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structurefire
Feb 28, 2005, 2:11 PM
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Hey im going on a canoe trip for spring break down the arkansas river and was wondering if anyone had done any bouldering or top ropping there. If so where abouts and how were the routes? Thanks for the info
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blind_wit
Feb 28, 2005, 2:16 PM
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I live in Colorado, about 50 miles away from the origin of the arkansas river. I might be able to help if you were coming to colorado, but I wouldnt even knowwhere to start of you were traveling in another state.
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fitzontherocks
Feb 28, 2005, 3:10 PM
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Those 500' limestone bluffs are for lookin', not climbin'. Too chossy to hold pro. However, if you literally just cross the road (Highway 74 between Jasper and Ponca) to Horseshoe Canyon Ranch, you'll find a year's worth of great climbing at all levels. Trad, sport, TR, bouldering... they got it all. Also, Sam's Throne is near the Buffalo. There's a whole other world of climbing there. Check this site for a good overview: http://www.arkansas.com/outdoors/Rock-Climbing/
If you need more info, PM me.
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fitzontherocks
Feb 28, 2005, 3:12 PM
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structurefire, I just realized that your subject line says "Buffalo River," but your actual post says "Arkansas River." Which is it? My post refers to the Buffalo River. The Arkansas is not much of a paddler's river... lots of barge traffic and bass boats.
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pendereki
Feb 28, 2005, 3:25 PM
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What part of the river are you floating? The upper river has cliffs up to 300 ft. and there are certainly boulders and bluffs all the way. I have not heard any reliable reports of climbing on the Buffalo except in Hemmed-in Hollow. If anyone knows more, I am interested--have been thinking of trying to put up a route or two in this area.
Horseshoe Canyon ranch is in the upper Buffalo area, you will drive right by this. HCR has some fine bouldering and 300+ sport climbs. Check them out while you are in the area.
The Buffalo is my stompin' grounds, I would be happy to suggest good campsites, trails and side hikes etc. PM me if you like.
Chad
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noshoesnoshirt
Feb 28, 2005, 4:03 PM
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"Greetings,
The rock at Buffalo National River is mostly not suitable for climbing. It
has a lot of fractured karst and tends to crumble under people's feet. No
one can put an anchor of any kind in. There is good climbing at Sam's
Throne in Ozark National Forest.
Thank you for your interest in Buffalo National River.
__________________
Carolyn Adams
Buffalo National River"
Ahem, yes. The rangers don't want any hanky-panky where the tourons can see it. And the tall limestone really is crappy, chossy stuff; think of the consistency of compacted kitty-litter.
That being said, there are bunches of boulders and shorter bands ( sandstone, limestone, and a weird mix of both) right on the river that would yield a fun day of bouldering or short toproping.
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cyberclimber
Feb 28, 2005, 5:14 PM
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Hey structurefire,
I'm going to assume that you are talking about canoeing the Buffalo River like your heading suggests and not the Arkansas like your actual post says. The Buffalo, especially the furthest upstream parts, are really fun whitewater canoeing when the river is really running, it and the Mulberry River just south of it are not only fun but also very scenic,,,you should have a great time. If you look in the climbing routes database on this site you will see "Big Bluff, aka Steel Creek" and you will probably, depending on which section of river you are running, float right past it. It is a very impressive looking cliff and will make you sick to pass it up but the limestone is chossy and no drilling is allowed. Hemmed in Hollow and Hideout Hollow are both within hiking distance of the river, but you will have to do some research beforehand because they aren't visible from the river and you will float right by without ever knowing they are near. Most of the cliffs you will pass will be limestone, but most of the good climbing in the area is actually on good, hard, southern sandstone. There are many good house-sized boulders right in the river and right next to the river and unless your whole party is climbers and willing to make 5 mile hikes so climb the Hollows, the riverside boulders will probably be your best bet. If you can spend some time in the area, try Horseshoe Canyon and Sams Throne. It is a really beautiful area, hope you have fun.
