Fifty-three free miles, and two different rivers in them

The Park Service’s whitewater page puts the water in one sentence: “53 miles of free-flowing New River, from Bluestone Dam to Hawks Nest Lake.” The dam is the Corps of Engineers’ (Huntington District), the park is the National Park Service’s, and the fish are the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources’ (District 4, Beckley). Three counties: Summers for Hinton, the dam and Sandstone; Raleigh for Grandview, Prince and Glade Creek; Fayette for Thurmond, Cunard and Fayette Station. There is no entrance fee and no camping fee. Two USGS gauges read the river, at Hinton and at Thurmond, and the Park Service publishes a table that turns the Thurmond reading into cubic feet per second. Eastern time applies throughout.

The river in one paragraph

The park follows the river “for 53 miles from south to north” (NPS brochure text). The New River Gorge National Park and Preserve “does not charge an entrance fee” (NPS fees page, 11 May 2023) and “There are no camping fees at park campgrounds” (NPS camping page, 12 June 2026). It counted 1,709,623 recreation visits in 2023 (NPS release, 26 February 2024). The Park Service names the fish plainly: “bass (smallmouth, largemouth, striped, and rock), walleye, muskellunge,” crappie, bluegill, carp, and flathead and channel catfish, with stocked trout in the tributaries. WVDNR’s summer guide calls it “excellent fishing opportunities for smallmouth bass and walleye.” What follows is sorted the way the river sorts itself: the dam and the gauges first, then the three corridors upstream to down, then the rules.

Bluestone Dam, and what we could not read from the Corps

The Corps’ own project page would not load for this guide (a certificate for the wrong host, then a DNS failure, then a data page that renders only a menu without a browser). What the Corps did publish, through its DVIDS releases, is the construction story. The dam is “a concrete structure built more than 70 years ago in Hinton, WV,” its purpose to protect life and property from flooding downstream; its “original lake elevation of 1520 feet” was not reached during Hurricane Helene, the lake “cresting at 1493.7 feet, the third highest elevation in the dam’s history” (Huntington District, 26 February 2025). The Corps announced “the completion of the right-side stilling basin for the Bluestone Dam Phase 5 Project on Monday, March 2” 2026 — “Water is flowing on the right side for the first time since 2020” — and with the new basin and divider wall “Bluestone Dam can now reliably discharge significantly more water than in the past.” Phase 5 is “63% complete and expected to finish in 2030” (Huntington District, 2 March 2026).

The same release is the Corps’ only word on fishing below the dam: Bluestone Dam is “the anchor to the ‘Golden Mile’ of fishing at the confluence of the Greenbrier and New Rivers,” where the release says its steady, oxygen-rich flows support several fish species. When the work is complete “the public will be able to once again fish in the left (west) stilling basin” and near the right (east) basin; “Improvements are also being made to access the left bank downstream of the dam”; and the right side gets “a pier built at the end of the right training wall for elevated fishing and observation of the river” that complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the facilities to be “opened to the public by the US Army Corps of Engineers in 2030.” Until then: “Anglers are reminded to observe posted signage, stay out of the marked construction area, off the Bluestone Dam catwalk, and away from the area underneath the arm of the large blue overhead crane.”

What the dam releases, and when, is not published anywhere we could read. Summer pool, winter pool, the fill and drawdown schedule and any release pattern are status pending, and this page prints none of them. The one agency statement on the regime is WVDNR’s, from 11 May 2021, written for the construction period: “routine outflow from the dam will be reduced by more than half,” with the lake rising “anytime flows coming into the lake equal or exceed 10,000 cubic feet per second.” That was five years ago; the Corps now says the right basin is passing water again. Whether routine outflow is still reduced: status pending.

