Went WW Rafting with them again on Friday 13th. My buddies and I had a great time and will go with…read morethem again next year. We stayed with them as well both Thursday and Friday Night. Excellent. I highly recommend them.

I Had a horrible time for Several reasons, first off the guide Zack was awful, a complete ass hole…read moreand went on up non stop about his personal life and even made a racist joke when we had a black guy on our raft . Acted like we were all idiots and I felt unsafe the whole time! Then when we get out of river the guides hand out beers to everyone that drank and continued to do so for the next hour on bus ride , Which made it a living hell with 19 people on a 12 passenger bus ! The guy driving the bus acted like he got paid by his arrival times there and from traveled a winding Road at crazy speeds . Honestly don't have one positive thing to say about The adventure I will never book thru this company again !

Great place to launch your boat or rent one! The coves near this marina are perfect for SUP or…read morekayaks, and the large no-wake zone means you don't have to fight the motor boat waves as you try to get off the docks. And the restrooms are outstanding!

We had a great experience here. Rented a brand new pontoon boat for the day. Very nice boat. Great…read morestaff. Very helpful and friendly. Nice relaxing day on the lake. Not super crowded either. Super clear water. Reasonable pricing.

This park is one of those ones that feels like a private to public site; the majestic house at the…read morelakefront has been turned into a visitor center. The visitor center has a room or two of exhibitions on hydrology and wildlife but is not anything big. I came seeking a New Year's hike and expecting some scenery while being unsure if the amount of trails available would be enough. I managed to spend a solid two hours circumnavigating the place. In summer, swimming and boating are more likely the activities du jour, and it appears to be an excellent place for such activities. While the park looks close to the highway on the map, it feels like being at a park and there isn't any road noise. Like most VA state parks, they do charge for parking (waived for New Year's Day).

Don't let all my NJ posts fool you. I was born and raised in southwest Virginia and most of my…read morefamily still lives there. Although I am forever grateful that my parents moved us out of the area when we were younger - especially when I get a peek at the local electoral maps - my heart remains in the mountains. Can't say my brains remain here though because it took until today to realize Claytor Lake was 1) a state park and 2) gorgeous and amazing. All these years I just thought it was nowhere special that my cousins would go fishing. And to think I road trip all the way to NH and Maine every year and could have just driven 7 miles from my grandmother's for an equally rewarding experience. I had cabin fever today at my granny's and caught the local Outdoors magazine write up about Claytor Lake. There's camping?? Swimming?? Trails?? I watched a few videos on YouTube then got in the car to see for myself. Need to know: -There's a booth at the entrance - closed after 4pm. $7 parking fee for most paid by the honor system with cash or check or by card through the QR code during after hours. There are 4 campgrounds - I only saw Campground D open and it was overwhelmingly being used by those with RVs, teardrops, and campers. These are NOT wooded lots, rather gravel pull-ins and you'll likely be very close to your neighbor. A lil too close for me but I can see it not being a huge deal since everyone had campers to sleep in. I took a drive through this campground to see if I would feel comfortable and I didn't see any displays that would make me think I wouldn't (you picking up what I'm putting down?) Trails and paved paths galore. I saw one trail today but didn't get to explore much. Apparently the only shoes I packed for this trip were Crocs. Paved paths snake through the park and are accessible for those with mobility devices. The "lake" was created by damming the river. The water is clear by the shore. We love clean river water! Tons of shelters, grills, benches. There is something for everyone! Not sure if shelters are first come first serve or if you need to book them in high season - check the website. There's a gift shop but it was closed. I was bummed because you know I love stickers! I am counting down the days until I can return in the warmer weather. I would not be opposed to camping here or swimming once they reopen the beach for the season. I also look forward to exploring the trails. Fantastic solo outing. What a gem in my little country corner of the world.

THIS TRIP WAS AMAZING!! This was our first ever visit to New River Gorge National Park and…read morePreserve, and lodging with Adventures on The Gorge was the BEST decision we could've made. We stayed in a beautiful cabin that was extremely clean and spacious with a picnic bench, firepit, and trees for hanging a hammock. We took a phenomenal 5 hour white water rafting trip down the New River with our very knowledgeable and personable guide, Greg! He guided us through huge rapids and even a thunderstorm! They even gave us snacks halfway through! We also zip lined with Adventures on the Gorge, and all of their employees are just so humorous and you can tell they love their jobs. 10/10 experience!!

So many options, never enough time!! This outfitter has it all, jet boats, whitewater trips, ropes…read morecourse, zip lines, and more! All while also having many options for lodging! The pool is beautiful with a fantastic gorge view, and if you do any activity with them, you can take advantage of this little bonus! I did the jet boat tour, and it was fantastic! The views were incredible, and you learn about the surroundings from the boat captain. Megan was great, basically got our own private tour! The company also can shuttle you if you stay at Hawk's Nest State Park as the marina is by the base of the tramway from the lodge.

We have been rafting with West Virginia Adventures once or twice a summer since 2020, and we…read moreabsolutely love this company! We bring a group of about 50 people, ages 5 or 6 to mid 40s, and Rob does a great job taking care of our group. The Upper New River trip is a favorite for all of our younger kids. And my husband loves a great Lower or Upper Gauley trip with his buddies in the fall. We have had many guides over the years, but Nathan is our absolute favorite guide! We love love love going white water rafting with West Virginia Adventures. This past weekend, we had Nathan, Mia, Christen, and Eli as our guides, and they were so amazing with our kids. Keep up the great job guys!

