As thrillseekers, local whitewater rafting guides love heavy rain like we’ve seen this week.

But as business operators, it’s more complicated. The most popular rafting weekends of the season take place when the Army Corps of Engineers release water into the Lehigh from Francis E. Walter Dam. However the dam’s primary purpose is preventing flood damage along the Lehigh and Delaware rivers.

Thursday morning the Army Corps of Engineers announced they would cancel a scheduled whitewater release for this weekend. On Wednesday, before that announcement, rafting outfitters talked about the impact of this week’s storm.

“The kayaker side of me likes (heavy rain), but trying to run a rafting company, I’m like ‘oh, stop raining.’ It’s kind of a love-hate situation,” said Andy Fogal, river manager for Pocono Whitewater.

The Lehigh River is flowing much higher than usual, thanks to 3-5 inches of rainfall since Saturday. That means there has been plenty of whitewater, regardless of what’s going on at the dam.

“This is what river guides train for and love. They are stoked,” said Jerry McAward, owner of Jim Thorpe River Adventures.

In a few cases, outfitters have had to adjust some weekday trips because the river is too rough. The easiest way to deal with faster-moving water is to put guides in each raft, rather than having them travel alongside in kayaks.

Some companies rescheduled trips or moved them to sections of the river which would be more predictable.

“This is supposed to be fun and lighthearted, not fear-inspiring,” McAward said.

River Adventures made the decision to reschedule some of its group trips that involved younger children, or gave families the option. McAward said he would rather customers enjoy the river when it’s at a comfortable level than attempt something that’s over their head.

“We’ll modify, cancel, shorten, as the fine print says. As professional rafters we reserve the right to do anything to keep safety in mind,” he said. “And most people will understand that.”

Whitewater Challengers decided to move some groups from the Jim Thorpe-Lehighton section upstream to the White Haven-Rockport section. General Manager Scott Locorini said the whitewater in that area was more predictable because it is closer to Francis E. Walter Dam.

The high water also means that rafts cover a lot more ground.

Rafting outfitters can be more flexible with their schedules during the week, because most of their visitors come on the weekends, particularly the 14-plus weekends where the Army Corps of Engineers hold a whitewater release at Francis E. Walter.

However the dam’s primary function is flood control, not recreation. So that takes precedence. On Tuesday, the dam reduced the amount of water flowing out in order as part of its flood control operations.

On Thursday, they released some of that water, and announced that the weekend’s dam release was canceled.

“Our team monitors National Weather Service rainfall forecasts and makes adjustments to the operation of the dam based on the forecasts and downstream conditions. Timing is a critical element of this with the goal of reducing flood damages,” said Stephen Rochette of the Army Corps Philadelphia District press office.

The long-term impact of the storm is that there will be more water in the Lehigh watershed, which bodes well for the 12-plus dam release days remaining in the season.

In the meantime, river guides are having a blast. Locorini said after work, guides will get together and take their own kayaks out on tributaries of the Lehigh which are normally impassible, but offer great whitewater conditions because of the recent rain.

“It’s a good time to get on the river,” Locorini said.