Gauges: Hinton above, Thurmond below, and the table that converts them

USGS 03184500, New River at Hinton, WV — Summers County, 37.67040, −80.89259 (NAD83), gage altitude 1,354.86 ft, drainage area 6,273 square miles, cooperators the Corps’ Huntington District and WVDNR. It publishes water temperature (00010), discharge (00060) and gage height (00065); daily data since 1936, continuous since 1996. On 17 October 2026 at 21:00 EDT it read 6,320 cfs, 2.83 ft and 18.8°C, all provisional — printed only to show the station is live; treat any number here as stale and read the gauge yourself.

USGS 03185400, New River at Thurmond, WV — Fayette County, 37.95511, −81.07649, gage altitude 1,030.0 ft, drainage area 6,752 square miles. It publishes temperature, precipitation, discharge, gage height, specific conductance, dissolved oxygen, pH and turbidity; daily since 1981, continuous since 1994. On 17 October 2026 at 20:45 EDT: 9,020 cfs, 7.29 ft, 18.2°C, dissolved oxygen 9.2 mg/L. This is the gauge the Park Service tells boaters to read, and the one the overview map on our waterways index uses for this water’s dot.

The Park Service’s private-boater page prints a conversion from the Thurmond gauge, with the Fayette Station staff gauge alongside. It prints the table without saying what level is safe for any craft, and no agency source we read gives a cfs threshold for kayaks or for fishing. We do not invent one.

The shape of the year, computed, approximate

The figures below are means of the USGS monthly-mean discharge records at each gauge, averaged across the years of record by our fetch tool, unweighted — computed from USGS monthly statistics, approximate, not an agency statement. Hinton’s record runs 1938 to 2026 with no data from 2004 to 2023; Thurmond’s runs 1981 to 2026 unbroken. Reasoning, labelled as such: the low-water months the float table and the Park Service’s season imply are July through October, and the commercial rafting season, “April through October,” spans the fall of the hydrograph.

Two rivers in one: the sections as the Park Service grades them

From the NPS whitewater and private-boater pages (15 February 2022 and 13 April 2022), verbatim. Upper New, Hinton to Thurmond: “The section of the New River from Hinton to Thurmond offers challenging Class I, II, and III rapids suitable for intermediate whitewater paddlers”; it “consists primarily of long pools and moderate rapids.” Lower Gorge, below Thurmond: “Downstream from Thurmond the river narrows and includes technical Class III - IV rapids”; “The New River below Thurmond is suitable only for advanced and expert paddlers.” The whitewater page gives the range as “Class III to Class V,” with rapids that “necessitate maneuvering in very powerful currents, crosscurrents, and hydraulics” and “Some rapids contain hazardous undercut rocks.” The brochure: “The Lower Gorge has some of the most technical rapids, ranging in difficulty from Class 3 to 5.” Named rapids and their river miles are in a Park Service river guide PDF that refused our read; status pending, and no rapid is named or graded on this page.

WVDNR’s 2026 regulations summary carries a float table for the upper river, the agency’s own mileages: Sandstone to Meadow Creek, 3.25 miles; Meadow Creek to Glade Creek, 5.5; Glade Creek to Grandview Sandbar, 4.4; Grandview Sandbar to McCreery River Access, 2.1. Its footnote, verbatim: “Only experienced boaters should attempt to float the New River. Portaging some areas will be necessary.” Which areas is not stated. The table starts at Sandstone, below the falls; no agency text we read describes a portage around Sandstone Falls or a float from Hinton down to Sandstone, and this page does not describe one either.

Access: what the Park Service names, and what it places

The NPS fishing page (30 September 2024, re-read 18 October 2026) lists the accesses in one sentence: “Public river access points within New River Gorge National Park and Preserve are available at the Tug Creek Beach, Brooks Falls, Hellems Beach, and Sandstone Falls via River Road at Hinton; Meadow Creek; McCreery, Grandview Sandbar, Mill Creek, and Glade Creek off Hwy. 41 near Prince; Dunglen and Stone Cliff near Thurmond; Cunard; and Fayette Station.” The brochure adds Akers. No NPS page that renders without a browser publishes a coordinate, a ramp type (trailer or carry-down), parking or restrooms for any of them, apart from the handful of points in the tables below; every “none published” is a gap in the record, not a statement that the site lacks the thing. The one rule that applies at all of them (Superintendent’s Compendium, approved 1 July 2026): “Fishing is not allowed within 100 feet of boat launch/take-out areas while watercraft are using the launch/take-out area.”