Can't say enough great things about our experience with this outdoor adventure company! My family…read moreof four (me, my wife, son age 15, and daughter age 13) booked the Lower New River Afternoon Express whitewater rafting trip yesterday. Our guide's names were Benji and his wife Addie. Benji was knowledgeable, personable, and laid back. Be prepared for a huge load of dad jokes that will keep you smirking and rolling your eyes between each rapids set. Benji did a great job in preparing the boat for how he would run each rapid and the commands he planned on calling. Great experience overall and highly recommend!

The folks were extremely helpful and great to work with. Our boat was fantastic (albeit a bit old)…read moreand they moved us to a lovely cove for fishing and privacy. We would highly recommend them for anyone wanting a peaceful yet fun adventure.

I visited on a weekday in July to use the beach/swim area. Prior to arriving I used the online…read morecontact information for the Marina office to inquire whether pets were allowed in the swim area and was told "yes"; however upon arriving there was a posted "no pets" sign. At that point I had my dogs in tow and could not leave them in the car (too hot) so I let the written confirmation from the office staff supersede the signage and took them onto the sand. It was not very crowded and so we were able to unobtrusively occupy a little corner and not bother / interact with other beach goers. None of them seemed to mind our presence. The beach itself is super duper pleasant! Loved our day there. Just wish it were easier to know how to follow the rules!

Our group of 8 rented a pontoon boat from SMBR this weekend. The owners Jason and Jenny were great…read moreto work with. They even delivered the boat and picked us up to return. We will definitely return and rent from them again. Friendly, flexible and accommodating - thanks so much Jenny!

fantastic staff! great boats!…read moreeveryone was kind and friendly and the boats were in great condition. prices and policies are very fair! rented three times in a week and was FANTASTIC each time. 100% will be back.

This was our second time renting from Claytor Lake Water Sports. Check in is very thorough. They…read moreprovided dockside training and gave you an overview of the lake. They do not allow ANY alcohol on the boat. That goes for the driver and all passengers. They WILL check your coolers. This time we were able to rent their "Funtoon" on the 4th of July. We had 4 adults and 3 kids. The boat featured multiple adirondack chairs, a propane grill, swim platform, and best of all a porta-potty. The porta potty made boating all day with 3 kids bearable, but let's be honest...the adults enjoyed it as well. We rented a towable for the kids. The boat only has a 90HP engine and is "blocked" at the top of the throttle so you need to temper expectations. We had an issue with a tear in our tube, but it was quickly taken care of back at the dock. The staff replaced it with a new chariot style tube. We had a great time on the lake. We came out of the dock and went left to anchor and swim. We took the time to fix hamburgers and hot dogs while stopped. We then went a tubed for a long time and ended up at Rock House Marina. They had some live music, so it was nice to get off the boat and relax for a bit. Overall a great day... Filled up with gas at the end of the day and back to the campground.

We found Mountain 2 Island Paddleboarding through Claytor Lake State Park (exit 101 off I-81)and…read morechecked out their website. They offer lessons and paddleboard rentals. Lessons are cheaper when you bring more people with you. When we gave them a call no one answered, but someone called right back. The man was extremely nice and answered all of my questions. They were also pretty flexible with reservations days and times which I thought was great. Mtn2Island is next to the Claytor Lake State Park visitor center. You have to pay the $5 dollar Park entrance fee (for park maintenance people, totally worth it!) Transactions were completed through Square using iPads (love that). They fitted us for a paddle, gave us a lifejacket (he said VA law requires you have one with you), and then we got to it. They had the paddleboards down by the dock, and the Mtn2Island people put them in the water for us. The instructor, Issac, was very calm and extremely patient while my younger sister (who is in her 30s by the way) was in hysterics about getting in the water. Another young lady, Rachel, came down to help coax her into giving it a try. It took them about 30 minutes to get her to get in the water, but she did. It was definitely harder than I thought it would be and I don't recommend doing squats the day before because my legs were killing me after, but it was a lot of fun and I would do it again. The waves from the nearby boat made it difficult for me to keep my balance and about that time my sister fell in (she was wearing her life jacket and was totally fine), but she got back on her board and we made it back to the docks.

We got lucky with our experience with Mountain 2 Island. We were camping at Claytor Lake and…read morewanted to rent a pontoon. We were lucky enough to be able to rent one of the last boats. We were expecting something that was run down but works. To our amazement we were given a brand new Bentley pontoon. It literally had 1 hr on the engine. Service was great. We were able to take our two pups on the water with us. We will be back and hope to use them again. Beautiful lake that we were able to explore thanks to Mountain 2 Island.

We've rented boats from there twice and the boats have been in great shape and the rental process…read morewas quick and easy. My only complaint is that the price they charge per gallon of gas is ridiculous.

Had a day to kill waiting for my daughter to finish finals at Roanoke College so I made a trip out…read moreto see the lake. I had no plan to rent a boat but the fleet looked well cared for (almost new) and I jumped. The crew was really nice and helpful. I took out a "Tritoon"with a 200hp Yamaha. The lake is huge and there is some amazing sightseeing. I found a cove, anchored, finished up some work and then went for a swim. My 2 hour rental flew by and when I arrived back at the dock, the crew was waiting to help dock and replace my used fuel. I couldn't have asked for a better experience. For a spur of the moment adventure it was amazing. I highly recommend Bridgewater Marine.