Gauley Fest Parking
As Gauley Fest grows, the ability to safely have car parking in the same area as camping becomes more and more difficult. In the past tents have been clipped during the festival, luckily with no injuries as a result. It goes without saying that the safety of attendees is the number one concern of American Whitewater. To this end, we’re going to have to continue to limit parking in the inner festival area as we have in the past.
As such, the following parking limits will be in place:
- Friday 8 pm: No more vehicle access to the inner festival area
- Saturday 2 pm: No more vehicle access to the inner festival area
After these times, folks will have to park in the parking lots just outside the inner festival area. This means you will have to walk in about 50-100 yards. If you plan to sleep in your vehicle you’re still welcome to do so; you should just plan to get your vehicle in before the cutoff times or you’ll have to sleep in your vehicle in one of the parking lots (which we’ve had several reports quieter and arguably nicer).
This park and walk-in system is the exact same that you would see at any other festival of Gauley Fest’s size and is a safety necessity.
Finally, while we know change can be hard, we remind you to not take it out on the people working the festival. These folks are all volunteers giving their time to help AW put on our biggest fundraiser and deserve nothing but praise for their efforts. Anyone who sees fit to harass or intimidate a Gauley Fest volunteer in any way will be immediately ejected, permanently banned and turned over to the police. Boaters are some of the nicest people in the world, let’s all make sure that shows through :)