According to my friend Bill, Ozark Campground is empty (except for a camp host) but otherwise fine. Some low lying campsites near the river flooded, but the rest of the campground is dry.
The three gauges on the upper Buffalo have all peaked and have been on a downward trajectory since this morning. They are all well below the peak levels they reached this past Wednesday. In fact, as I type this the Boxley Valley section is running at what is considered to be an optimal level. The river is still closed at Ponca and Pruitt and levels remain high there, but the gauges are dropping sharply and the Ponca section should be doable no later than Tuesday, and possibly even tomorrow, if the gauges continue their present rate of decline, which they should do since there is no more rain in the forecast prior to Tues PM at the earliest.
I suspect that by Wednesday the river should be at a decent level. Rain is predicted for Wednesday, but it looks as if it will be spotty with accumulations of 1/2 inch or less.
@Vic said:
I look forward to seeing you at the Fall Rendezvous on the Current River in Missouri from Thursday, October 12 to Sunday, October 16. Since I will be in the Ozarks on Boys of Fall from September 30 to October 7, I am now planning to be at Pultite on Sunday, October 8 for Fall Rendezvous week. Hope to see you then.
I wasn’t planning on being at the Spring Rendevous, but I am planning on the fall trip. Is this going to be the date? Us retired folks get such a busy schedule that I need a lot of advanced planning! I also have some friends who are still working and need to plan vacation. I had thought it was generally between the second and third weekend.
Pam - Fall Rendezvous is the 3rd weekend of October, so that would be 10/18 to 10/22 (Vic is off a week on his dates)… Spring is always first weekend of May and Fall is 3rd weekend of October. Royalfan1 - not sure how many people will be there as some folks have already said they aren’t coming and some still may decide not to. I think the best paddling days will be Friday and Saturday. Wednesday could be a wash out as they are expecting more rain, let’s just pray it isn’t like this last storm. No matter if we have 10 people or 25 we’ll still have a good time. I’ll miss the folks who cant’ make it.
Anyone going down Highway 44 from STL beware that 44 is closed in certain areas (Union by Highway 50 and between Lebanon and Rolla) and they expect 44 at 141 to close Monday evening. You can go to MODOT.org and you’ll see the road closures, be careful out there, TONS of road closures all over the state.
@Crispin.rena@gmail.com said:
Thanks for the road closure info and how to keep up with it. I hadn’t thought of that, duh!
Ddo we need to make reservations at the campground?
As I mentioned in a post yesterday Rena, as of late afternoon yesterday there was not a soul in the campground except for the campground host(s).
For those who are on the fence about coming to the Buffalo, or when to come, here is an update on conditions as of about midday today, in case you have not been able to monitor the gauges or weather forecast:
Water levels;
All three gauges on the upper Buffalo continue to drop. The Boxley gauge (upstream of Ponca) has dropped from a peak of around 22,000 cfs (13.5’) and is currently at around 650 cfs and just under 4.5’. Boxley Valley could be paddled today but will almost certainly be too low by tomorrow.
The gauge at Ponca is now below flood stage. It is still on the high side at 1710 cfs and 5.6’. I would expect it to be at a very nice level for tomorrow and the next few days.
The river at Pruitt is still at flood stage but just. The Pruitt gauge currently reads 2140 cfs and just under 8.5’. Flood stage is 2000 cfs and 8.28’ so the river at Pruitt should drop below flood stage by late afternoon or so.
Weather forecast for the Jasper, AR area: (I checked several forecast sites. Of course, they never all agree completely).
Tuesday: should be a nice day with a high in the mid 70s and mostly sunny. There is a possibility of rain and thunderstorms Tuesday night.
Wednesday: Will be cool and rainy with possible thunderstorms in the afternoon. High in the mid 60s. Rain accumulation is predicted to be only about 1/4" or so. Rain will probably continue Wednesday night. Might not be a great day to paddle, or perhaps a shorter paddle with rain gear so as not to be caught on the river in a thunderstorm.
Thursday: Again on the cool side with a high of 62-64. Chance of rain. One site put the chance of rain as high as 40% but several others suggested a possibility of 20% or less. If rain occurs, it would probably be in the morning before 9 or 10 AM
Friday through weekend and into week: Conditions continue to improve daily with little chance of rain through Tuesday of next week. High on Friday 66-68. Highs on Saturday through Tuesday in the 70s and climbing to the lower 80s by Tuesday. Sunny or mostly sunny conditions each day.
@PamThePaddler said:
CanoePam - seems to be some discussion on dates for Fall Rendezvous, stay tuned.
The issue might be whether the first weekend of October is 30 Sep - 1 October or whether it is the following weekend. I have another activity regularly the first weekend of October. We chose to call 30 Sep - 1 October the first weekend this year, but it took significant discussion.
Safe travels and safe paddling for those at the Spring Rendezvous.
Sorry turning around and going home GPS took me to a ferry then died on me. Drove in circles hitting flooded roads 2am found a Super8. Watching news and maybe a good weekend but how to get through MO right now. Try again next year. Can’t make Fall going to South America. Vicky
Hi all, new to the forum and will be new to the rendezvous this year. Signed up to post this Missouri DOT map that shows all the road closures due to flooding. Good luck to everyone getting down there.
@Muskrat said:
Hi all, new to the forum and will be new to the rendezvous this year. Signed up to post this Missouri DOT map that shows all the road closures due to flooding. Good luck to everyone getting down there.
Be forewarned Modot’s “Updates” are not always up to date! On the way home from work Sunday night I stopped at the Hwy patrol to plot my trip home from work around flooded roads. The patrolman got on Modot’s website and routed me home. An hour later I ended up on a road with a “Road closed” barricade. Had to re-route continuously and my hour and forty five minute drive home from work took over 3 hours. BEWARE the road closures are continuously evolving!
@Royalfan1 said:
I’ll be on 65 Hwy for 4 hours…should be good…if I loose gps/phone signal it would be ugly! Hope we have a few there…
I should be right ahead of you. Asuming you’re from KC by your name. I’m leaving right after work Thursday. If you see a silver truck with a Kevlar canoe on the rack going the wrong direction I found a closed road.