Corridor 1 — the upper river: Hinton, River Road, Sandstone (Summers County)

Corridor 2 — the middle river: Grandview, Prince, Thurmond (Raleigh and Fayette counties)

Corridor 3 — the gorge: Cunard and Fayette Station (Fayette County)

Bank access

Every corridor has bank water the Park Service names without a boat: the River Road accesses out of Hinton, the Sandstone Falls boardwalk (“Remain on the boardwalk or trails”), the accessible fishing bridge at Glade Creek, the campgrounds (“Easy access to the river for fishing and boating is available”), and the parking areas at Cunard and Fayette Station. The fishing page’s safety list is written for exactly this: “do not wade in water above your knees”; “never fish alone.” Below the dam, the Corps’ construction-area rule governs until the basins and the pier open. Outside the park, downstream of Hawks Nest Dam, WVDNR’s summer guide says shoreline and wade fishing are available “in The Dries, downstream of Hawks Nest Dam” — the only sentence we read about that reach, and the only one we print.

The regulation: WVDNR’s 2026 summary and the Park Service’s rules, quoted

WVDNR says of its own pamphlet: “This pamphlet is a summary ... for informational purposes only and subject to change ... the West Virginia Code and the West Virginia Code of State Rules are, at all times, the controlling laws.” The slot is codified at W. Va. Code R. 58-60-6.1.6: “There is a 14 to 22-inch slot limit for black bass in effect on the New River from the confluence of the New and Gauley Rivers upstream to the West Virginia/Virginia state line, excluding Bluestone Lake ... Only one black bass over 22 inches may be part of the daily creel limit within the slot limit area.” Where the catch-and-release reach is codified we did not read; that is a gap in the citation, not a doubt about what is in force, because the two agencies print the same reach.

NPS fishing page (30 September 2024, re-read 18 October 2026): “The New River from the I-64 bridge at Sandstone 12 miles downstream to the Grandview Sandbar is designated catch and release for black bass.”

WVDNR 2026 Fishing Regulations Summary (read 17 October 2026; still the only summary WVDNR’s regulations page links, re-checked 18 October 2026):

“All black bass (smallmouth, spotted and largemouth) caught must be returned to the water at once. No black bass shall be in the angler’s possession (creel limit 0) while fishing in designated catch-and-release lakes and streams.” — “New River - Fayette, Raleigh and Summers counties 12-mile section from the I-64 bridge at Sandstone downstream to NPS Grandview Sandbar access site near Quinnimont. Access by state Route 41 at Quinnimont and state Route 20 at Sandstone.”

“New River. All black bass (smallmouth, spotted, and largemouth) from 14 to 22 inches long must be returned to the water at once. Daily creel limit of six black bass with only one being over 22 inches. This regulation is in effect from the confluence of the New and Gauley rivers upstream to the West Virginia/Virginia state line, excluding Bluestone Lake (from the dam upstream to the mouth of Indian Creek) and the 12-mile catch and release section (from the Grandview sandbar boat ramp upstream to the I-64 bridge at Sandstone).”

Walleye: “New River (5-mile section from Meadow Creek public access site upstream to base of Sandstone Falls in Raleigh and Summers counties). All walleye caught must be returned to the water at once.” Elsewhere: “All walleye from 20 to 30 inches long must be returned to the water at once. Daily creel limit of two walleye, only one of which may be over 30 inches long.”

The statewide black bass row (six, no minimum) applies nowhere on this water: the slot or the catch-and-release rule covers the whole reach from Bluestone Dam to the Gauley. Flathead catfish minimum size did not render in either read of the summary; status pending. No closed season for black bass or muskellunge appears in the text we read, and we do not print “open year-round” either. Spearfishing is prohibited “from Bluestone Dam downstream to the lower bridge at Hinton.”

