New River … Live gauge Next up Beckley Half Marathon and 5K, September 26, 2026
Guides coil ropes beside a row of blue rafts pulled up on a rocky beach, with the New River flowing past and the New River Gorge Bridge arch overhead, AI-generated illustration

Rivers and outfitters

Big rapids on the New, Class V fall releases on the Gauley, sandstone cliffs and a catwalk under the bridge.

From Fayetteville you can be crashing through the Lower New's biggest rapids by lunchtime, dropping over Class V ledges on the Gauley in fall, or roped up on the sandstone cliffs that ring the gorge. Licensed guides run all of it, plus ziplines and a harnessed walk under the bridge deck. Seven companies with bases around Fayetteville hold the West Virginia license to take paying guests down the river: ACE Adventure Resort, Adventures on the Gorge, Alpine Ministries, Cantrell Ultimate Rafting, New & Gauley River Adventures, River Expeditions and West Virginia Adventures.

The state licensee list names the rafting companies but not their rivers, so the guides below go straight to each outfitter's own trip pages. Climbing guides work under a separate Park Service permit, and the park doesn't publish who holds one (its commercial use page explains the system), so ask to see it. Looking for Appalachian Wildwaters from an old map? It became part of River Expeditions in 2008. Most outfitters don't put a year on their prices, which is why every price in this section carries the date it was checked.

River level right now

New River at Thurmond, WV, USGS 03185400

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Live USGS reading

Live U.S. Geological Survey data for the New River at Thurmond, loaded fresh each time the page opens.

Full river conditions and what each level means for your trip

Plan your day on the river or the rock

Rafting the New River

The Lower New's big Class IV rapids or the Upper New's gentle family float: ages, 2026 prices and how the water level changes the ride.

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Gauley season rafting

Six fall weekends when Summersville Dam turns the Gauley loose: Upper or Lower, release dates, ages and prices.

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Which rafting company?

Seven licensed outfitters side by side on ages, weekday and Saturday prices, lunch, photos and refund terms.

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Climbing guides

Get roped up on real gorge sandstone: five guide services, prices by group size and the park's climbing rules.

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River conditions today

The live Thurmond gauge, what today's level means for a Lower New trip, and the Gauley release calendar.

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Gauley Fest

American Whitewater's big paddlers' party in Summersville, held during the Gauley release season.

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Bridge Walk

Clip into a harness and walk the catwalk under the New River Gorge Bridge deck: ages, price and rules.

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Which guided trip fits your group?

Minimum ages from the operators and the Park Service; rafting checked September 22, 2026, Bridge Walk and ziplines September 11, 2026.
Trip Difficulty Minimum age Worth knowing
Upper New rafting Class I-III 5 to 8, by company Long pools, swim stops; three companies let ages 6-11 ride free with a paying adult, mostly not on Saturdays
Lower New rafting Class III-IV 11 to 13; 10 in an ACE oar raft The big rapids, Cunard to the take-out under the bridge
Upper Gauley Class IV-V 15 or 16 by company; the Park Service says 16 Release weekends only, September and October
Lower Gauley Class III-IV(V) 12; the Park Service says 12-14 Release weekends only
Guided rock climbing Top rope, all abilities 8 at ACE and Adventures on the Gorge Best late April to mid-June and mid-September to late October
Bridge Walk A catwalk walk in a harness 8 and at least 48 inches tall $79 a person, year-round, rain or shine
Ziplines and aerial parks Varies by course 4 (Adventures on the Gorge's TimberTrek) to 13 (ACE's night zip) Weight windows differ by product

Good to know for fall 2026

Gauley season is on: the Army Corps releases water from Summersville Dam on weekends from September 11 to October 18, 2026, and that's when the Gauley's famous Class V rapids come alive. On the New, the August 15 and 16 flash floods blocked Cunard Road, the main Lower New put-in road, and closed parts of Fayette Station and Glade Creek roads, as West Virginia Explorer reported. Adventures on the Gorge's half-day Lower New still showed a flood suspension notice on September 22, and ACE's night zipline tour was running a shortened route after storm damage as of September 11. The simple fix: ask your outfitter where your trip launches when you book.

Planning a winter or early spring trip? Cunard Road closes again from November through March below the Brooklyn Mine trailhead, with repairs running through 2027, according to the Park Service closures page. Most outfitters run their own cabins and campgrounds, but the map beside this page compares every kind of place to stay near the bases, and the where-to-stay guide sorts the towns.

Facts on this page were checked on 2026-09-22. The editorial policy explains how pages are researched and corrected; send corrections to the editorial desk.

Around the gorge

A blue commercial raft of adult paddlers in helmets and life jackets dropping through a big brown-green rapid on the Lower New River, a sandstone boulder the size of a house at left, AI-generated illustration
Lower New River, New River Gorge
Blue and yellow whitewater rafts stacked upside down on a flatbed trailer at a gravel river put-in at dawn, a crate of paddles beside it and mist on the river, AI-generated illustration
A New River put-in, New River Gorge

Find a place to stay near the New River outfitters, Lansing

Cabins, hotels, campgrounds and vacation rentals on one live map, with current prices from Booking.com, Expedia, Vrbo and more for your dates. Stay close and you'll spend less time driving and more time in the gorge.

Free to browse. The site may earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you.