One of the most popular activities along the Buffalo National River is floating on the river. And one of the most popular floats is from the Ponca low water bridge to Kyle's Landing.
The float is as upstream as the area outfitters will put in (many experienced kayakers will put in further up river during very high water) and is usually only floatable in the early Spring and is usually floatable when the air space on the Ponca low water bridge is between 0 and 29" of airspace. Buffalo Outdoor Center is great about updating the airspace levels during the key floating season. BOC, along with Lost Valley Canoe, are two outstanding canoe rental places right there in Ponca for those who don't have they're own kayaks.
As a point of record, I've floated this stretch 3 times now at 3 pretty different water levels. 29" was really shallow, and we drug quite a bit. Our first time was at 13", and was VERY fast, and fun, but may be pretty challenging if you don't have much experience in a canoe. This past trip we were at 21" of airspace, which was great for floating, and yet still had some challenging spots.
The float to Kyle's Landing is 11 miles long. It's a long float, but usually moves pretty quickly in higher water.
The float goes by many of the biggest bluffs along the River, Roark Bluff, Jim's Bluff, and Big Bluff. It also passes Steel Creek Campground, the easiest trailhead to get to Hemmed-in-Hollow Falls and another great little waterfall area -- the links will take you to those stops. It's also not uncommon to see several volunteer waterfalls along the side of the river, depending on the river level. There also a couple of old barns and home sites along the route, so leave yourself plenty of time for exploring.
There are also several areas of great rapids that will test your canoeing skills (fun for kayakers too!) and pass the dreaded grey rock, which is large rock that is pretty notorious for having tipped many generations of canoers.
This is my favorite float on the Buffalo River, and definitely worth the effort. In my next two posts, I'll discuss a couple of my favorite stops along the way.
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