#littleRedRiver
Cow Shoals to Swinging Bridge on the Little Red River
For many people in Arkansas, the hot temperatures and dry rivers of mid-Summer mean the end of float season. But that doesn’t have to be the case. That’s right, there are other float options out there that do not rely on rainfall. There are spring-fed rivers like the Eleven Point River and the Illinois River. And there are dam-fed floats like the Little Missouri, Lower Ouachita, and Little Red. Last Summer we made our first trip down the Little Red when we floated Swinging Bridge to Lobo Landing. To beat the heat this year, we went upriver to float Cow Shoals to Swinging Bridge on the Little Red River. Quick Glance Distance: Approximately 4.5 miles Difficulty: Easy Cow Shoals Access Coordinates: 35.513393, -91.929978 Swinging Bridge Access (Barnett Park) Coordinates: 35.489656,...
Swinging Bridge to Lobo Landing on the Little Red River
Another hot dry Arkansas summer has once again forced me to look for some new paddling alternatives. (New to me, that is). There are some good dry season float alternatives out there, and I have been able to check several of them off my list. Most recently, we visited Heber Springs to float Swinging Bridge to Lobo Landing on the Little Red River. The Little Red had been on my float list for quite a while, and it did not disappoint. In the hottest, driest part of Summer, this float is really hard to beat. This section of the Little Red River is below the dam that creates Greers Ferry Lake. I’ve done some other dam-fed floats before such as the Little Missouri and the lower Ouachita River . Those are great dry season options too. But Swinging Bridge to Lobo Landing on the Little Red Ri...
Middle Fork Little Red River Float
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about my first time to float the Cove Creek run on Cadron Creek. It was not the first new float for me this year. Actually, all my floats this year have been new ones for me. One of the latest was in June, where we floated the Middle Fork Little Red River. This is a float that I’ve had my eye on for a while. For me, the first challenge is finding a weekend when my float friends are free to do a new float. But the biggest challenge for this river is hitting it at just the right level. And boy did we! For this trip, we lucked out getting the perfect water level on a day we could go. More on that later. We shuttled with Little Red River Outfitters* to do the 10-mile float from Lydalisk to Shirley. Let me just tell you, this float is a hidden gem that is not...
