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The Upper Mountain Fork is more fun than the lower section below Beavers Bend State Park because of its rapids and ledge drops, and it is every bit as scenic. It has more rapids spread out over a longer run than on the lower section. The water runs clean and clear most of the time and the surrounding topography is generally one of pine forests growing down to the gravel bar beaches that line the river. The river is well suited to single or multiple day runs and though the distance is not long at only 28.8 miles, there are plenty of things to see along the way that will slow you down. These include waterfalls, rapids, rock shoals, bluffs, cliffs, high canyon-like walls of rock, forests, and all the wildlife that inhabits the Ouachita National Forest area. While at least a little whitewater experience would be helpful it is not mandatory on the Upper Mountain Fork except at the two potentially dangerous rapids at 6.5 and 20.0 miles. Fishing is great, with smallmouth bass in the faster waters and largemouth bass in the slower waters. A minimum flow of at least 250 cfs will probably get you downriver without any dragging, though it would take a much higher flow (at least 600 cfs) to avoid all the rocks and boulders that issue from the riverbed.

The Upper Mountain Fork River forms near Hatfield, Arkansas southwest of Mena along US Highway 59 and Arkansas SH 246, then flows about 28.8 miles southwest to Broken Bow Lake in McCurtain County, Oklahoma, below which point it becomes the Lower Mountain Fork as it flows out of Reregulation Dam below the lake. This classic pool-and-drop river is a Class I to II+ run with Class III drops in high water conditions through the lower section just above the lake called "The Narrows". It flows on a shallow gradient of about 6.84 fpm (average - 8-10 fpm maximum) along a riverbed consisting of rock ledges that create small drops and occasional long pools of flatwater. The stream is very popular with canoeists and kayakers because of its remote location, excellent scenery and sometimes exciting whitewater. The most popular section is a short run of about 9 miles between US Highway 259 at Smithville, Oklahoma through "The Narrows" at the top of Broken Bow Lake, where the larger drops are situated.

In the near vicinity are the Glover River and Eagle Fork Creek (one of several major creeks that feed the Upper Mountain Fork), two other respectable whitewater runs, though neither is anywhere near as perpetual in their flow as the Upper Mountain Fork. Not too much further away is the Ouachita National Forest and two excellent Arkansas whitewater rivers, the fabled Cossatot and the Saline (the whitewater Saline, not that OTHER Saline near Malvern, Arkansas - I'm still having a hard time with a state that has two distinctly separate rivers with the same name!) Actually, part of the Upper Mountain Fork flows through the southwestern edge of Ouachita National Forest between Broken Bow and Smithville. Whodathunk that you could find decent whitewater in or near Oklahoma? Anybody who has been there and run these great streams, THAT'S who!

Talimena National Scenic Byway- 30 minutes

Three Sticks Monument- 20 minutes

Beavers Bend State Park - 30 minutes 

Hochatown- 20 minutes

Hobnobia Bigfoot Festival- 25 minutes

Three Rivers Management Area- 10 minutes

Wolf Pen Gap in Mena, AR- 45 minutes

North American Wood Ape Conservancy

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