To River’s End

Editor’s Note: Exploring the entire floatable length of the Kings River in a single trip is a great paddling and camping adventure on one of Northwest Arkansas premier streams. Flip Putthoff, outdoor editor, floated the Kings River from the Marble access, northeast of Kingston, to the Romp Hole access where the Kings River joins Table Rock Lake near the Missouri state line. The trip covered 65 miles in four days, May 23-26, on the stretch of river that is commonly floated.

EUREKA SPRINGS--I kept a journal on the trip and wrote in it each evening in camp. Here are excerpts: Evening before departure, Wednesday, May 22: Just relaxing and thinking about the adventure that will unfold these next few days. All my gear is packed and staged in the living room.

All I have to do is load up in the morning and go. Packing is half the fun!

I’ll meet Ernie Kilman at Kings River Outfitters about 8:30 a.m. Ernie will ride with me to the Marble access where I’ll start this trip. He’ll drop me and my gear at the river, then keep my truck at his place. On Sunday he’ll pick me about noon at the Romp Hole, so named for a festive party that used to be held there on a long gravel bar.

We’ve had rain and the Kings River is high and full. Four days on a beautiful river and three nights of great gravel bar camping. The weather forecast is good and I’m so ready to get started!

Let’s go!

Day 1, Thursday May 23: I couldn’t have timed this trip any better. The river is perfect! High, full and fast. Weather perfect today. Light overcast and 75 degrees.

Had a great visit with Ernie on our drive to Marble. I put in about 10 a.m.

This upper stretch of Kings is just gorgeous. Beautiful bluffs of all different formations. All wooded and really remote since a lot of it is in the Madison County Wildlife Management Area. Saw three people today. A guy and a gal in kayaks and a guy camped on a gravel bar, like I am now.

I’ve got a great camp on a fast stretch of water. My camp chair is at the water’s edge where the river is swirling over the rocks. Who needs a radio when you’ve got this beautiful river music? Plus all the birds are singing their evening song.

I put the hammer down today and did about 25 miles to get ahead of schedule.

That way I’ll be in good shape if I run into headwinds, storms or just want to camp early. Getting ahead will allow lots of time for fishing later. I’m camped a few miles above the Rockhouse access.

Took a swim after getting the camp chores done. The water’s chilly, but so refreshing. I feel very clean. The camp chore routine is gather firewood, set up the tent and inflate my air mattress using a little electric pump. Sleeping bag and pillows go on the mattress.

Lots of little waterfalls spilling into the river today. So many wildflowers to admire. My best wildlife sighting today was a mink scampering across a log by the river. Usually when you see a mink it’s soaking wet, but this one was dry with deep brown fur.

Came to a spring flowing into the river. I was able to paddle up the branch and see the spring spilling from a big cave! The air was about 10 degrees cooler here at the cave mouth.

Had to portage around one low-water bridge about 10 miles downstream from Marble. The Kings is easy canoeing with no real rapids. Just nice Class I riff es. The water is normally clear, but it’s a little stained now that the river is high. Put in 10 a.m. Take out 5:15 p.m.

Day 2, Friday May 24: Another great day! Chilly this morning so was glad to see the sunrise at coffee time. I love to play with my camp gear. Fired up the one-burner Coleman stove and my Pocket Rocket backpacker stove to see which boiled water the fastest. It was a tie. Both get the water boiling pronto.

Didn’t see a soul on the river today. Not one person. The river is still fast and full and getting back to Kings River clear. A sunny, warm day today. Slathered on some sunscreen this afternoon.

Fished a bit today and caught a few smallmouth bass. Got a couple of 16-inch fish. Tube baits are about all anyone needs for smallmouth fishing on these Ozark streams. They really work.

Paddled about 17 miles today and I’m camped a few miles above the U.S. 62 bridge near Berryville. I fear I am approaching civilization. I hear a lawnmower running. A family has parked their truck on to the gravel bar near my tent and they’re swimming. Got a black Lab dog with them. They’re having a big time!

