Buffalo National River
Established in 1972, Buffalo National River flows freely for 135 miles and is one of the few remaining undammed rivers in the lower 48 states. Once you arrive, prepare to journey from running rapids to quiet pools while surrounded by massive bluffs as you cruise through the Ozark Mountains down to the White River.
Alerts
- ClosureNPS ↗South Woolum Road Closed, Alternate Route Available
In the interest of safety, the South Woolum Road has been closed. The Woolum launch and campground remain open.
- InformationReservations Only at Buffalo Point - Starting March 15, 2027
Starting March 15, 2027, reservations will be required for all campsites at Buffalo Point Campground, including A & E Loops. Reservations must be made through Recreation.gov (www.recreation.gov) or by calling 877-444-6777. Reservations can be made the same day or up to six months in advance.
Fees & passes
Free. No entrance fee here.
There is no entry fee to enter the Buffalo National River area, or to utilize the river for recreational opportunities. There is a fee to stay overnight at many of our campgrounds, which is payable at the self-check-in and registration boards. The Senior (gray) and the Access (blue) "America The Beautiful" passes entitle you to half off your campsite.
Hours
| Buffalo National River | Daily · All Day |
When to go
June draws the most visits here and January the fewest, averaged over 2021 to 2025.
Campgrounds
| Kyles Landing | 34 sites | |
| $20 a night · The fee for Kyles Landing is $20.00 per site, per night with a total of 6 people permitted on each site. | ||
| Woolum | · | |
| Woolum is located 7 miles off of Highway 65 in St. Joe, Arkansas. Follow County Road 374 west out of St. Joe towards Woolum. | ||
| Rush Campground | 12 sites | |
| $16 a night · The turn off to Rush Campground is about 12 miles south of Yellville and 23 miles north of Marshall, Arkansas off of Highway 14. · 12 reservable | ||
| Ozark Campground | 32 sites | |
| $20 a night · Ozark Campground is about 4 miles north of Jasper, Arkansas off of Highway 7. The campground has 31 campsites. · 31 reservable | ||
| Spring Creek Campground | 12 sites | |
| The turn off to Spring Creek Campground is about 20 miles south of Yellville and 15 miles north of Marshall, Arkansas off of Highway 14. · 9 first-come | ||
Show all 11 campgroundsHide
| Tyler Bend Campground | 44 sites | |
| $20 a night · The turn off to Tyler Bend Campground is off of Highway 65 about 30 miles south of Harrison and 15 miles north of Marshall, Arkansas. | ||
| South Maumee | · | |
| Maumee South is located 7 miles off of Highway 14 in Morning Star, Arkansas. Follow County Road 46 northwest out of Morning Star towards South Maumee. | ||
| Steel Creek Campground | 39 sites | |
| $20 a night · Steel Creek Campground is about 3 miles east of Ponca, Arkansas off of Highway 74 and 13 miles west of Jasper, Arkansas. · 39 reservable | ||
| Carver Campground | 8 sites | |
| $16 a night · Carver Campground is about 12 miles west of Jasper, Arkansas off of Highway 123. It is open year round, no fees are collected from November 15 to March 14. · 8 reservable | ||
| Buffalo Point Campground | 112 sites | |
| $30 a night · The turn off onto Highway 268 East for Buffalo Point Campground is about 16 miles south of Yellville, Arkansas off of Highway 14 and 22 miles north of… | ||
| Erbie Campground | 33 sites | |
| $20 a night · Erbie is a first come, first serve campground. No fee is charged to camp here. | ||
Every campground here has its own page on Campsite Atlas, with site counts, hookups, rig limits and booking windows. All of them on one page → How park camping works
Visitor centers
- Tyler Bend Visitor CenterPassport stamp
The Tyler Bend Visitor Center is located about 2 1/2 miles off of Highway 65 between St. Joe and Marshall, Arkansas. Here visitors can get park orientation information, stamp passport books, see the park film, and shop at the park bookstore.
- Buffalo Point Visitor Contact StationPassport stamp
The Buffalo Point Visitor Contact Station is located about 3 miles off of Highway 14, 14 miles south of Yellville. Signs on Highway 14 indicate the turn for Buffalo Point.
