I'm heading down to the Current for a day paddle Thursday. I was thinking Akers to Pulltite, or maybe Pulltite to Round Spring. How do those two trips compare and should I consider Round Spring to Two Rivers? I haven't been out paddling this year so I am inclined to do one of the first two paddles mentioned. Any thoughts or suggestions happily read.
Looking forward to a day in the sun.
Mike
Hello fellow KS paddler-
Here is a trip report from last June- I like the section from Round Spring to Two Rivers (but to each there own)
Have a great time!!
Thursday, June 19th:
We left at 4am Thursday morning from Arnold to out put-in point Aker’s Ferry. We had kayaks packed and were on the river by 9:15 am this morning with the weather looking to be about perfect. The first thing I learned this trip was that the Ferry here was in working order… I always thought it was out of commission, but it was $5 for a truck and $4 for a car. We decided to try some early fishing and I am glad we did. The water was cold this high up and we were fishing some swift water with crankbaits looking for smallies. We ended up catching a couple of trout, me two rainbows and Nolan a Brown. This was the first trout I have ever caught and was pretty excited since it was around 17” and probably a couple of lbs!! We continued downstream with a quick stop at Cave Spring to paddle inside and cool off for just a minute. I have never been on this section of river so it was my first visit of the cave—it is beautiful! We did not see many people on the upper stretch and the fishing was not great, but we heard the fishing gets better downstream from Round Spring. We paddled to our camp about 1 mile upstream from Round Spring and settled on a gravel bar for the evening. We wanted to stay at Sinkin creek, but there were already a few people there. It was a typical evening at the camp: built a shelter, had some Brats and a few cold ones and relaxed. A storm rolled in about 10pm and forced us under the shelter early. It rained and stormed for about 2 hours, but the shelter held up good and the river hardly rose an inch.
We were on the water today from 9am until 7pm and covered 17.5 miles.
Friday, June 20th:
Slept in today and didn’t get on the water until around 10am. We stopped by Carr’s Canoe Rental and grabbed some snacks for the afternoon and the headed back out. There was alot of canoe traffic from here until Round Spring which is only about a mile. After that the traffic really thinned out and the fishing picked up. We both caught quite a few smallies once the water warmed up. The great thing about the river is it seems like around every corner is a perfect place to fish. The ONLY disadvantage of this lower section was the amount of jet boat traffic. It definitely is a nuisance for the canoer or kayaker. But, the way I see it is to each their own…. they are probably looking at us going “why in the heck would I paddle all day when I could just jump in my boat and go!!” Personally I thought this section of the river was more scenic than the upper section. It seemed around every corner was another bluff or cave. Today was pretty uneventful as we fished and had a few more cold ones than yesterday. The only funny thing was the storm that was following us… Now I am a weather junky and pretty much obsessed with anything to do with the weather. As we were floating, you could see a front moving in on us. Not only could you see it but it was thundering pretty badly so you could hear it as well. So I’m freaking out about being in the middle of water during a thunderstorm and Nolan is laughing the whole time. Needless to say the storm followed us all day but never actually came to fruition. We set up camp just down from Jerktail right next to some beautiful bluffs. Another typical evening: set up camp, had a few cold ones, ate some dinner and told stories……. Funny how this is what we seem to do every night (eat, drink and tell stories)… Oh well, that’s why I love doing this so much!!!
We were on the water today from 10am until 6:30 pm and covered 15 miles
Saturday, June 21st:
Woke up a 6am to the valley just filled with fog. I am here to tell you if you have never experienced the fog on the water in the morning you are missing out. Anyway, we knew we were on for a short float today (by design) so we took off from camp around 6:30-6:45 and headed to two rivers. We fished quite a bit along the way and caught some more nice smallies. The trip came to an end too soon as we rounded the last curve and saw the cabin up on the hill.
We were on the water today from 6:30 am until 9am and covered 3.5 miles
if it was me
i would put in at cedar grove / play at welch spring…pass akers ferry and take out at pulltite… thats a great day paddle …you will go home tired
Cedargrove to Pulltite
As yj mentioned, moderately long day but worth it.
A few high points;
The hospital at Welch Spring definitely worth the 50 yard walk.
Cave Spring on river left (mile ?) you can paddle into the cave and your sitting 100 or 200 feet of water.
I’d advise scouting when you leave a vehicle at Pulltite. Near the farthest downstream group camp there is a pipe gate on the right side of the road. Follow the trail to the river you can see the water from Pulltite Spring branch across the river.