I’ll hope for a more remote camp tomorrow. I stopped here because I didn’t want to get any closer to U.S. 62 and hear traffic. Looks like I got too close!

Canoe camping is about as good as car camping in the amount of creature comforts you can take. I’m not lacking for any luxuries. It all packs so well in my 16-foot Buffalo brand canoe.

So many birds singing this evening. I hear a barred owl calling and it’s not even sunset. Crows cawing and songbirds singing on the river’s stage.

I love the floating and the camping. So nice to sleep in my tent. Some say a camper beats a tent but I disagree. Love to read in the tent with my headlamp before going tosleep. Reading Mark Twain’s “Life on the Mississippi.”

Got a little campfire going to grill a burger and an ear of corn. Got some broccoli salad, too. Put in 8:30 a.m. Take out 4:15 p.m.

Day 3, Saturday May 25: My last full day on the river. I’ve been riding this wave of nice high water. I see now that it’d be tough to do this trip in four days without the speedy current I’ve enjoyed.

I was hoping for a remote camp tonight and I got one. Did about 17 more miles today. I’m camped on a nice, small gravel bar with wood everywhere on a beautiful stretch of water great for a swim or three. It’s hot.

Lots of folks on the river today, as you would expect on this Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. At lunch, a flotilla of about 30 canoes and kayaks went past me. Good to see people enjoying the river and the outdoors.

I paddled a lot this afternoon to get ahead of the thundering herd of weekend paddlers. I figured most would take out at the Stony Point access, so I wanted to get past there before I stopped. I’m camped about a mile downstream from Stony Point and I was right. No one has floated past my campsite. Only 5 miles to go to the Romp Hole tomorrow to end my trip.

Lots of long, slow pools to paddle through today. The water is a lot clearer now.

Got plenty of fishing in and caught some nice-sized smallmouths until I ran out of tube baits. Silly me. I did OK with some other lures.

Had a little rain shower at dawn today. Nice to hear the rain on the tent while you’re snug and warm and dry in your sleeping bag. I fixed bacon and eggs on the campfire this morning. What a treat! Usually it’s oatmeal and a banana. Love to smell that bacon.

Haven’t seen one other boat that looks like they’re river camping. Like my old river camping buddy, Fritz, would say, “Ain’t many of us left!” Not even Fritz. He died in a boating accident years ago.

It’s nice to float with a buddy, but I love these solo floats, too. Especially on these whole-river trips. The solitude is nice and all you have to worry about is you.

Tonight’s fine dining is a salmon fillet grilled over the fire, with baked potato and broccoli salad. My buddy, Hog Ears, brought the salmon from Alaska when he visited here a few months ago. Put in, 9:30 a.m. Take out 4:15 p.m.

Day 4, Sunday, May 26: Another thing I had that was perfect on this trip was a full moon each night. It’s a breathtaking scene when you wake up in the middle of the night and your campsite and the river are bathed in gentle moonlight.

Today was mostly drift and fish with only 5 miles left. I used a buzz bait today and caught largemouth and spotted bass. No smallmouths. So for the trip I scored the bass trifecta, all three species of black bass. Another hot day so I spent lots of time up to my earlobes in the cool river. Haven’t seen another person all day.

Rounded a bend about 11 a.m. and the Romp Hole was in sight. I beached the canoe on a gravel bar, fixed lunch, them paddled on in. Ernie picked me up about noon and now I am home.

What a fabulous trip! I couldn’t have ordered better weather or water level. On a scale of 10, everything was a 12 or higher.

When I look back on a great trip like this, I’m always thankful to my dad and mom, Mike and Jean Putthoff, for getting our family out camping or fishing and planting the seeds that grew into a love for everything outdoors.

And thanks to my friend, Ernie at Kings River Outfitters who dropped me off and picked me up on Memorial Day weekend, his busiest weekend of the year.

Couldn’t have asked for a better float. All my gear is cleaned up and put away for the next expedition, wherever that may be.