All of this rain recently has me thinking back to the summer of 2015 when a group of friends and I got to experience a rare high-water float on the Buffalo River. I say “rare” because it was in the middle of summer. It was the 4th of July to be exact. Anyone that has ever floated the Buffalo at that time of year knows the water is usually too low to float without a lot of dragging and paddling. But this time the water was so high we almost didn’t get to float at all.
We had just had a heavy rain the day before we set up camp at Tyler Bend Campground. We planned to float from Baker Ford to Tyler Bend the next day. That evening our outfitter informed us that the river was over 12 feet. If it did not go down overnight, we would not be allowed to get on the water the next day. Not a problem for some of us with our own boats. But many in our group were renting, so it was an issue. The next morning we checked in with our outfitter and the water level was at 13 feet! No float.
OK, now what? Being at the midsection of the river, we knew that the water levels would probably be lower up-river. So we started calling around to places on the upper Buffalo. Fortunately the good people at Gordon Motel and Canoe Rental in Jasper told us the water was low enough that they could put us on the river at Pruitt access point. So we got our float gear together and drove almost an hour to Jasper to begin our float.
Boy were we in for a treat that day! You normally only get water like this in early spring and yet we had it in the middle of hot summer. Granted it was a little muddy but it was rolling fast. No dragging, no paddling – just steer!
Dangers of High Water
As fun as the high water might sound, you should know that there is some risk involved. There is a reason why outfitters will not rent to people when the water is above a certain level. When you hear stories of people drowning on the river, it is usually during a period of high or fast water. And unfortunately, the victims usually are either inebriated** or not very experienced. If either of these applies to you, you should not float in high water…at least not without a group of experienced and sober paddlers.
The danger is usually not in the speed of the water itself, but in the obstacles the high water tends to create – most often, downed trees in the water. If the current takes a boat into a downed tree and gets stuck, sometimes there’s no place for it to go but down. And if a boat or person ends up going under the tree, it can be hard to get out because of all the limbs under the water.
We saw this exact scenario play out on this float. Fortunately, the paddlers had abandoned ship before their boat got stuck under a tree. We beached our kayaks and canoes to help them out. But the current was so strong that we had to walk back up-river to jump in and let the current carry us down to the tree. The canoe was halfway under water and the current was so strong there was no way to pull it out. So we held onto the limbs and used them as leverage as we used our feet to push down on the canoe, forcing it to go all the way under the tree and pop out on the other side. It worked! The canoe was saved and everyone was OK. I wish we had some video footage because it was a pretty awesome rescue.
The lesson here? If you don’t have the skill to navigate your boat around a trouble spot, then beach your boat and walk it around the trouble spot. I know it doesn’t sound like fun, but there is no shame in saving your boat and potentially someone’s life. Don’t let all that scare you from floating though. Just be be smart about it.
Now the good parts…
Pruitt to Hasty
This is a really great section of the Buffalo River to float. You get the high bluffs that everyone loves to see, some pretty nice rapids, and plenty of gravel bars to hang out or camp on. There’s one particular section along the bluffs that’s nice and shady and has a great rope swing. And our buddy David absolutely cannot pass by a rope swing without doing a backflip off of it. He can’t resist, and we love him for it! I caught him on video this time along with Canoe Captain Willis who goes out to save him…
Directions
If you are renting boats, it’s simple. Just take your pick of one of the many outfitters in or around Jasper. They will shuttle you to Pruitt access point and pick you up at Hasty (or wherever you decide to take out). If you have your own boat and are self-shuttling, Google-map yourself to Pruitt. The access point and the Hasty takeout point are marked in the maps above.
What to Expect
This is considered to be the upper-middle part of the river. Pruitt to Hasty is 7 miles, so you can expect a full day of floating. When water levels are good, it mostly has a nice swift current with some stretches of deep pools and slower water. You might stop more often to make your float last longer if you want a full day. There are quite a few fun, easy rapids (Class I-II), and lots of scenic bluffs. Fishing is decent in some parts. When the water is low, expect to drag quite a bit and for the deep pools to be really slow.
Plan your trip
Like most of the places I blog about, cell phone service here is limited. There may be small windows of service here and there, but mostly there is no signal. So make your calls and texts before you leave Jasper. This also means you will not be able to call your outfitter to pick you up when you are done. So it’s best to be at the takeout point at the time you tell them you will.
The river is rocky. Wear something on your feet besides flip-flops – something that won’t wash away in the current if you tip or have to get out and push. It’s ridiculous that I have to say this next one, but there’s always that one person. Soooo…NO GLASS OF ANY KIND!!! If a Ranger finds glass in your boat, you WILL get a ticket. But I really don’t care if someone gets a ticket. Mainly we just don’t want broken glass in the river! If you have never floated before and don’t know what to pack, refer to the gear list found on our Paddling page.
There you have it. Here are some more pics from this float so you can see what this section of river looks like (and what high water looks like). Enjoy. And thanks for reading.
**I’m NOT discouraging drinking on float trips. In fact, I’ve always said that a man with no beer in his boat is not to be trusted.
