Canoe Traffic

[Watcher]

Being that Mammoth Spring is where I grew up and my family has or does own a lot of the river frontage from the Bayou to Hardy including a huge canoe rental and resort, I learned how to swim in the Spring it's self were the Visitors Center is located now. I have seen the changes to the river, good and bad. The building lots on and above the Tracy Creek fork was not there when I was a kid, The canoe rentals were not there, The Gooseneck island only had a cafe and gas station and no camping or picnic area. Most of it has been great for the River and visitors. But the canoe traffic below dam three to Hardy has become unreal.

I may step on some of my kinfolk toes here, But enough is enough. The Spring River is not in the federal regulated river system for control of canoe traffic. The Eleven Point, Current River, Jacks Fork, is. On the controlled rivers they have a quota of how many canoes can be on the river on a single day. Spring River does not have a limit, and the river and the anglers and their families suffer from the shear numbers on the river.

I went home for an aunt's funeral week before last, She was born at Many Islands 96 years ago, My Mother was born there also. My Cousin lives between Many Island and Hardy and owns about 4 miles of river frontage. He is at whits ind about the trespassing and property damage the canoeing crowd are doing to his property. Chasing his cattle, Setting his hay on fire, The local people who live on the river and want to spend a weekend on the river are afraid to go. Men relieving themselves in front of children, making rude remarks to the women, threatening anyone who confronts them over their actions.

As for the conservation violation, people have witnessed Snagging trout, walleye, small mouth. The float down the river with a string grabbing rig set up and when the see a fish of any kind it's snagged. They catch fish and give it to someone else in the group who is not fishing, They have been seen catching Trout and throwing them on the bank while yelling "Trash Fish." Speaking of trash, need I go into what is left on the bottom of the river. Below Horse Shoe Fall the beer and soda cans, towels, sun glasses, you name it litters the bottom. You have seen the cartoon of the angler catching a boot, well this is the place you can do it.

I'm not for regulation by the government, but I can see why it's necessary in this case. The people who lover the resources Spring River offer the area, but see what is happening to the river are concerned. Would regulating the amount of traffic hurt the economy? Are they loosing visitors over time because of the incidents occurring now? Would more family groups visit the area to fill in for the hoodlums that would leave?

You may ask why the Law Enforcement do something about it. HOW?? so many so few. While there I was trying to plan a float from Mammoth to Hardy. I was told by no less that 15 local people, "Do Not come on a weekend with your family it is to dangerous." Imagine how that makes you feel to be told a place where you grew up and fished as a child is no longer safe to visit. This is a case of people Loving something to death.

What can be done to help the Resources of the River and the people who make a living from it????

[Crippled Caddis]

I may step on some of my kinfolk toes here, But enough is enough.>

And I may step on yours if the kin to whom you refer are who I believe them to be. I certainly hope not and would not do so intentionally but in order to speak as frankly as the situation deserves then a spade must be addressed as a spade

I'm not much of a 'joiner', but I registered solely to answer this post. The original poster has NOT exaggerated the gravity of the situation. I live on the South Fork and avoid the Spring between Memorial Day and Labor Day. I even try to err a month before and after those dates. IF I go to the river for any reason during the height of the 'season' I try to do it in mid-week and/or above Dam #3. Three summers ago a friend and his wife who have a weekend cottage on the river were attacked by hoodlums when they objected to them using their front yard as an open latrine. And that is hardly an isolated incident as pointed out by the original poster.

Most of the campground owners and canoe rentals maintain a 'tight ship' that mostly precludes patrons of the 'hoodlum' sort, but there is one major exception. And this is where I'm concerned that I may tread on the toes of the thread starter.

Many Islands Campground and canoe rental is the largest such concern on the river in both services. It is also the one that caters to the rowdy element. It has been so since my own first experience in the area well over 30 years ago. I camped there once in the early 70s. Never again. We were surrounded by drunken bachanals all night, complete with fighting and new pinnacles of profanity never before nor since experienced. It has gotten no better over the years. The ownership of the concern has been deeply involved in local politics over the years and seems immune to both public censure or prosecution by local authorities. Hardly a weekend passes that the on-site security detail doesn't call in local law enforcement to help quell a disturbance bordering on riot and haul away bleeding drunken combatants. In many cases the problem originated on the river or migrates to it the following day.

While I recognize that catering to that element of society is good for the profit margin it is obvious that doing so contributes to 'maintaining a public nuisance'. But apparently there is no such ordinance or law on the book that is applicable or enforceable in the unincorporated area where the campground is located.

That said I will be the first to admit that Many Islands sends a clean-up crew downriver after each weekend if my informant in the matter is correct. I'm sure that contributes to reducing the proliferation of solid waste but it contributes nothing to the cause of it---the human trash that causes it. Until that issue is addressed nothing will change.

The best thing that could happen for the future of this unique resource would be federalization as much as it personally pains me to admit it. Limiting the sheer number of users and the consumption of alcohol are the first two areas that must be addressed. I'll be the first to have a beer or offer you one during a fishing break, but it isn't the pause to refresh that is the problem. It is the virtual binge drinking that transpires afloat and in camp. Limiting the traffic and banning alcohol afloat would, I believe, transform the clentele that uses it. And that is what must be addressed if the river is to be saved and the best Spring Creek between Pennsylvania and Montana honored as the unique resource it is.

