Which launch?

[breeves2245]

My house in Bella Vista is scheduled to sell next month. I'll be relocating to my rental in Fayetteville for up to a year while my new house in Bella Vista is being built.

Currently when I go to Beaver, I launch out of Prairie Creek. Where would ya'll advise to launch coming out of the west side of Fayetteville? In past years I have used Hickory Creek and recently tried Twin Bridges. Wouldn't be too excited about using Twin Bridges on a regular basis. I like secure areas with a dock to tie up the boat after launched. 

Also, any suggestions on other lakes like Bob Kidd, Lake Sequoyah, etc?

Thanks.

 

 

 

 

[bferg]

Yeah man, Twin Bridges is not ideal if you have a larger boat.  Blue Springs is down that way but it is kind of janky also and it does not have a courtesy dock.

I think War Eagle Marina might be your best bet for the facilities.  

[Deke]

There's several ramps on the upper end of the lake, Blue Springs, Roufa/Hwy 412, Granny Hollow, War Eagle Hwy 264, Hickory Creek x3, but the problem is none of them except the north Hickory Creek ramp have launching piers and it can get really busy and crowded at peak times. I believe the HC marina used to charge to launch above the Corps pass.

I have the same problem... I usually go by myself and launching without a pier just ain't gonna happen and with my having to go park/get the truck ties up the ramp longer than I like when others are waiting.

With the new N Old Wire Rd/S 1st St route on the east side of Rogers that basically extends Hwy 265/Crossover Rd all the way to Hwy 12 in Rogers right at Hook Line & Sinker, Prairie Creek isn't that bad of a tow coming from the south like it used to be, especially if you already still have to come as far north as Springdale anyways.

It would be nice though if there was a good ramp with parking and a pier like off Habberton Rd for up river access.

[EzFishN]

My recommendation is to save those pennies and buy an MinnKota Ulterra for putting in by yourself. I get all kinds of looks when I drop my boat off with no one in it and let it spot lock off to the side. 

Here are all the put ins I know of from Prairie Creek down. 

• Prairie Creek, concrete, two docks 
• Highway 12 bridge, no dock, concrete path
• Horseshoe bend, concrete path, no dock
• Monte Ne, gravel ramp, no dock
• Hickory Creek has a nice spot, lots of parking,  single dock, put in at the public spot, or marina. both concrete. I would use this. They sell bait too. 
• War Eagle Marina, sits on East Side of the River, go north after crossing east on highway 12 bridge. Limited parking. 
• Blue Springs Area is just south of Hickory Creek, no dock. 
• 412 Bridge, no dock, challenging in high water as the current can flow fast.
  • I haven't had any issues getting my Seaark 20' almost all the way to Lake Seqoyah. Granted it's a flat bottom boat and the water levels are up. 

 

[Quillback]

By myself, I'd probably ,launch at Hickory creek on that end of the lake.

Bob Kidd is definitely worth fishing, been a few years since I've fished it, but it holds a decent number of bass and supposedly has a good population of redear.  

I have never fished lake Elmdale, (somewhere west of Fayetteville) but remember seeing something from AGFC where they said there are TOO MANY BASS in that lake, and they were recommending people keep them.  I'm pretty sure there is an AGFC launch there with courtesy dock.  I always recommend a recon mission to check things out before towing the boat in.

Might want to look into getting an Oklahoma license, Tenkiller and Hudson aren't too terribly far from Fayetteville.

There's also Lake Fort Smith, very scenic lake, has a reputation for being tough to fish, but so does Beaver.  

 

[breeves2245]

Great suggestions. Thanks for the feedback. I'll copy paste all the comments into Word for future reference. 

[Greg B.]

Sequoyah and elm dale both have a courtesy dock for sure.  May have to call sequoyah to make sure it’s open.  It was closed for awhile due to being a city lake and because of Covid fears.  I like lake sequoyah myself but have been fishing out of blue springs and Roufa mostly of late.