- Steel Creek Ranger Station ↗Passport stamp
Steel Creek Ranger Station is open in the summer on an intermittent basis as rangers are available. The Steel Creek Ranger Station is located in the Valley Y Ranch Historic Area of Steel Creek Campground.
Explore
Trails and hikes
These are the walks the Park Service lists for Buffalo. Each one opens on the Park Service site.
- Hike to Hemmed-in Hollow4-6 Hours
The picturesque Hemmed-in Hollow Falls cascades nearly 210 feet over rugged Ozark bluffs, making it the highest waterfall between the Rockies and the Appalachians.
- Paddling Gilbert to South Maumee6 Hours
This reach is about 12 miles which makes it one of the less crowded sections of the river.
- Hike the Lost Valley Trail1-3 Hours
The Lost Valley Trail is an easy to moderate hike through a box canyon sculpted by Clark Creek. At 2.4 miles round-trip, this trail features caves, waterfalls, a Native American bluff shelter, and breathtaking groves of American beech trees.
- Hike to Hideout Hollow1-3 Hours
The Hideout Hollow Trail leads to a rock shelter that was once inhabited by a group of World War I draft dodgers called The Slacker Gang.
- Hike to Big Bluff4-6 Hours
The Centerpoint Trail is a strenuous hike that traverses the Ponca Wilderness, winding down an old wagon road descending nearly 1,300 ft. to the Buffalo River.
- Hike the Buffalo Point Campground Trails1-4 Hours
The Buffalo Point Campground Trails give campers, day hikers, and leashed dogs a chance to stretch their legs between the campground and the historic cabin area at Buffalo Point.
Show all 12Hide
- Hike the Rush Mine Level Trail and Morning Star Interpretive Loop1-4 Hours
This .25 mile to 1.5 mile trail offers beautiful views of Rush Valley and gives hikers an understanding of the historic, mining, landscape.
- Hike the Indian Rockhouse Trail3-5 Hours
A hike on the Indian Rockhouse reveals geologic formations commonly found on a limestone landscape and gives hikers an opportunity to explore locations where ancient peoples sought shelter.
- Paddle Kyles Landing to Erbie3-4 Hours
Downstream from the hustle and bustle of Kyles Landing, one can find solitude among this comparatively quiet, 5.7-mile stretch of river snaking through the Ponca Wilderness.
- Paddle Steel Creek to Kyles Landing4-6 Hours
Hands-down the most beloved and popular section of the upper river, the 8-mile section from Steel Creek to Kyles Landing meanders through the heart of the Ponca Wilderness past towering bluffs, hidden side canyons, and relics of early settlement.
- Hike the Cecil Cove Loop5-8 Hours
This 7-mile loop winds through the wooded valley following Cecil Creek. The trail crosses Cecil Creek 5 times in the first 2 miles, so it may not be passable during rainy season due to high water.
- Hike the Beaver Jim Villines Homestead Trail15-60 Minutes
This short interpretive loop begins at the Ponca Access of the Buffalo River near the intersection of Hwy. 43 and 74. Walk across the low-water bridge (when passable) and follow signs up the hill.
These are named Forest Service trails on National Forest land within 15 miles of Buffalo. Each one opens on Trailhead Atlas.
Distance is measured to the nearer end of the trail. Every named Forest Service trail on Trailhead Atlas.
Events
- Whittling Demonstration10/1701:00 PM · runs through Oct 31 · free
- Boxley Mill Tours10/1710:00 AM · freeBoxley Mill, Highway 43, Ponca, Arkansas
News
- Buffalo National River Encourages Visitors to Explore Safely This Fall ↗2026-09-29
Buffalo National River invites visitors to take advantage of cooler fall temperatures and safely explore the park’s many hiking trails surrounding the river.
- Agricultural Special Use Permit Application Period Opens September 15 ↗2026-09-14
The National Park Service will accept public bid applications September 15 through October 15, 2026, for twenty-four Agricultural Special Use Permits for haying of specific designated fields located within Buffalo…
Map
Interactive map by the National Park Service
Public land nearby
Distances are approximate. Wilderness Atlas publishes a center point and an acreage for each area rather than a boundary, so each area is treated here as a circle of the same size and the figure is the gap to that circle.
