Despite weather forecasts of impending rain and thunderstorms, Dianne and I decided to head out to one of our favorite campgrounds in Southwestern, Oklahoma. K-River Campground on the Kiamichi River offers canoe & kayak rentals, shuttle service, cabins, tent camping and RV sites. You can find out all about the campground from the campground owner Tom Garrett's website: Kriver.com. In my trips to K-River Campground, it has always been quiet and secluded. I have never seen it crowded with rowdy youth like the Illinois River in Tahlequah, OK or the Elk River in Pineville, MO during the summer peak paddling season.
For us, almost the entire drive is on Indian Nations turnpike, you have to pay some tolls, but it is very fast road. Take the Antlers exit off the turnpike and K-River campground is just a few miles north of Antlers on Hwy 2. See the maps on Tom's website KRiver.com.
Spending the night in one of K-river's cabins has become something of a March tradition with Dianne and I. Spring weather makes me anxious to get on the water and Dianne prefers to focus more of her attention on the NCAA Basketball Tournament. The DishTV equipped cabins on the Kiamichi River at K-River campground provide the perfect compromise for March Float Trips. The WiFi internet access recently added makes the offer even more attractive. The Kiamichi River makes a welcome change from paddling Okmulgee's lakes and our float trips on the North Canadian River.
Kiamichi River Waterfall
The Paddling at K-River Camp
Tom Garrett and his crew will outfit you and your group for paddling trips of almost any size from just a few hours to several days on the river. Water levels can change very fast on this part of the Kiamichi due to water releases from nearby Clayton Lake. Last year, we arrived to find the river nearly dry and the next more it was bank-to-bank and rolling! This weekend the water level was low, but good enough to paddle for several miles around the campground and some folks were getting shuttled upriver to 9-Mile creek and paddling down to the camp.
This time we decided to paddle the waters just upstream and downstream from the campground. The deeper water holes are upstream from K-River Campground but there are more sights to see on the river paddling downstream from camp a short distance.
Going upstream we occasionally stepped out of our kayaks to
wade a few yards through the low water rapids. There was enough
current to take us down these same low water rapids, but the
water level was too low for me to paddle up them. Although the
weather was rather warm and humid, we had NO problems with
either mosquitoes or ticks. Strangely, we saw NO turtles or
wading birds on the river. The water was quite clear and cold,
and since upstream of Kriver camp is heading East and downstream
is heading West there are ample opportunities for photography.
Paddling downstream just a short ways will bring you to an old
decayed railroad bridge that is excellent for composing into
pictures. I must have taken 3 dozen shots of it on Saturday
morning. I certainly need to return sometime for some sunset
shots there. Paddling under the old railroad bridge and up the
creek will bring you to the current highway bridge across Buck
Creek. You can paddle quite a ways up this creek also. Of
course, when the water level is low here as well, so you have to
hop out and walk up the occasional gravel bar dragging your
boat. However, this is a small price to pay for the fun of
paddling back downstream again.
The Cabins at K-River
I love the location of K-River campground, however their cabins
are not exactly what you would normally expect. Our cabin was
built from a storage building that had been converted to a
retail store that had been converted to a cabin. In fact, it
still has the "Basket Barn" sign on the front!
Following the converted barn theme, we had lunch Saturday
afternoon in Antlers at the "Burger Barn", also made
from a converted storage building! Great burgers...we recommend
The Big Buck Burger (it is actually made with beef
despite the name)!
The campground is run entirely by men and you can tell it from
the details. Expect expert advice on river conditions, but do
not expect a mint on your pillow. Even their finest Dish TV
equipped cabins are rather Spartan and the water smells of sulphur.
Bring your own dishes, linens, towels, washcloths, coffee cups,
coffee, blankets, grill...basically everything. Cabins cost from
$45 to $85 per night and they are well worth it for the awesome
location right by the Kiamichi Riverside.
RV Parking on the River
The RV parking spots are wide and plentiful and many offer a
fine river view. We were especially happy to find the WiFi
internet up and easy to work with, in fact we used it to pay
for our lodging via paypal minutes after arriving.
The RV
parking prices seem quite reasonable: 30 amp - $18 for 2 adults.
$3 ea for extra adults 16 or over. Includes water and electric.
$22 for 50 amp hookup. I think we may bring our toyhauler down
here the next time we can get away for a week or so.
Canoe & Kayak Rentals at K-River Campground
Canoes - $30 per canoe for half day trip. Group canoe rate is
$25 ea for 10 canoes or more.
Kayaks - $20 per half day trip. $30 for full day or overnight.
Tubing - $5 each - $20 minimum per group.
Canoe & Kayak Boat Shuttles
Your boats, your vehicle - $12 minimum
Your boats, their vehicle - $20 minimum
K River Campground and RV Park
HC 66 Box 42, Patterson Road,
Moyers, OK 74557
Phone: 580-298-2442
http://www.kriver.com/
Any Problems?
There are a number of free running camp dogs that might be scary
to very small children or folks unacquainted with country dogs.
We didn't mind as Dianne and I have lived in the country our
whole lives and we can tell the difference between country dogs
and feral dogs. The biggest problem we saw? No cell phone
signal. Sadly, I cannot sneak away to K-River on a Thursday and
work as if I am working from home the rest of the week without
cell phone signal.
Nearby Civilization Resources
Just a couple of miles from camp is a nice general store in
Moyers, Oklahoma and if you travel a bit further down the road
you come to Antlers, Oklahoma. Antlers has a couple of motels,
several restaurants and the usual small town businesses. Antlers
currently has no Wal-Mart, a fact that no doubt saved us a
fortune!
http://www.kriver.com
