Big Piney Creek: Phillip's Ford to Helton's Farm (Treat)
Prior to discussing my experience on the Big Piney, as well as its pros and cons, I want to explain some broad information about the stream.
I had wanted to float Big Piney Creek for a long time. There were approximately two years of “pining” before the opportunity to float this river actually happened. The reasons it took so long to float this stream are as follows: it’s approximately 3 hours to get there from where I live, access is sparse, the shuttle was difficult, and the water is rain dependent. On top of that, we don’t know the area or stream well enough to comfortably float it when we could float a river that’s more convenient.
At this point, it might seem strange that I would want to float this creek so badly. There are so many other options nearby, why would I be so insistent on floating, the logistically difficult, Big Piney? For a lot of the same reasons that make it so logistically challenging to do a float on an upper stretch of the Big Piney, I found it intriguing. The remoteness as well as the fact that it was completely new were my main motivations.
Big Piney Creek sits on the southeastern extent of the Boston Mountain Range. The topography of the area it winds through changes significantly on the lower portion where Highway 164 crosses the channel. However, the upper portion is surrounded by mountainous wilderness, which looks similar to mountain passes in Colorado. The massive boulders and tall bluffs are the primary similarities. A more specific comparison would be to the Mulberry which flows just west of Big Piney in the Boston Mountains.
Much of what makes the Big Piney so daunting for first time paddlers is its reputation. Like many Boston Mountain streams, there are plenty of rapids. But Big Piney Creek is known to have Class 2 rapids and lots of them within a couple stretches of stream, mainly between Treat and Long Pool. The scary prospect of capsizing would deter many paddlers. On top of how scary some of these rapids are, Big Piney Creek is also remote enough that paddlers would be deterred because of how far it is from the nearest hospital. However, the reason I find floating here so tempting is because of the fishing. Big Piney Creek's remoteness means that fisherman rarely float it which increases the chance that the fishing is good.
Description of the Trip:
A brief trip to the Big Piney proved to have fishing, paddling, and tons of useful information.
Dad and I started our trip by taking off from Huntsville, where I work. The trip was about 3 hours long and ended at Moore Outdoors’s private campground. Moore Outdoors is the lone outfitter on the Big Piney. We didn’t find the campground right away though. But, after some searching, we ran into the outfitter’s owner, Debbie. She was very nice but warned us right off the bat that the float we wanted to do was not advisable. Nevertheless, after that ominous pronouncement, she told us where the campground was.
The location of the campground was perfect. Nestled on the West side of Big Piney Creek where Highway 64 crosses it, this campground proved to be the perfect spot for Dad and I. This was not only because of its convenience to the outfitter but also because it gave us a perfect opportunity to take out the canoe a couple times before our actual float. After getting our tent set up, we set out for a little evening fishing from the canoe. The bite was good! We consistently caught fish. Dad caught the widest variety including green sunfish, a few largemouth, a spotted bass, a smallmouth, and even a channel catfish. Meanwhile, I caught a lot of the same fish and did managed to catch the biggest fish of the evening, a FAT largemouth. After a few hours of fishing, we made our way back to camp and went to bed.
The next morning, we set out for another quick paddle by the campground. Yet again, we managed to catch some fish. This time I caught a good number of them including some smallmouth. But, the best catch was a 16 inch spotted bass. We returned back to camp to get ready for the float. Once the tent, canoe, and the rest of our gear were loaded in/on the truck, we took off.
After Debbie explained that the float we wanted to do would not be ideal the previous evening, we still wanted to do it anyway. We came all that way, of course we still wanted to float the stretch we came all that way for. The float in question was 10 miles from the Highway 123 Bridge access to Treat. This float was supposed to be the best fishing according to blogs and magazine articles that listed the best smallmouth streams Arkansas. But once we arrived at Moore’s Outdoor and explained this to Debbie the following morning, she continued to insist that it wasn’t a good idea. She explained that the float was too long for such a low flow, meaning we would have to walk the canoe through the countless major rapids. Dad and I were slightly disappointed but agreed to do a shorter float from Phillips Ford to Treat (4 Mi). However, there was one problem: the shuttle.
Dad and I are accustomed to easy shuttles. So, the length and difficulty of this shuttle was a bit jarring. It required an hour and a half of driving on gravel roads. The access was very remote but thankfully the person shuttling us was familiar with the area. Even when we got to the put-in at Phillips Ford, we had to carry the canoe and its contents another quarter mile just to get to the creek. Treat is actually private property and is locally known as Helton’s Farm. The outfitter paid a small fee to the landowner in order to park our truck there. After all this, we said goodbye to the guy helping us shuttle, had a quick bite to eat, and then took off.
The river was gorgeous. Even with the same blueish hue that other Boston Mountain streams have, the water level was low enough that it was quite clear. Unlike the Buffalo, War Eagle, and the Kings, there weren’t huge rock walls. Instead, there were plenty of giant boulders in the stream and on the shore. Gorgeous rock gardens were very frequent throughout the stretch.
We caught fish throughout the float but were disappointed by the size and species of the fishes we did catch. Many of them were green sunfish and even a few were channel cats. We still caught a good number of smallmouth. None of the smallmouth we did catch exceeded 14”. The biggest bass we caught were spotted bass. Dad caught one that was 15” or more, and I caught one that was about that same size at the very end of the float.
Now that we’ve been to the area, we know what is possible. We vowed to return to do the entire 10 miles (Highway 123 to Treat) and potentially another section of the creek further downstream. Locals also suggested we try Illinois Bayou, which is to the next valley to the east. We will plan another trip maybe in the fall when the green sunfish aren’t so feisty, and the big smallmouth are preparing for winter! When I do, I’ll tell you more about this awesome place!
A special thanks goes out to Debbie for suggesting such a good float and to Shane for helping drive. Moore Outdoors’s help was crucial for us to be able to float such a cool and remote section of Big Piney Creek!
I hope all of this was helpful, now get to fishing!
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