Steele Creek vs Ponca

[manumuskin]

I am planning on hitting the Buffalo in a couple weeks and am concerned I will not have enough water to put in at Ponca.I was depending on this last rain that went through and it dropped virtually nothing when it was forecsted to drop 1.5 inches.I am putting in on the 22nd and if there is not rain between now and then Ponca will no doubt be too low,how low can I put in at Steele creek as opposed to Ponca on the Ponca Gauge? 2.2 to 2.0 is the suggested cut off point for Ponca and I know when Ponca is too low BOC moves downstream to Steele Creek.How much lee way with low water does Steele Creek give me???
Thanks for any info.
Al

[Louiscov]

Hi Al:

A few of us guys are putting in on the 22nd also, probably around noon, for two nights on the Buffalo. I really hope to do Ponca to Pruitt. It's a low-key, enjoy-the-river, side hike kind of trip. Maybe we'll run into one another or can paddle together some.

I've put in at Steele Creek at 30" air space under the Ponca bridge and would do that anytime. I don't mind some scraping and wading: it's worth it to me to be on that part of the river. I'm guessing that's about 1.95 on the guage. Again, I just like that part of the river; don't mind getting my feet wet some to be there. You'll get some more knowledgable comments from others, I'm 7 hours away and usually make it once a year and enjoy whatever I get. The Buffalo Outdoor Center in Ponca can also comment on river levels. A few of us will be at the class II Mulberry the 20 - 21 for a little more action. If you don't have it you also might like this link on the Buffalo that calls the uper river "very low" at 2.3 but that level is enjoyable to me:

http://ar.water.usgs.gov/buffaloriver/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[cpresoz]

We did an overnighter from Kyles to Pruitt this past weekend (04.06 - 04.07) and the Ponca gauge was at 2.8 the first day and 2.7 the second as we were finishing up. Some real good water, exciting waves and never scraped and it could have been a few inches lower before we noticed any scraping. We went a ways past Erbie and found a nice grassy area to camp.

[Cowper]

Richard or Painter Bob could answer this question better than me, but I don't think it makes a huge difference. Ponca to Steel creek is only 2.6 miles, so when it is too low to float from Ponca it is probably also too low to float from Steel Creek. The main difference would be that if you know it's going to be a bare-bones float, then putting in down lower would give you fewer River miles of Dragging...