March 18, 2012 by newcreek
The rain didn’t fall on either of the new Class II+ streams, but the radar summary showed a narrow strip of Arkansas received more than four inches overnight on Thursday, 3/8/12. That strip of heavy precipitation included the drainage basin of Bayou Des Arc, a small Class II+ creek near Romance in White County. The water ran down fast, but the creek still offered plenty of fun on Saturday morning. Check out the Bayou Des Arc page for more information on the creek. We had no swimmers, just a few close calls. This was my first time to paddle after a long layoff; my low brace muscles were sore on Sunday!
This creek requires basic boat control and the ability to recognize a tree hazard. We encountered several fallen trees that had to be portaged (the slender paddlers were able to slide under some that stopped the rest of us). One such portage was needed just downstream of an area that had obvious tornado damage – tree tops twisted and laid over, probably from the April tornado last year that went through Vilonia. Trees were laid down in large numbers such that the portage around a blocked chute was quite challenging. The scenery was really nice on the upper half of the six mile run. We joked about the “darn pools” between the rapids, pools that took three or four strokes to traverse. It’s that continuous! My first trip down this creek was at slightly higher water, when there were leaves on the trees. The reduced visibility on that outing made us portage a time or two for safety; I much prefer the run with the leaves off.
Maybe the next rain will fall on the new Class II+ creeks; can’t wait to try them out.