Explore New River Gorge

Explore New River Gorge Exploring everything New River Gorge 🌊 America’s best kept secret is West Virginia ✨

08/20/2026

This 2002 Nissan XTERRA race was legendary—specifically this 1.5-mile swim through the current with no boats. It took a special kind of grit to tackle the Gorge like

I’m trying to find the athletes and spectators who were on the banks that day.

Tag anyone you recognize or share this to your story to help us find the original crew who lived this.

08/17/2026

This trail has a dark secret. 🌲
Most people walk this gravel road for the waterfall, the dam view, and a quiet stretch of the New River. What almost nobody knows: this is the site of America’s deadliest industrial disaster.
In 1930, a rushed tunnel project — built to divert the river and power a nearby metals plant — sent workers through pure silica rock with no protection. Hundreds died. Survivors were often too sick to work again. Congress’s own 1936 investigation called it “grave and inhuman disregard for the health, lives, and future of the employees.”
The dead were buried in secret. Decades later, their graves were disturbed again for a highway project. It took until 2012 for a real memorial to go up.
This is the Hawks Nest Dam Trail. Same water. Same mountain. A history most of us never learned.
🎙️ Voiceover by Shawn Lawrence
Save this. Remember their names. 🕊️

"As the global trend of digitalization and the adoption of AI continues to drive growth in demand for electricity, we ar...
08/13/2026

"As the global trend of digitalization and the adoption of AI continues to drive growth in demand for electricity, we are thrilled to collaborate with Microsoft to support their customer demand with the build-out of over 10.5 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity".

—Connor Teskey, CEO of Brookfield Renewable

Hawks Nest is explicitly named by Microsoft as one of the projects delivering on this framework . Historically, the plant only powered a nearby industrial facility and was never tied directly into the broader grid. Under this agreement, Brookfield is modernizing the nearly 90-year-old plant so it can, for the first time, feed power into the local utility grid. Brookfield's North American CEO Stephen Gallagher said:

"With the benefit of our offtake agreement with Microsoft, we've made major investments over the last five years to ensure that an asset that's been around for nearly 100 years will continue for the next 100 years." Microsoft expects to start receiving power from Hawks Nest this year . Industry trackers list a targeted commercial operation date of June 1, 2026 for the upgraded facility .

Probably for the new data center.
08/13/2026

Probably for the new data center.

08/12/2026

What the river looks like right before it goes flood stage. Way to go river pros for getting everyone back to base. The Upper Gauley jumped up to 18k 🌊 due to recent heavy rains in West Virginia.

Remember these are trained professionals, folks.

Send this to someone who loves the Gauley River

Most people don’t actually understand how Summersville Dam works, so here’s the breakdown:Historically, water was discha...
08/11/2026

Most people don’t actually understand how Summersville Dam works, so here’s the breakdown:

Historically, water was discharged through those massive tubes everyone associates with Gauley Season. But after the hydroelectric project was completed in 2001, they started harnessing the water’s energy through turbines instead, releasing it from underneath the dam. Nowadays, seeing the big tubes actually open is reserved mostly for big rain events, when the Corps needs to control flooding.

There’s a lesser known small tube that serves the opposite purpose, keeping the river running during droughts when the inflow isn’t enough to generate—often in the fall. If you go down to the Gauley River during dry spells, you’ll see this small tube releasing water to maintain the aquatic life, and you can observe this massive plume, because it’s still massive, from the observation deck if you’re brave enough to head down to the riverbed.
Small tube, big job. 💦

08/08/2026

Vintage footage of Fire on the Mountain — the street luge race that once put Ansted, WV on the map. Racers flew 1.1 miles down Fire Tower Road through 19 turns at 70+ mph, with the top finishers earning a spot in the X Games. A different time, a different kind of day in the Gorge. Who remembers this?
🎥~ Carlos (that’s all I got from the dusty little mini DV)

What are these people waiting for? 😈 Sweet’s Falls is the last of the Upper Gauley’s “Big Five” Class V rapids, the gaun...
08/07/2026

What are these people waiting for? 😈

Sweet’s Falls is the last of the Upper Gauley’s “Big Five” Class V rapids, the gauntlet that gives this river its “Beast of the East” nickname. Named for John Sweet’s first descent in 1968, it’s a fourteen-foot, river-wide ledge drop that caps off the run with a bang. Because there’s nowhere else to go but through it, everyone who’s already run the drop pulls out onto the rocks and boulders below to eat lunch and watch — turning the pool beneath the falls into a natural amphitheater for the whole group.

Tag the person you’re saving a spot for 🌊

they lied when they say it’s not all sunshine and rainbows-
08/06/2026

they lied when they say it’s not all sunshine and rainbows-

08/06/2026

Irrefutable proof that the New River Gorge is a national treasure 🌈🌈.

Address

1
Oak Hill, WV
25901

Telephone

+13048778367

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Explore New River Gorge posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Explore New River Gorge:

Shortcuts

Share

Category