12-06-2006, 11:10 PM
COTTER - One of Arkansas' oldest public river access points was recently renovated and improved. The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission began construction of the White River Cotter Access in 1958. It is now one of the popular trout fishing river's most heavily used access points.
The original boat ramp was replaced in 1981 and again in 1987 following its destruction by major floods. The new access now boasts a ramp that is 40 feet wide and a rock jetty upstream that makes boat launching easier while protecting the ramp from the river's swift current.
Since the project's beginning, the AGFC has provided routine maintenance such as graveling the parking area, weed control and more recently bathroom facilities. Occasionally, the Calico Rock prison has provided the labor for vegetation control and major clean-up projects.
The boating access's major problem through the years has been its location on a gravel bar. The shallow water and less than ideal ramp slope resulted in boaters often having to back far into the river. More recently, the ancient ramp had also begun deteriorating.
The new project being included raising the level of the parking area so that the replacement ramp could be built at a higher elevation and slope. The new elevation provides boaters an easier launching point.
Other parts of the project included paving and striping the parking lot, improving the jetty and bank stabilization. Fish habitat work was also done within the nearby Cotter Spring. In 1994, the AGFC bridged Cotter Spring by installing a railroad flat car across the stream. This permitted access to the half-mile long gravel bar downstream from Cotter Boat Dock.
The access features a lift system for handicapped individuals. A similar lift also was installed in the Norfork Access project. Total cost of the project was slightly more than $114,000.
The original boat ramp was replaced in 1981 and again in 1987 following its destruction by major floods. The new access now boasts a ramp that is 40 feet wide and a rock jetty upstream that makes boat launching easier while protecting the ramp from the river's swift current.
Since the project's beginning, the AGFC has provided routine maintenance such as graveling the parking area, weed control and more recently bathroom facilities. Occasionally, the Calico Rock prison has provided the labor for vegetation control and major clean-up projects.
The boating access's major problem through the years has been its location on a gravel bar. The shallow water and less than ideal ramp slope resulted in boaters often having to back far into the river. More recently, the ancient ramp had also begun deteriorating.
The new project being included raising the level of the parking area so that the replacement ramp could be built at a higher elevation and slope. The new elevation provides boaters an easier launching point.
Other parts of the project included paving and striping the parking lot, improving the jetty and bank stabilization. Fish habitat work was also done within the nearby Cotter Spring. In 1994, the AGFC bridged Cotter Spring by installing a railroad flat car across the stream. This permitted access to the half-mile long gravel bar downstream from Cotter Boat Dock.
The access features a lift system for handicapped individuals. A similar lift also was installed in the Norfork Access project. Total cost of the project was slightly more than $114,000.