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okieterry
Feb 28, 2005, 5:19 PM
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I have personally checked out and climbed on the big blue cliffs at Steele Creek and found that the limestone there is bad in some areas but very good in others. There are very few cracks so the only way this place could be developed would be from the top down with bolts. However, I understood from locals that placing bolts is forbidden on the cliffs in the wilderness area so I gave up. Is this true? Does the ranger say that "no anchors can be placed" because of the assumed rock quality or because of the wilderness aspect or some other ban?
Its confusing because the pamplet that the rangers hand out actually has a picture of someone rapelling.
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jackscoldsweat
Feb 28, 2005, 5:29 PM
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Terry,
Word has it the legendary Larry Harris attempted to place bolts some years back but he too abandoned the effort. Not sure why. If you can get him to talk, I'm sure he is a wealth of information. Don't get me wrong. I like Larry and admire his accomplishments, I just wish he didn't let go of climbing so soon. I suppose he's wrestling some inner demons of some sort? I'd love to pick his brain for beta and experiences....
JCS
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sandstone
Feb 28, 2005, 5:41 PM
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In reply to: Hey im going on a canoe trip for spring break down the arkansas river and was wondering if anyone had done any bouldering or top ropping there. If so where abouts and how were the routes? Thanks for the info
The Buffalo River is an awesome paddle trip, you are going to love it. I've paddled about 70+ miles of it -- twice. I didn't climb, I was busy sheparding a group of kids. There is a LOT of rock there, and some of it looked really good. I'd say go ahead and carry your climbing gear.
I don't remember exact locations of the best rock formations. :-( Arkansas locals would have better info than me.
Another thing, that area has a lot of ticks. They're not a problem on the sandbars along the river, but if you go back in the bushes check yourself afterward. Not a big deal, just something you need to be vigilant about if you want to avoid tick borne diseases.
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okieterry
Feb 28, 2005, 6:00 PM
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Yeah, I know all about Larrys and Duanes trip (mid 1980s). I don't know exactly where they were but they told me all about it. They picked an area that was very steep but unfortunately was in a seepage area. When they drilled a hole, water started coming out and they abandoned the idea. I think I can see where the areas of seepage are on the cliff now that you look for it.
Anyway, I was just wondering about the area, its not like I'm going to start putting routes up there, I'm not inclined to travel that far to climb from norman since I've found so much new stuff down in the wichitas.
As far as Ticks go...you're not kidding!!! One day I was hiking along and noticed that I was just covered with little ticks...I mean thousands of them. A group of people camping on a sandbar got to see me come running down to the river, strip naked, and then dive in and then scrub them all off!
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structurefire
Feb 28, 2005, 7:57 PM
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Thanks for all the tips. Sorry for the confusion about the river. I am canoeing the Buffalo River and not the Arkansas river. We are putting in at Pruit and going about 113 miles down. Unfortunatelly im not sure how easy it is going to stop the whole group so i can do some climbs so I am just going to keep my fingers crossed that we stop somewhere good to get some climbing in. If not, no worries, I am going to bring gear so we can slack line. Thanks again for all the info
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cliffmonkey2003
Feb 28, 2005, 8:11 PM
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I just got back from leading a group on a backpacking trip down there and just thought that anyone going to the area should know that the rangers don't seem to know too much. Their directions to our trailhead ended in an impassable road and a horrible ordeal with a stuck 12-passenger van. According to the locals, the rangers gave us the most f----- - up directions to get to where we were going. So really research what you're doing and don't depend entirely on what the rangers say. Have a great trip man.
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kpj240789
Feb 28, 2005, 10:04 PM
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Horse Shoe Canyon is great. Not the best for just top roping, but you don't have to be a good leader at all to lead here. There are plenty of 5.6-5.9 in the North Forty with 9 bolts over only 65 feet. You can download the map off the internet. There is some bouldering but you might as well climb the best sandstone you'll ever see.
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jamaica
Mar 1, 2005, 2:46 AM
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If you're starting at Pruitt then you won't find much climbing because all of the rock is upstream from Pruitt, but in reality the rock on the Buffalo is pretty much only limestone except for a few spots. Do take your old shoes though, because you'll be passing by a placed called Skull Bluff which is about 1 mile upstream from Woolum and you can do some bad ass deep water soloing at that spot, but other than that, sorry, no good climbing, but gorgious area.
Jamaica 8^)
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