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Buffalo River is a public river in Newton County, Searcy County, Marion County and Baxter County, Arkansas, managed by State of Arkansas (public / navigable water). You can fish it on an Arkansas licence; bank access is at road crossings, parks, AGFC access sites, the Ozark-St. Francis and Ouachita National Forests and the Buffalo National River, and riparian owners control the bank on non-navigable reaches. A trout permit is required to fish for or keep trout on the tailwaters and the Spring River. Public access confirmed via marquee water.
The Buffalo National River — America's first national river, 135 miles of undammed, spring-fed Ozark water through towering bluffs. Smallmouth bass are the signature fish, with largemouth and spotted bass, rock bass, longear and green sunfish, and channel catfish. A world-class canoe-and-wade smallmouth fishery; special black-bass regulations apply.
It runs roughly 127 miles through the Ozarks region. Anglers here mostly fish for smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, spotted bass, rock bass; longear sunfish, green sunfish, channel catfish are also on record. Live flow and gauge height come from the Buffalo River at Ponca, AR USGS station shown below. The nearest other mapped waters on PiscaMaps are Davis Creek and Tomahawk Creek.
Species from PiscaMaps water-type profiles, AGFC trout designations and hand research.
Night fishing: No statewide night-fishing closure in Arkansas. Some AGFC community lakes and state-park lakes gate at dark or post hours; the trout tailwaters and a few special-regulation streams are daylight-only in their catch-and-release zones. Trotlines, limblines, jugs, yo-yos and slat traps are legal on most warmwater lakes and rivers for licensed anglers with the gear tagged (not on trout water).
Boats: Bull Shoals, Norfork, Beaver, Table Rock, Ouachita, Greers Ferry, Dardanelle, DeGray, Millwood, the Arkansas River pools and the Mississippi have no horsepower limit; idle / no-wake zones are marked near ramps, dams and marinas. Most AGFC-owned lakes and community lakes are electric-motor or 10-hp only, and the trout tailwaters are drift-boat, jon-boat and wade water where the dam generation schedule dictates access. Arkansas requires a boater-education card for operators born on or after 1 Jan 1986.
Bank & bivvy camping: Camp at Arkansas state parks (which sit on the best lakes — Bull Shoals-White River, Lake Ouachita, DeGray Lake, Lake Dardanelle, Lake Chicot, Lake Fort Smith, Devil's Den), Corps campgrounds on all the big reservoirs and the Arkansas River, the Ozark-St. Francis and Ouachita National Forests (dispersed camping across most of their land), and the Buffalo National River (designated gravel-bar and developed camping). AGFC WMAs allow primitive camping in designated areas.
Tackle: Statewide black-bass daily limit is 6 (with a 12-inch minimum on largemouth on most water), but the highland lakes, the Buffalo, Crooked Creek and the Kings carry their own slot or minimum for smallmouth and spotted bass. Crappie 30 on most lakes (with a 10-inch minimum on many); walleye, white bass and striped bass limits vary; catfish limits are generous. Trout limits and tackle rules depend on the tailwater zone (general, catch-and-release, artificial-only, trophy). Check the current AGFC regulations for this water.
Boat ramps: 20 mapped — Carver River Access Point, Tyler Bend River Access Point Lower, Pruitt Landing River Access Point, Hasty River Access Point, Woolum River Access Point, Grinders Ferry River Access Point and others nearby.
Camping: 17 sites mapped nearby — Rush Campground, Steel Creek Campground, Group Campground, Buffalo Point Campground - Loop C, Woolum Campground, Buffalo Point Campground - Loop E and others.
Source: OpenStreetMap contributors.
Loading live flow & gauge height…
Live from USGS gauge 07055660 — Buffalo River at Ponca, AR. Full gauge data →
Anyone 16-64 needs an Arkansas Game & Fish Commission fishing licence — the resident annual Fisheries Conservation licence is about $11, the resident 'Resident Sportsman's' packages more, and the non-resident annual is about $50 (non-resident 3-day and 7-day trip licences are sold). A trout permit (about $10) is required to fish for or possess trout anywhere in the state, including the White, North Fork, Little Red and Little Missouri tailwaters and the winter-stocked lakes. Arkansas residents 65 and older buy a low-cost Resident 65-Plus lifetime licence; residents born before 1 Jan 1933 and disabled residents fish free. Buy from AGFC at agfc.com. An Arkansas fishing licence covers navigable rivers. The Mississippi River is fished on an Arkansas, Mississippi or Tennessee licence in the border reaches. A trout permit is required on the White, North Fork, Little Red and Little Missouri tailwaters and the Spring River.
Every water carries species, bank & boat access, current regulations and live water conditions — and members get Swim Mapper, Catch Logger and Trip Planner. It's the only US map with a dedicated carp-water layer.
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