Greetings (first post)... and the Caddo?

[Sunray and Eve]

Hello all.

My wife and I have been trolling these forums for awhile now, and finally got around to joining. It's awesome to see that there is such an active online forum community devoted to Arkansas's rivers. This looks to be a great group, and I'm excited to finally join up!

We hit the Ozark streams pretty heavily in the Spring and early summer with open canoes (16' Buffalos) so we keep it under class II+ if we can. Big Piney, Buffalo, Illinois Bayou, Mulberry, etc. Great rivers all. But we've only recently started to explore the Ouachita area rivers.

We are looking to do a section on the Caddo on Wednesday (gauge should be around 6'). Anyone have any thoughts on the Caddo or can recommend a good section as a first-time sampler? We've done the South Fourche LaFave and just took off at Dragover on the Ouachita R. on Friday... good rivers both, but how do they compare to the Caddo or is it even worth the drive? (We are in the Russellville area).

Any discussion welcome. And thanks again for having the PERFECT forums around :)

[Jim Krueger]

Sunray,

The Caddo has been a favorite of mine for a long time so considering there is actually enough water presently, I'd recommend you float from either 'The Swinging Bridge' access at Caddo Gap, Ar. to the Hwy. 70 bridge at Glenwood. This is about 9-9 1/2 miles. There is some of the best mountain scenery/vistas on this section as well as most of the better rapids the Caddo has to offer.
You can shorten the trip by two miles if you like by putting in at 'The Narrows' access by the Hwy 240 bridge.
This week looks about as rainy a forecast as I've seen for the Summer in quite a while, both good and bad for paddling. If you paddle this section, I like it best between 6' and about 7.5'. There are two float outfitters in the area I can recommend if you should need a shuttle, Caddo River Canoe in Glenwood at the bridge and Arrowhead Canoe by the 240 bridge at the Narrows.
I hope you all have a great trip, please give us a trip report if you go, and let us know if you have further questions.


Best Regards
Jim

[Sunray and Eve]

Thanks Jim, for the info on the Caddo. That section sounds perfect, we'll probably do the full 9.5 miles. Looks like the entire SW quarter of the state is getting awash of rain right now, so we'll see how the river looks on Wednesday.

Love this July rain!

[Jim Krueger]

I hope you enjoy it Sunray, with the projected rain this week, I'd love nothing more than for the river to still be up enough so I can maybe float it Saturday as well. At any rate, do give us a report if you go. If it's very thunderstorm-likely, I'd wait a bit though. I have made two or three trips over the years when it started raining and lightning 'pitchforks and little babies' just after I put in and it makes for a harrowing and long trip when you're still miles from the truck :) Incredible as it may sound, under rainy conditions, Hypothermia is also a possibility in mid summer.


Best Regards
Jim Moose

[Sunray and Eve]

Well, we opted out today because of the strong chance of storms that were predicted. Looking at the radar now, we probably could have gotten the float in, but better safe than sorry! Yep, I've been on the river too, Jim, when a storm hits and there is nowhere to run.

Hopefully we can get a chance to go on Friday. I'll definitely get a report in if we do, I'm really wanting to see the Caddo!

[David Holthus]

Welcome to the ACC board. Those are some good looking canoes. Custom paint jobs maybe?

[Sunray and Eve]

Welcome to the ACC board. Those are some good looking canoes. Custom paint jobs maybe?

Custom job, yes. My wife did the painting and detailing on both, since these were a couple of older rentals we purchased early spring. They have been fondly named "Johnny Cash" and "Purple Haze".

[David Holthus]

It is hard to tell they were rentals. You folks should be easy to spot. I am fond of the Upper Ouachita for lazy floats. I hope to see you on the river. I would like to get a closer look at the artwork.

[Sunray and Eve]

hehe yep, the paint jobs make us very easy to spot on the river. If you happen to see us float by, give us a shout.

[Sunray and Eve]

Looks like Friday will be the day. The rains didn't wash out the river as it looked like it might :)

We are gonna try the stretch from Caddo Gap to Glenwood. We'll put on mid-morning and get a shuttle run with Caddo River Canoes, they seemed to be pretty nice when I talked to them on the phone.

If anyone is heading that way and wants to float, we would be happy to shuttle with you, or even throw on an extra canoe if you need. Just post. Otherwise, see you on the river!

[Jim Krueger]

Have a good float Sunray. and do give us a report. I'm also like Dave in wanting to see your canoes sometime, the artwork does look pretty 'farm out' :)


Best Regards
Jim

[Sunray and Eve]

The Caddo was wonderful on Friday. Perfect in fact, that we decided to camp that evening along the river near the bridge, on land owned by the company that gave us a shuttle. Great evening, until the storms came rolling through!

The next morning, we awoke to an approaching thunderstorm, then watched as the river rise 6 feet in two hours, which, if anyone hasn't ever seen that happen, it's an awesome site. We packed up our tents just in time, with minutes to spare before our site flooded. I wish I would have checked the weather, but we didn't realize we were going to be camping.

All in all, the Caddo was lovely. I definitely rank that river as one of my favorites now. At 6.5 feet on Friday, there was no paddling required, and the rapids were frequent and not washed out. Very nice river.

[Jim Krueger]

Sunray,

I'm so glad you all had a good trip! The Caddo is such fun, sorry you were there for the storms but glad you got in a day of paddling beforehand.
I wish you all could have been along with us yesterday for another trip! Since we were all in kayaks, we could have used your canoes to help ferry carnage articles back to their owners :)
There's no telling how much water and floating we'll have up there for the remainder of the Summer but do join us if you'd ever care to! The next section to try at a good level might be from Black Springs or Norman to Caddo Gap. We may even float the Glenwood to Amity section if a little water sticks around, it's also scenic but less rapids.
Thanks for your report!


Best Regards
Jim

[mikeark]

Jim...I might be interested in a Caddo float soon. Please post any planned trip. Mike

[Sunray and Eve]

Jim,

Glad you had a great time on Sunday. We would have loved to have joined you, but we were a little busy drying out from Saturday's storm. :) I'm sure the canoes would have had their share of ferrying carnage on Sunday, for sure! Definitely post when you go again, and maybe we can swing free and join you.

The week was great for the Caddo. Hopefully the rain will cooperate and bring the water back up on some closer rivers for us soon. Rain dance time!