting.)

I am so very glad we did this adventure, risk and all. We had a wonderful time, enjoyed this area of West Virginia, and honestly can’t wait to get to go where the “Big Kids” go on the Gauley someday… we’re hooked.

Visit the official New River gorge NPS site here: www.nps.gov/neri 

Visit ACE Adventures here: aceraft.com

 

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