West Virginia · Rock climbing · Summersville

Gauley Crag

Gauley Crag in West Virginia has 9 climbing routes with 7 difficulty grades.

9 routes
5.9+ – 5.13a
Sport · Trad

Is Gauley Crag open right now?

No closures listed

The National Park Service lists no closures for Gauley River National Recreation Area.

As of · Source: NPS · Gauley River National Recreation Area. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.

Best time to visit Gauley Crag

Best months: April–October. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.

  1. Jan

    41° / 21°

  2. Feb

    44° / 23°

  3. Mar

    52° / 29°

  4. Apr

    65° / 38°

  5. May

    72° / 48°

  6. Jun

    78° / 57°

  7. Jul

    81° / 61°

  8. Aug

    80° / 59°

  9. Sep

    75° / 53°

  10. Oct

    65° / 41°

  11. Nov

    54° / 32°

  12. Dec

    45° / 26°

Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Summersville Lake, WV, 1.2 mi away at 1,768 ft. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

Gauley Crag is a climbing area in West Virginia's Gauley River National Recreation Area, within the Summersville Recreation Area. The land is managed by the Army Corps of Engineers, and the crag sits about 1.2 miles from Summersville Lake Shelters. The climbing here is a mix of sport and trad routes, with the hardest grade at 5.13a. The area has nine routes in total, and the most common style is sport. Among the named routes are Splitter Blue Skies at 5.11a/b and Die Fetzen von Megos at 5.13a. For comfortable weather, late spring and early fall are the best bets. Typical averages from the nearby Summersville Lake weather station run from highs around 72°F in May to about 75°F in September, with July peaking near 81°F. Carnifex Ferry, another climbing area, is about 2.5 miles away, and Long Point is about 2.8 miles off. The Gauley River, a fishing spot, is roughly 3.4 miles away.

Keep exploring — more climbs worth the drive