The Park Service’s rules on top (fishing page; compendium approved 1 July 2026)

• “All persons fishing in the park are required to have a West Virginia fishing license.” “A trout stamp is required when fishing for trout.”
• Hook and line only, rod or line closely attended; no chumming; no digging for bait except on private land; no fishing from motor road bridges.
• “Possessing or using as bait for fishing in freshwaters, live or dead minnows or other bait fish, amphibians, non-preserved fish eggs or fish roe, except in designated waters” is prohibited; no releasing live bait or dumping bait buckets; “The commercial collection of bait is prohibited.”
• “Fishing is not allowed within 100 feet of boat launch/take-out areas while watercraft are using the launch/take-out area.”
• Glade Creek “from the pedestrian bridge 3 miles down to the New River” is trout catch and release.

Licences (WVDNR 2026 summary, read 17 October 2026): Nonresident Fishing, Class F, $37.00. Nonresident One Day Fishing, Class LL, $3.00. Conservation/Law Enforcement Stamp, Class CS/LE, $13.00, “Required for anglers and hunters with Class F, LL,” and the other licence classes it lists. Nonresident trout stamp, Class OO, $16.00. No licence required under age 15. “Fishing and Hunting Licenses are good for the calendar year.” Buy at wvfish.com ($2 fee), by phone at (304) 558-2758, or from an agent. The NPS page (2024) says “Year long and 3-day tourist licenses are available”; the 2026 WVDNR text as we read it lists a one-day nonresident licence and no three-day one, so a Kentucky angler should check wvfish.com for the short-term options rather than take a day count from either page.

Boating law (NPS compendium: the park falls “under the West Virginia State boating safety laws and regulations”; WVDNR boating page): a PFD “in good condition, properly sized and readily available for each person on board”; “Any child under the age of 13, including infants, must wear a PFD while the vessel is underway”; vessels 16 ft and over carry a throwable Type IV; 0.08 blood alcohol is legally intoxicated.

Eating them: the Park Service advises anglers “to adhere to published West Virginia advisories for fish consumption,” and its activity page says studies have found mercury in fish in some National Park System waters at levels that may be a concern. WVDNR’s 2025 statewide consumption chart lists black bass at “2 Meals per Month”; no New River-specific row rendered for us, and the walleye and catfish rows did not extract cleanly. Status pending beyond that one line.

Species, stocking and surveys, as far as the agencies say

The Park Service’s fish page (13 September 2023): “Approximately 89 species of fish” in the watershed, 46 native, 42 introduced; “Only three game fish species are considered native and include the channel catfish, flathead catfish, and green sunfish. All other gamefish are introduced.” So the smallmouth, the walleye and the muskellunge are all, in the Park Service’s account, introduced. “Some small tributaries contain brook trout.”

Walleye is the one species with an agency plan behind it. WVDNR’s Walleye Management Plan (updated 1 July 2020) says the Eastern Highlands strain “is widely distributed in the Gauley (including Summersville Reservoir), Elk, New, and Kanawha rivers,” that Virginia and WVDNR “have been stocking this strain into their respective reaches of New River to enhance Walleye populations since the early 2000’s,” and that “stockings of EH Walleye have been successful in the West Virginia portion of New River and growth is excellent.” Its stocking table plans 25,000 for the New in alternating years, 2021, 2023 and 2025 — plan figures, not a stocking report; whether they went in is status pending. The plan reserves its more restrictive regulations for waters “where the potential for a trophy or larger-sized Walleye fishery is evident (i.e. New River),” and its Table 1 lists the New River’s 20–30 slot, two a day, one over 30. A 2021 WVDNR brief reporting 2008 sampling: “One hundred and fifty-five walleye were collected from the Sandstone Pool of the New River. Forty-one percent of the sample was categorized as ‘native’,” introduced fish “from 12 to 23 inches,” native fish “from 14 to 26 inches,” “No walleye less than 12 inches were collected.” The NPS activity page adds the one seasonal statement anyone official makes: “The walleye is commonly fished for in the fall when water temperatures cool down.”

