Eagle Viewing and winter camping suggestions please.

[MikkiW]

I am thinking of heading to Reelfoot lake in January to do some eagle viewing, camping, hiking and kayaking. I am a tent camper and like to have electricity for a little heater I carry along and also an electric blanket. (A girl can't leave home without her accessories):lol: I know other members spend a lot of time outside in the winter and hope to get some suggestions for places here in Arkansas that have winter eagle populations and opportunities to hike, camp and kayak during the winter months.

[Jim Krueger]

Mikki,

Others will speak about specific locations for Eagle-watching, etc. but I would say there are quite a few state parks and private campgrounds that have RV sites close enough to be handy, and some sites of interest may just have primitive camping. I think, whether to run a fan in warm weather, or heater in cold weather, an RV site will be the one to get. Most of those in the state park system, and private ones will list what services exist.


Best Regards
Jim

[daxhaltom]

I went on a kayaking eagle watch put on by the Corps of Engineers at Beaver Lake in Rogers, AR. The Ranger that does it is named Alan Bland. He is awesome and very knowledgeable. I think they have done it two years in a row and it is sometime in Jan. or Feb. There are multiple campgrounds around the lake. The trip starts close to Hobbs State Park which also has some campsites that you can hike into, but there is prob not electricity. The trails around there are fun to hike though and the new visitor center there is something to see. I could contact them for you or you could call the Project Office there. I saw over 20 eagles when I went, both immature and mature. I highly recommend it if they are having it this year.

[DeBo]

If you haven’t seen this already, it looks like Reelfoot State Park has hookups.
http://www.state.tn.us/environment/park ... ping.shtml" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The colder it is the more likely you will be to see eagles, so heading north at this time of year will increase your chances. I have already seen some on Ozark streams so Reel foot should be a prime site and the Black River should be great.

Here is a site about camping in the Black River area and one about birding in the area.

http://www.lestervillemissouri.com/camp ... /index.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.missouribirdwatching.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Here is a good site with information about watching eagles in Arkansas. We will see more as the season gets colder. Lake DeGrey is always a prime site.

http://www.wild-bird-watching.com/Eagle-Watching.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[MikkiW]

DeBo,
Your links and suggestions sent me to Google earth to research Missouri. I have only been a few miles over the border from Arkansas a time or two. After I looked at Lesterville and saw what a beautiful area it was I really got interested. Found wild horses, numerous large springs, the shutins, an active ferry(I am a ferry lover), waterfalls, gorges and more great looking state parks than you can shake a stick at. Looks like a trip to Missouri is in the works soon. Also looked at the Current and Jacks Fork rivers. The Black is really pretty too. Thanks for the links and tips.

[MikkiW]

To other posters. Thank you also for your input. I plan on visiting the NW part of the state soon. Have heard that there are lots of eagles on Degray lake in the winter and also a population of trumpeter swans that visit Magness lake near Heber Springs in winter. Found a great book "Arkansas Nature Lover's Guidebook" by Tim Ernst that has led me to some really great out of the way places of great beauty. Always looking for more places to visit and excuses to camp and paddle.

[DeBo]

I remember many years ago Cowper and I went up and explored the New Madrid Quake area. We visited Reel Foot Lake which was created by the quake of 1814 and crossed the Big Muddy on that Ferry to visit the town of New Madrid. Very fun trip.

[Richard]

I saw a couple of buzzards on the Eleven Point last week. Does that count?
These buzzards were very unique. They had white heads.
We saw lots of em.