Woman overboard! Get swept away rafting Gauley River

 

The raging Gauley River has just bucked me off 

my raft and sucked me into its depths, swishing me around like a 

mouthful of Listerine before spitting me out downstream. 

I emerge unscathed, exuberant and feeling deliciously alive. 

It's a ride I'll never forget.

For just six weekends every fall, the floodgates on the dam at Summersville Lake open, 

stoking 25 miles of world-class West Virginia rapids. 

This year's season starts Sept. 5 and runs through Oct. 19. 

So you've just got time to grab a paddle and take the plunge. 

Based on an overnight trip I took last September, here's what you'd be in for.

Full of butterflies, I report with about 45 other rafters at 8 a.m. sharp to ACE Adventure Resort 

near Beckley, W.Va. 

With me in my testosterone-heavy crew, ranging in 

age from 15 to 50-something, are my ...more