Any tips on a good outfitter/shuttle for the lower section of the Buffalo? I’ll be taking my Tarpon 160 SOT but my buddy we’ll need a solo canoe. I’d like to do as many miles as possible but I understand in July the lower 68miles has enough water. Our there any other good paddles in the area?
Thanks,
Gus
Florida
I’ve heard positive things here
http://www.gilbertstore.com/canoe.htm
The owner is also the Mayor of Gilbert, Arkansas–at least as of a couple of years ago. We met him very briefly on a Buffalo trip four years ago.
You should have enough water on the middle/lower Buffalo for a trip. There are many other good rivers to paddle nearby.
I would check here for people that really know the area:
http://www.arkansascanoeclub.com/
Bon voyage!
Definitely go with Gilbert Store
The way it has been raining up there recently, you just may be able to do some of the upper river that late this year too.
Buffalo river outfitters
I’m in the process of planning a trip this coming week. Here are some useful websites.
www.buffaloriverandrain.com/index.html
www.buffaloriver.com
www.buffalonationalriver.com
www.ozarkmtns.com/buffalo/canoe
For the lower river,I’ve heard good things about:
Dillards 1-800-423-89731
Wild Bill’s 1-800-554-8757
I’ve been watching the weather for a week and they haven’t gotten any appreciable rain,lower river is steadily dropping, but still floatable, possible rain thru Mon. Watch the above sites and have a good trip.
Dillards…
has always treated me right. They’re located near Buffalo Point, run lots of trips from Gilbert to Buffalo Point, but they’ve shuttled my vehicle to Buffalo City and Norfork several times, so I could do the lower end.
The last post reminded me
You want to arrange your take out at Norfork. Down stream on the White River from its confluence with the Buffalo.
Buffalo City is a little upstream from the confluence, and depending on the flow in the White River, might be difficult to get up stream to.
The run down the White is easy.
Dillards was very helpful to me…
I don’t usually need a shuttle service, but a couple of years ago, I was on a solo trip to the Buffalo. I planned on paying for a shuttle, but had not made any arrangements, not being certain what my final plans would be. As fate would have it, I had a car wreck on Hwy 14, a few miles from Buffalo Point Campground.
Danny Dillard of Dillard’s Outfitters was one of the kind folks who stopped to help me while I waited for the sheriff’s deputy and tow truck. I had to be towed back to Marshall, and was stranded there for the weekend, pending insurance arrangements in Harrison on Monday.
Dillard’s driver came to Marshall, picked me up, drove me to the wrecker yard and retrieved my boat and gear from my damaged van, drove me to my put-in at Maumee South. Danny Dillard picked me up later at Dillard’s Ferry, my take-out–about a 10 mile day trip. Since I would be returning to Texas in a rental car, he kindly offered to keep my boat for me at no charge for the two weeks it would take for me to return to Arkansas to retrieve my repaired van. He drove me all the way back to my motel in Marshall afterwards. This was quite a bit of back-tracking and a lot more driving than his usual shuttles, and I thought his fee was extremely fair. They were very nice people. Although I didn’t take them up on it, his wife and family even offered me a place to stay with them in their home instead of staying in a motel in Marshall. My boat was kept safe and sound until I returned a couple of weeks later.
I was impressed by their generosity and friendliness and their flexibility in making arrangements for me so that my trip had a happy ending. I happily and gratefully give them a plug for their commercial services!
Jill
Wild Bill’s
We recently used Wild Bill’s when we stayed at Buffalo Point CG. Their shuttle fees and service were very good.
Sounds like…
Sounds like you are doing this the right way – as a multi-day trip with gravelbar camping. Some of the river roads down there (example Erbie) are real headaches.
Yep…
Lots of people take out at Buffalo City, but I only did it once. Even when they’re not letting out a lot of water on the White, it isn’t easy to get up the riffle at the mouth of the Buffalo. If they are running a bunch of generators, it’s basically impossible in a heavily loaded canoe.
It’s about 11 miles down the White to Norfork. If they AREN’T running any generators, it’s a flat water paddle, and will take a few hours. If they are letting out a lot of water, all you have to do it sit and drift if you don’t want to paddle.
There are two other accesses between the mouth of the Buffalo and Norfork. Neither are easily recognizable from the river, and both are reputed to not be real safe places to leave a vehicle.