When you come down bypass the takeout and land at the spring branch river right. It’s about 150 yards to one of the most picturesque springs around, with a log cabin nearby. Afterwards ferry across to the landing mentioned above, carry to the gate and bring your car down to load. It’s a bit of work but well worth it!
Good Luck!
Randy
It’s rather a long paddle…
from Round Spring to Two Rivers to do in one day if you haven’t been paddling recently. You can shorten it by using one of two intermediate accesses. If doing your own shuttle you could go from Round Spring to Jerktail Landing…I don’t think any of the canoe liveries will shuttle you for that float. You can also do Williams Landing to Two Rivers. The last time I was down there, Two Rivers Canoe Rental would do that shuttle. You can also do it yourself, but the drive into Williams Landing is a long, steep, rough gravel road. Williams Landing to Two Rivers is 10.5 miles, Round Spring to Jerktail is 12.5 miles, Round Spring to Two Rivers is 17 miles. For comparison purposes, Cedar Grove to Pulltite is 17 miles, Akers to Pulltite is 9.5, Pulltite to Round Spring is 9 miles.
I too think the overall scenery is better from Round Spring to Two Rivers, but the river is a bit slower and the jetboats can be thick on weekends.
Jet boat dweebs…
– Last Updated: Apr-22-09 7:52 PM EST –
The majority of the "jet boat dweebs" & "river dorks" are still in hibernation, and will not be putting in too many appearances until May. Won't bother me if they all died of starvation this past Winter.
Round Springs to Two Rivers is approximately 17.5 miles. Quite a few long stretches of slow water.
BUT, it is definitely doable "if" you get on the river at a reasonable time, and don't lolly gag the whole trip.
You should be easily able to average about 2.5 miles per hour. Get on the river by 10 a.m., take a few short breaks, and do some paddling........you should be at the take out no later than 5 p.m. You'd still have a couple of hours of light left for shuttle. You'll need that extra time; the shuttle "is" a long one from Round Springs to Two Rivers.........a little over an hour, if you don't run into traffic.
Of course you know your ability/stamina better than I do.
BOB
another vote for Cedargrove to Pulltite
if you are going to do a day trip on the current that is the must see section for sure.
Last week I did 100 solo miles on the current (baptist to big spring). I put in wednesday 130pm and took out friday at noon. camped 2 nights and according to my gps my trip (not including stops for the night) was only about 24hrs in the boat.
Cedargrove to Pulltite was the prettiest section imo and one I would do agian. The rest is very picturesque but that is the most bang for the buck.
also, I camped my first night at pultite, the campground is open, but the park is still shut for the season. The restrooms etc are open and there were 2 vehicles in the lot left by floaters. i would feel safe leaving my vehicle parked there for the day.
now is the best time to go too. spring is just kicking in good down there. i only saw maybe a dozen souls on the river my whole 100 miles, and only 3 or 4 boats down closer to van buren. not much traffic at all. im positive i saw more shannon county wild horses than i saw people. 
ive got a bunch of pics, im going to upload them later.
also if you are going down on a weekend or rush hour time of day shannon co police and the hwy patrol will have a safety checkpoint on hwy 19 about 10-15 mi north of emminece. they try and bust all the dirty hippies going to camp Zoe… so that may or may not have a bearing on your travel plans.
Well actually…
Baptist Camp to the Big Spring access is approximately 89 miles.
Panther Spring is about 100 miles downstream of Baptist Camp.
That’s what A Paddler’s Guide to Missouri & Missouri Ozark Waterways says anyway.
Still a very nice trip, and a great time of the year to do it too.
BOB
well actually…
according to my gps it was 92.7somethin miles, but my gps was dead for about 1/2 mile of paddling before I noticed. It should still track though
that guide is also off on parts of the upper current by almost 2 miles for a couple landmarks, but overall its pretty good.
I just say 100 because it rolls off the tongue easier than 92.7somethin miles 
Know what you mean…
100 miles does roll off your tongue real nice.
Several of us put in at Two Rivers last year & paddled to Doniphan(about 72 miles). It was shortly after the big flood & the river was still moving along at a sporty pace. Up to 7 mph in spots. We ended the trip a day early.
I’ve previously done a Cedar Grove to Currentview trip (about 130 miles).
We are in the early planning stages of trying to put together a 75 to 80 mile trip on the Buffalo. Hopefully, for May or June this year.
Paddle on,
BOB