May/June 2007
5 Favorite Trips
Looking for something a little different this vacation season? Add some adventure to your summer with these convenient getaways.
By Mary and Bill Burnham
Yes, we appreciate the grand appeal of relaxing on the sand with a good book for hours on end -- breaking only for dips into the crisp ocean or sips of a fruity cocktail. But this summer, HRM travel writers Mary and Bill Burnham decided to share five of their favorite trips that present a little more adventure than the typical beach vacation. They've convinced us there's much to be said for trying something new.
-The Editors
Rafting the Lower Gauley River, W. VA.
A few flakes of snow swirl around us as we squeeze into our wetsuits. It is late March in West Virginia, still not quite spring enough for my tastes. My stomach is in knots as our guide explains that a week of persistent rain has produced so much water that he has to change plans. Instead of rafting a "Premier Double-Dare Lower" on the New River (a twice-in-one-day run down the Lower New River's class III-V rapids), we hop on a bus and head for the Lower Gauley.
Whitewater cowboys first ran the Gauley below Summersville Dam in the 1960s, and by 1988, it was so popular that the government declared 25 miles of the stream a National Recreation Area. Bill explains that I should consider rafting this river a dream come true. The Gauley's reputation as one of the top whitewater rivers in the world is re-affirmed every fall when scheduled releases from the dam pump the Upper Gauley to steroid-level strength.
In spring, however, it's all Mother Nature. And this year, she didn't disappoint.
A dense fog obscures the tall cliff stream banks, exposing a 10-million-year timeline of rock strata. Our guide starts to say something about it, but we can't focus on anything but a dull roar up ahead. What you can't see can still scare you, and, at a time like this, we are looking to an expert for comforting words.
"Truth is," says Paul Gray, a veteran guide with ACE Adventure Center who seems a little too smug perched there on the back of our raft, "I close my eyes going through these."
He barks a "paddle forward," and we obey. Engorged by spring flood runoff, Koontz Flume's hydraulics are big enough to swallow a tractor-trailer cab. I wedge my feet firmly under the raft's rubber seat and paddle like mad. A wall of water starts coming towards me, obscuring cliffs and sky. I reach a critical point where falling out is as good a bet as staying in. Flailing at oncoming waves, rhythm shot to hell, the boat pitching and heaving, I could care less if Paul had his eyes open or not. Finally, it washes over, and miracle of miracles, everyone is still in the boat. I'm euphoric, but there's no time to rejoice; the next rapids are already upon us.
"Let's do it again!" I yell at the end of the trip. No one is more surprised than I.
Later, we warm up in a hot tub on the deck of one of ACE's cozy cabins. A light dusting of snow begins to fall again as we toast the day.
Contact: ACE Adventure Center, 888-ACE-RAFT,
www.aceraft.com 
For four more adventurous summer getaways, see the May/June issue of Hampton Roads Magazine, currently available on newsstands.
