Thread: Arkansas River

How small is too small to run a boat in the AR River west of Conway. I have been around boats all my life and have a 15 42 duracraft with a 25 merc on it and am thinking about trying to fish the river some. I have always been taught to respect/fear the river. I have been on the river a few times but with so many lakes to fish I am wondering if I should even mess with it. If I do what is normal flow? And where can I find the number to see what the river is running? Lakes are good and all but there is just something about moving water the intrigues me.

Shud be fine in the back waters but the channel stay pretty fast. In the spring I wud suggest atleast 16ft with a 50hp.

Originally Posted by wish4fish

How small is too small to run a boat in the AR River west of Conway. I have been around boats all my life and have a 15 42 duracraft with a 25 merc on it and am thinking about trying to fish the river some. I have always been taught to respect/fear the river. I have been on the river a few times but with so many lakes to fish I am wondering if I should even mess with it. If I do what is normal flow? And where can I find the number to see what the river is running? Lakes are good and all but there is just something about moving water the intrigues me.

I have fished the river all my life, I live in Dardanelle and I fish a lot below the dam where the currant is the swiftest. I have a 16' with a 40 yammy. With your boat your ok up to 50,000 cfs. 479 229 2282 is the dam number to get the flow. Remember each generator is 10,000cfs each so 4 generators(units) is 40,000 plus what may or may not be coming through the flood gates. STAY off the river at 70,000 plus, thats when they give small craft warnings. Right now there is 40,000 through the generators and 20,000 at the spillway. Heed the advice you said you have heard and RESPECT the river.

I work at the Port of Little Rock and see the river everyday. I have been on it in my 16' sticksteer with a Merc 40 during moderate flows. My family loves to get the 24' toon boat out on the sand bars above Maumelle. But, I will not expose them if the flow is above 40,000. There are to many rip currents and stuff floating. We lost a lid off of a barge a couple of years ago during a high flow. A log just shot up and pushed it off. The boat captain didn't even have a clue the log was there or exactly where it came from.
Stay in the channels when on plane. Have a lot of respect for it. Wear your PFD
DP

Hello I have a 14' deep V with a 25 evinrude. I duck hunted the river this past season and did not have any problems. Abide by your advice respect the river/conditions and you will be fine!

Grew up running the lower White, AR and MS in a 14ft with a flattop 9.5 evin. and never had any trouble at all, so imo you have plenty of rig for fishing the river. Like others have said heed your own mention of respecting the river and if you are unfamiliar with that area of the river, you might try to find somebody that does know it and make a couple trips with them first.

Stupidity and carelessness is what gets folk in trouble on the river.

I have duck hunted a lot on Black River and White River as far south as Augusta when in extreme flood stage in a 15 -42 Lowe and a 25hp motor and felt safe, but I think I would be hesitant to be in a boat that small if I were on a river with barge traffic and the wakes those barges throw. The key is pay attention, be careful and always think about what you are doing.

in lower flows I am very comfy in my 15-46 Xpress duck boat in the main channel. I used to catfish at PB just off the main channel on some flats in my 14-36 with a 9.8 merc and felt fine there also. But when barge traffic started up, I ran for cover.

You should just use your head, and don't do ANYTHING stupid.

Thx for the advice guys

be careful my dad almost died and killed his cousin in his 1436 with a 20 johnson on it on the arkansas.cousin was turned around talking to him so he was in channel but couldnt see and came withing 2 inches of hitting one of the big metal buoys. to this dat he wont go on water much bigger than 750 acres in that boat. that tells me how scared he still is of that