Guidebooks for the South
We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject.
Reference
Wildlife
Seen this monthAmerican Black Bear 1×Research-grade observations within 25 km, last 30 days, via iNaturalist
Full checklist: 203 birds, 58 mammalsHide
Raptors & owlsAmerican Kestrel · Bald Eagle · Barn Owl · Barred Owl · Black Vulture · Broad-winged Hawk · Cooper's Hawk · Eastern Screech-owl · Golden Eagle · Great Horned Owl · Merlin · Northern Harrier · Osprey · Peregrine Falcon · Red-shouldered Hawk · Red-tailed Hawk · Sharp-shinned Hawk · Turkey Vulture
Waterfowl & wadersAmerican Bittern · American Coot · American White Pelican · American Wigeon · Black-crowned Night-heron · Blue-winged Teal · Bufflehead · Canada Goose · Cattle Egret · Common Goldeneye · Common Loon · Common Merganser · Double-crested Cormorant · Great Blue Heron · Great Egret · Green heron · Green-Winged Teal · Hooded Merganser · Lesser Scaup · Little Blue Heron · Northern Pintail · Pied-billed Grebe · Ring-necked Duck · Ruddy Duck · Snow Goose · Snowy Egret · Trumpeter Swan · Wood Duck · Yellow-crowned Night Heron
Shorebirds & seabirdsAmerican Avocet · American Woodcock · Common Snipe · Greater Yellowlegs · Killdeer · Ring-billed Gull · Spotted Sandpiper · Willet
Gamebirds & dovesMourning Dove · Northern Bobwhite · Rock Dove · Wild Turkey
WoodpeckersDowny Woodpecker · Hairy Woodpecker · Northern Flicker · Pileated Woodpecker · Red-bellied Woodpecker · Red-headed Woodpecker · Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Hummingbirds & swiftsChimney Swift · Ruby-throated Hummingbird · White-throated Swift
Also on the checklistAcadian Flycatcher · Alder Flycatcher · American Crow · American Goldfinch · American Pipit · American Redstart · American Robin · American Tree Sparrow · Barn Swallow · Bay-breasted Warbler · Belted Kingfisher · Bewick's Wren · Black-and-white Warbler · Black-billed Cuckoo · Black-throated Green Warbler · Blackburnian Warbler · Blue Grosbeak · Blue Jay · Blue-gray Gnatcatcher · Blue-winged Warbler · Brewer's Blackbird · Brown Creeper · Brown Thrasher · Brown-headed Cowbird · Canvasback · Carolina Chickadee · Carolina Wren · Cedar Waxwing · Chestnut-sided Warbler · Chipping Sparrow · Chuck-will's-widow · Clay-colored Sparrow · Cliff Swallow · Common Grackle · Common Nighthawk · Common Yellowthroat · Dark-eyed Junco · Dickcissel · Eastern Bluebird · Eastern Kingbird · Eastern Meadowlark · Eastern Phoebe · Eastern Wood-pewee · European Starling · Evening Grosbeak · Field Sparrow · Fish Crow · Fox Sparrow · Gadwall · Golden-crowned Kinglet · Golden-winged Warbler · Gray Catbird · Gray-cheeked Thrush · Great Crested Flycatcher · Greater Roadrunner · Harris' Sparrow · Henslow's Sparrow · Hermit Thrush · Hooded Warbler · Horned Lark · House Finch · House Sparrow · House Wren · Indigo Bunting · Kentucky Warbler · Lark Sparrow · Lazuli Bunting · Least Flycatcher · Lincoln's Sparrow · Loggerhead Shrike · Louisiana Waterthrush · Magnolia Warbler · Mallard · Marsh Wren · Nashville Warbler · Northern Cardinal · Northern Mockingbird · Northern Parula · Northern Rough-winged Swallow · Northern Shoveler · Olive-sided Flycatcher · Orchard Oriole · Ovenbird · Painted Bunting · Philadelphia Vireo · Pine Siskin · Pine Warbler · Prairie Warbler · Purple Finch · Purple Martin · Red-breasted Nuthatch · Red-eyed Vireo · Red-winged Blackbird · Redhead · Rose-breasted Grosbeak · Roughleg · Ruby-crowned Kinglet · Rufous-sided Towhee · Sand Martin · Savannah Sparrow · Scarlet Tanager · Scissor-tailed Flycatcher · Solitary Vireo · Song Sparrow · Sora · Spotted Towhee · Summer Tanager · Swainson's Thrush · Swainson's Warbler · Swamp Sparrow · Tennessee Warbler · Townsend's Solitaire · Tree Swallow · Tufted Titmouse · Veery · Warbling Vireo · Whip-poor-will · White-breasted Nuthatch · White-crowned Sparrow · White-eyed Vireo · White-throated Sparrow · Willow Flycatcher · Wilson's Warbler · Winter Wren · Wood Thrush · Yellow Warbler · Yellow-bellied Flycatcher · Yellow-billed Cuckoo · Yellow-breasted Chat · Yellow-rumped Warbler · Yellow-throated Vireo · Yellow-throated Warbler · northern waterthrush · prothonotary warbler
Small mammalsAmerican Beaver · Attwater's Mouse · Black Rat · Brown Rat · Common Muskrat · Deer Mouse · Eastern Chipmunk · Eastern Cottontail · Eastern Fox Squirrel · Eastern Gray Squirrel · Eastern Woodrat · Elliot's Short-tailed Shrew · Fulvous Harvest Mouse · Golden Mouse · Hispid Cotton Rat · House Mouse · Pine Vole · Prairie Vole · Southeastern Shrew · Southern Flying Squirrel · Southern Short-tailed Shrew · White-footed Deermouse · bee shrew · eastern mole · mole shrew
PredatorsAlleghanian Spotted Skunk · American Black Bear · American Mink · Bobcat · Common Gray Fox · Common Otter · Coyote · Cross Fox · Long-tailed Weasel · Striped Skunk · common raccoon
Hoofed mammalsWhite-tailed Deer · elk
BatsBig Brown Bat · Black Bat · Cluster Bat · Eastern Pipistrelle · Eastern Red Bat · Eastern Small-footed Bat · Evening Bat · Gray Bat · Hoary Bat · Little Brown Bat · Northern Bat · Ozark big-eared bat · Rafinesque's big-eared bat · Southeastern Myotis
Also on the checklistCane Cutter · Catamount · Groundhog · Marsh Oryzomys · Virginia Opossum · long-nosed armadillo
Activities
Activity guides for this park Camping in the national parks · Canoeing and kayaking in the national parks · Fishing in the national parks · Hiking in the national parks · Horseback riding in the national parks · Wildlife watching in the national parks
Questions people ask
Does Buffalo charge an entrance fee?
No. Buffalo is free to enter.
Source: National Park Service
Is Buffalo open year-round?
Yes. The grounds are open 24 hours a day, year-round.
Source: National Park Service
Can I camp in Buffalo?
Yes. The Park Service lists 11 campgrounds in Buffalo: Kyles Landing, Woolum, Rush, Ozark, and Spring Creek, and more. 8 take reservations through Recreation.gov; 1 is first-come, first-served.
Which Buffalo campgrounds have showers, hookups, or a dump station?
Showers: Tyler Bend and Buffalo Point. Dump station: Tyler Bend and Buffalo Point. Electric hookups: Buffalo Point.
Source: Campgrounds
Is anything closed at Buffalo right now?
2 active alerts as of October 14, 2026: Reservations Only at Buffalo Point - Starting March 15, 2027; South Woolum Road Closed, Alternate Route Available.
Source: Alerts
How busy is Buffalo?
1,393,246 recreation visits in 2025, number 60 of 387 units that report visitation.
Source: Most visited parks
Is Buffalo good for stargazing?
Yes. Buffalo is a certified International Dark Sky Park.
Source: Dark sky parks
Follow this park
- Alerts feed (RSS)
- Every active Park Service alert for this unit, one item each, rebuilt with the nightly data refresh.
- Add dates to your calendar (.ics file)
- Fee-free entrance days that apply here and each published hours exception, as all-day events.
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