Smallmouth bass: no New River survey, creel or population report turned up on wvdnr.gov; status pending. The only agency statement on the fishery’s pressure is the 2027 questionnaire’s “invasive Alabaman Bass” line above. Our smallmouth bass guide covers the fish; nothing on it is specific to this river. Muskellunge: WVDNR’s spawning programme article says its crews “targeted Elk River, Middle Island Creek, Kanawha River, New River, and North Bend Lake” for brood stock in late March and early April, with fingerlings of “10+ inches” stocked statewide “from late October through early November.” Whether the New itself receives them: status pending. See the muskellunge guide for the fish; the statewide rule is one a day, 30-inch minimum.

Trout, in the tributaries only (WVDNR 2026 stocking list; the key as extracted: M “One each month, February - May”; BW “Two each month, February - April”; F “One each week for two weeks, beginning on the third Monday of October”): Glade Creek of New River (Raleigh) BW-F; Dunloup Creek, Laurel Creek of New River and Mill Creek (Fayette) M; Meadow Creek and Indian Creek of New River (Summers) M. No source claims trout in the main stem.

Seasons, as the agencies state them and no further. NPS activity page (27 April 2021): spring and fall are “the best times of the year,” early morning and late evening the best times of day; baits named are nightcrawlers and hellgrammites, lures “top-water crank-baits, spinner baits, minnows, or crawfish,” dark lures in murky water and bright in clear. WVDNR’s summer guide: “Fishing is good throughout the summer,” check river conditions for safe flows. No spawn window, no temperature and no main-stem stocking date is published by either agency in anything we read, and this page prints none.

Safety: the agencies’ words, not ours

• The Park Service’s water-safety page (14 November 2017): “There are drop-offs, strong currents, and hydraulics (undertows) all along the New River”; “Most drownings in the New River involve people who didn’t plan on being in the water”; “Approximately half of all boating and swimming deaths involve alcohol”; “Accidents often happen to anglers, waders, and ‘rock-hoppers’”; “Exposure to cool air and cold water can lead to hypothermia even when temperatures are above freezing.”
• Sandstone Falls: “very swift and dangerous”; “Anyone near or on the water should always wear a life jacket.”
• The dam: the Corps’ construction-area rule, and its own sentence that the dam “can now reliably discharge significantly more water than in the past.” No warning system is described. Call 304-466-0156.
• The Lower Gorge: Class III to V, “hazardous undercut rocks,” no easy take-out below Fayette Station. Not kayak-angling water by any agency’s description.
• Roads: Cunard Road closes November through March; Route 25 to Thurmond and the last stretch of WV-26 to Sandstone Falls are narrow; the railroad at Thurmond is active.
• Status pending: a published safe-flow threshold for any craft (none exists in anything we read); named rapids and their classes; the dam’s current release pattern.

What we have not verified

• Bluestone Dam’s pool and release regime — summer and winter pool, fill and drawdown, any release pattern, and whether the 2021 “outflow cut by more than half” still applies. The Corps’ pages would not load. Dam height, length and completion year likewise.
• Adoption of the 2027 smallmouth-only rules — reported by one secondary summary only.
• Where 58CSR60 codifies the catch-and-release reach, and the flathead catfish minimum.
• Ramp type, parking, restrooms and coordinates for every access except the published points above; campground site counts and seasons.
• Named rapids with miles and classes; any portage route around Sandstone Falls; whether anyone floats Hinton to Sandstone.
• Whether a three-day nonresident licence still exists (NPS 2024 says so; WVDNR 2026 as read lists a one-day).
• A New River-specific consumption advisory; whether the New is stocked with muskellunge; any smallmouth survey; whether the planned walleye stockings were carried out.
• Fayette Station Road’s winter 2026–27 status, and anything about The Dries beyond WVDNR’s one sentence.
• The monthly flow table is computed from USGS records and approximate.