The first week of April my wife and I are going to Mountain View, AR for a week of mountain biking the Syllamo trails. We are Great Lakes sea kayakers, our lakes are frozen and snow has just recently cleared enough for us to ride bikes on the road. So, in spite of a winter of cross country skiing and sessions on the trainers, we will not be in shape for Ozark Mountain mountain biking and will be looking for some non-riding activities.
Since we are in the area, we’d like to spend a day paddling a river. I’ve read some of the posts about the Buffalo River, but have no ww kayak experience to determine what is within our range of abilities. We have canoed a number of rivers in Michigan (lower peninsula), but I have no idea what the riffles we paddled through would be rated as.
Basically I have a couple of questions. We are willing to travel a few hours from our base at Mountain View. Are there recommendations for an outfitter and a stretch of river that will be scenic and class I (class II?)? Are there any other rivers we should consider instead?
Thanks for any suggestions.
Ken
an outfitter should be able to
give you a good recommendation…since its just a day trip…try to include the area around Buffalo Point.
I have run the river three times in its entirety and its never been the same. I have come to rely on local knowledge thats up to date!
However the area you are going to I believe has been hit with floods so its best to check aforehand.
The Buffalo will be closed if there is a flood.
The river in this stretch is class 1 moving… most whitewater is upriver and a fair drive. You will want to minimize driving time and maximize float time. I dont have my map in front of me but in that part I believe there is limited road access.
My favorite area is around Woolum and the Nars.
Ponca to Pruitt requires attention and a manueverable boat and some solid skills if the water is up. It gets pushy and the trees erupt out of the river.
Depends upon water levels…
The lower Buffalo, actually about anywhere below Hwy. 65, is usually class 1 and well within your capabilities if you’ve floated moving water in Michigan. However, in spring there’s always a good chance of higher water levels, which reduces your margin of error. As Kayamedic said, ask the outfitters along the Buffalo if in doubt. A very scenic and usually easy day float is Buffalo Point to Rush. Maumee to Buffalo Point is also very nice. And those are the closest sections to where you’ll be staying. The current flooding along the Buffalo is going to make some changes on the river, but barring more heavy rain, it will have little influence on water levels by the first of April…river will have plenty of water but should be doable IF they don’t get more rain.
River levels
Check out the river gauge at St Joe, the water rose 40 feet in one day… WOW! Just about back down now.
Buffalo
Hi Ken :
I agree with what has been said so far. The Buffalo is subject to radical changes depending on rain. Sometimes too low, sometimes too high.
One thing to remember, Mt. View is at the eastern end of the Buffalo R. Anything west of those mentioned by Al_A will require a Class VI shuttle. As it is you’ll be spending a lot of time on the road anyhow. Check the guages. I don’t have the link right now but there’s a good website that discusses the various runs and recommended guage levels both too high and too low. It is easy to Google.
If you like Mountain or Bluegrass music consider going to Mt. View town square in the evenings. There is always music there.
This one?
Do you mean this link? http://www.buffaloriverandrain.com/cgi-bin/levelplotall
We really don’t mind a longer drive if there’s a float we can do farther west. It gives us the entire day to explore an area that we haven’t been to before. Thanks to all who have replied so far.
Ken
Actually
I had the following in mind as it includes recommended ranges of too high or too low. Then you can check the guage levels. It is also organized by put-ins and take outs rather than just guages. enjoy.
http://www.buffaloriverandrain.com/floatlevels.html
Its good that you don't mind a drive. It's a long way from Mt. View to Ponca.
BUFFALO RIVER
KEN GO TO WWW.ARKANSASCANOECLUB.COM AND CLICK ON THE NORTHWEST CHAPTER ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE PAGE. YOU WILL FIND INFO ON OTHER RIVERS BESIDES THE BUFFALO WHICH ARE OUTSTANDING AS WELL. YOU WILL FIND CONTACT INFO FROM THE FOLKS THAT FLOAT ALL THESE RIVERS IN NORTH ARKANSAS.THERE ARE OTHER CHAPTERS YOU CAN LOOK AT THAT FLOAT OTHER AREAS OF ARKANSAS ALSO.
USE THIER EMAIL AND PHONE NUMBERS LISTED ON THIER WEBSITES TO FIND OUT WHAT THE WATER LEVELS ARE NOW AND WHAT THEY EXPECT THEM TO BE AT THE TIME OF YOUR TRIP. AT THIS TIME ALL WATER IN NORTH ARKANSAS IS IN FLOOD STAGE WITH SOME TOWNS COMPLETELY UNDER WATER. IT’S VERY BAD UP THERE RIGHT NOW.WE HAVE SOME OUSTANDING STREAMS IN CENTRAL AND SOUTH ARKANSAS THAT ARE OK AT THIS TIME. THE CENTRAL ARKANSAS CHAPTER CAN HELP YOU WITH THIS.
BRING YOUR FISHING GEAR,THE SMALLMOUTH FISHING IS GREAT. HAVE FUN,BE SAFE.
Mountain View to Ponca
is at least two hours away…
Whitewater skills are desirable from Ponca to Erbie. I have pulled people out of willows that did not have any and others with limited experience on moving water can be intimidated. Grey Rocks is class 2-3. If your ww skills are rusty this may not be the place for you unless the level is way low.
Make sure you have a good river map…there are a couple of fords that act as low head dams when the water is up.
Shuttles always eat up more time than you want…so I try to minimize the drive and enjoy the part of the river I am near. Your all day can easily vanish by six hours if you try to do the Ponca section.
no shouting Fish-A -Lot
you’re scaring the fish!
buffalo
here are some goodies for you,>ttp://www.buffaloriver.com/rivermap.aspx /www.buffaloriverandrain.com/index.hthttp:/ /www.buffaloriver.com/riverlevel.aspxml
Blanchard Springs Cavern
You are close and it is a really nice cave! I like it better than Carlsbad Caverns.
B. Springs
I agree, Blanchard Springs Caverns is worth seeking out. You’ll be glad if you do! It’s just a bit north of the town of Mt. View.
There’s a short tour and longer tour. The longer requires a bit more fitness but if you’re in even reasonable shape, can be done. It is truly beautiful.
Buffalo is class I-II
While the inexperienced and many well-inebriated folks in rental canoes can (and often do) have trouble at some of the class II rapids, there is nothing class III on the Buffalo. It’s all class I with some class II.
Not to say someone inexperienced can’t get into trouble on class II, but I just don’t want anyone to think there’s any class III rapids on the Buffalo, or to have that influence their decision about where to paddle.
The folks at the Arkansas Canoe Club will be happy to offer more advice and suggestions about sections to do as well as many wonderful side trips that can be done (www.arkansascanoeclub.com/mb).
Enjoy your time in Arkansas!
Thanks again
for the information and suggestions. I know this is a paddling, not pedaling, forum but we managed to get out for a hilly 30 mile ride on our mountain bikes this weekend. Temps were sunny and near 40. So we’re getting excited about our upcoming trip. And the prospect of paddling, wherever we end up, is also exciting.
Ken