[Watcher]

Your right on all counts and you did not hurt my toes at all. When your right your right. The mighty $ is not the way these folks were brought up on the very river there ancestors lived from, and where there relatives are now afraid to enjoy.

[RiverRunner]

I am like the other poster, I registered just to address this topic. The Spring River is overrun with drunks almost all Summer. I have lived in Northeast Arkansas almost my entire life, and most people around here think of the Spring as the "redneck riveria" with little regard to anything else except getting drunk and making trouble.

The drunks dominate this river and make it unsafe for anyone with a family. A few years back, my brother witnessed a fight at Bayou Access that involved one person beating up another with a boat paddle. I quit floating and fishing here several years ago beacuse of the people and the river bed that was almost all beer cans. It was almost impossible to run many of the chutes because of drunks standing in the middle of them. If I ever go back, I will probably carry a gun. The problem is that the local economy, esp. the Hardy area, is centered around the summertime boozing canoeing crowd. If they don't make their money in the summer, they don't make any since the crowds are largely gone after Labor Day. Also, since Fulton & Sharp counties are "dry" the liquor stores and gas stations in Thayer do very well in the summer. I think that is the main reason that the overwhlemed law enforcement looks the other way at a lot of the incidents and problems. The only thing that has been effective are AGFC officers in canoes on peak weekends. Also, Highway 63 between Jonesboro and Hardy is nearly impassable on Friday & Sunday afternoons and has been the scene of several fatal alcohol-related car accidents.

I really don't know what can be done about this situation. Almost all of the riverbank is in private ownership below Dam #3 and the canoe outfitters and campgrounds are responsible for a lot of tax revenue in the area. My opinion would be that local politicans would be unwilling to do anything that might curtail the summertime crowds and tax revenues. If they would ban alcohol on the river and regulate it in the campgrounds, the drunks would gradually go away. Unfortunatley, right now the best thing to do would be to stay away during the summer or stay above Dam # 3 or below Hardy. Or you can do what I do, drive past the Spring on my way to the White River or Eleven Point. Still, something must be done to take this beautiful river back from the obnoxious drunks and low-lifes that dominate it now.

[Griff]

Technically, it IS illegal to drink on the river. Since Fulton and Sharp counties are dry, it's illegal to drink on public property, which includes the river. Try drinking on the shoulder of the highway and see how long you last before being hauled in. The river is in the same class of property. Like most other situations of this type, tolerance flows in the direction of money.

[Crippled Caddis]

Technically, it IS illegal to drink on the river. Since Fulton and Sharp counties are dry, it's illegal to drink on public property, which includes the river. Try drinking on the shoulder of the highway and see how long you last before being hauled in. The river is in the same class of property. Like most other situations of this type, tolerance flows in the direction of money.

True indeed. And there's the rub. Local enforcement ain't gonna happen! The previous Fulton Cty. Sheriff flatly refused to patrol the river. Too few personnel. If I recall correctly that was the reason that what little on-site enforcement that exists is by AGFC game wardens.

The only thing that will correct the problem is creating a federal status for it that includes regulatory enforcement by on-site employees. It isn't going to happen at local level and I don't know of an existing state program that could have any bearing on it that includes law enforcement. Under existing conditions it will remain a private feifdom that generates profit at the expense of the public weal.

[hank franklin]

Interesting topic. I've never been on the Sprinng and obviously don't plan to any time soon. My only input would be: Don't stop with a message board posting. Write letters to any law enforcement authority you can think of, from the locals on up to state. It DOES make a difference. You can't expect instant results but you can start things moving in the right direction. Don't just make phone calls or informal contact either. Put it in writing. Send it to local police, sheriff, state conservation, state representatives, senators, etc. Try the media too. A letter to the editor can put your neck out there but it can also have real impact.

Off my soapbox. Good luck down there.

[Gavin]

Thats a shame. You have nothing to lose, so why not make some noise and draw attention to the issue.

Does Arkansas require a number on rental boats? Rental Operations on the Current are required to put a big number on both sides of their boats so if people have a problem with the occupants of say Schmuckatelli'Canoe Rental #146 they can call in the number to law enforcement and they can try and meet them at the next river access. Cheers.

[Watcher]

This a link to the e-mail of Attorney General E-Mail

E-mail

[Al Agnew]

The Spring isn't the only river suffering from this problem, and the feds taking it over won't solve it. Current River has a lot of the same problems, even with a limit on rental canoes and supposed federal enforcement. The problem won't be solved until everybody is on the same page. That means the local people and businesses, the county law enforcement and politicians, the state, the Fish and Game people. It really doesn't take that much law enforcement, just some very visible and well-publicized, cooperative crackdowns by all appropriate law enforcement agencies for a few weeks, and the doofuses start looking for another river to terrorize. But it takes the will, and the support from both the people and the powers that be.