The Arkansas Adventure Guide crew had a problem. We were spending too much time in north Arkansas. Okay, that’s not really a problem, but just go with it. Haven’t you people ever heard of rhetorical flourish? My point is, there’s adventuring to be had all over The Natural State, including in the southwest corner. Case in point, the Ouachita River. With the exception of a dam controlled reach that we’ll discuss another time the Ouachita is rain dependent, so when the river gods favored us with some unseasonable H20 we felt compelled to partake, lest they find us ungrateful for their largesse and withhold it later.
Pick a boat, any boat!
We conferred with our south Arkansas friend (everyone should have at least one south Arkansas friend) Chris Crawford and made plans to meet at River Bluff access near Mount Ida to set shuttle. From there we headed to the put in, our objective being the +/- 4.5 mile run from Fulton Branch to River Bluff.
Pat Crane Airing Up Her Inflatable Kayak, AKA Ducky, at Fulton Branch Access
A word about Ouachita River accesses; they’re very pretty, but they are mere vestiges of their former selves. This is because in their previous lives they were USFS float camps replete with the laughter of children and cheerful campground chaos, but following the 2010 tragedy at Albert Pike Campground the Forest Service yielded to an abundance (some might say overabundance) of caution and restricted them all to day use. So, if you visit one of these accesses and find it excessively equipped for a day use area you will know why.
River Bluff Access Near Mount Ida
We launched at Fulton Branch and began the lazy journey to the only notable feature on the river, the Dragover section.
Brunch is the most important meal of the day, fellow adventurers. Please forgive the plastic bag. We are not fans, but it was the most expeditious method of protecting the precious tenders from cooler soup. Careful man, there’s a tender here! – The Dude
Dragover presents boaters with the option to launch, enjoy a short paddle featuring a class I+/II- rapid, then take out and drag (hence the name) their boats about a quarter mile overland but several miles upstream and repeat as desired. Our personal preference is to instead add a few miles to the trip, but if one were inclined to float and didn’t want to deal with the hassle of a shuttle the Dragover loop would be an excellent option. Incidentally it’s also a great place to practice whitewater boating skills.
We played at Dragover for a while, but the siren song of ice cream (I think we ate some food first) at the Mount Ida Dairyette proved impossible to ignore, so down river we went to the takeout and eventually the Dairyette. In addition to the burgers (turkey burger for this Alpha-gal boy) and shakes we were treated to an exquisite rainbow.
Did I mention it was a double rainbow? Well, it was.
I’m certain it was those puckish river gods’ way of affirming our good choices for the day. If you don’t believe me that’s your prerogative, but I recommend keeping your skepticism to yourself – that is if you want to paddle in July.
See you out there!
Deuce
