I have a group of buddies that take a kayak trip once a year. The last 2 years we have hit the Devils and had a blast. This April we are heading up to Arkansas to fish and float the Buffalo. We are all Texas boys with no knowledge or experience on this river. We are still not positive where we will put in but we will be on the river for 3 nights. I am just looking for any wisdom you guys can share on the river, the fishing, or whatever else a newbie needs to know. Thanks in advance.

We canoed it once as I was a kid, little pumpkin-seed lizards wore the smallies out.

Pumpkin seed anything will wear out the smallies. We used tubes.

Always remember, this is not a dammed river. Whatever happens upstream, will come to you in a hurry. This river is so beautiful, but will rise quickly and get dangerous in a hurry. If you do get caught in flooding, always remember, river right. Do not go left.

The elk are NOT friendly and will charge. Even if you are in the water.

Best times to go is going to be during the wet Spring season. This river will get dried up in some areas during Summer.

Explore as much as possible and take lots of pictures. Like the Devils, the scenery is amazing.

water is cold

Nice clear water and plenty of smallmouth. Don't go late in mid or late summer or you'll be dragging your kayaks.

I've done it ~10 times. Carver to Gilbert is a nice stretch for 3 nights on the river. Use the Gilbert General Store for your shuttle. Easy to end at their place and just walk 50 yards up from the river to your car. I also recommend going to Fergusons off Hwy 65 one morning for breakfast. Get the cinnamon roll.

Plenty of numbers of smallies in the Buffalo but not the size you may be used to from the Devils. We throw any soft plastics in green pumpkin ... tubes, craws, grubs, senkos. Its pretty easy pickings.

You won't have any rapids close to what you saw in the Devils but there won't be the long flat stretches either. More of a steady flow on the Buffalo.

I've seen an elk once and only cause it practically walked into our campsite one night. They're pretty hard to find.

Thanks, guys. Great info. I will be sure to take pics and report back.

Those cinnamon rolls at Ferguson's are huge.

Look up a story called "Down the Buffalo" it a great read and full of very useful tips..it's the story of a man who did the river from ponca all the way to the white, all by his self for his 60th b-day.

How many river miles is the carver to gilbert stretch?

36.2 miles.


https://www.nps.gov/buff/planyourvisit/maps.htm

That's it. I'm out

We've done the Rush Landing to the White River stretch multiple times and love it. Fishing isn't as good on that stretch as it is upstream from what I've been told but the scenery is incredible. We always encounter very few other people on that stretch as well and have found that late May was the best time to go as far as temperature etc.