Nearby states we cover

Swimming holes in Arkansas: 9 spots that hold up

Swimming holes in Arkansas split fairly evenly between free, unmanaged river access and developed sites with a small day-use fee. The 9 spots here range from Buffalo National River gravel bars and national forest day-use areas to one private campground on the Mulberry and one creek that no agency manages at all. None are lifeguarded, and only a few have a land manager actively promoting swimming rather than simply allowing it. For the full multi-state locator, see our swimming holes finder.

Most of this list sits in the Ozark Mountains in the northern half of the state, with one entry, Little Missouri Falls, further south in the Ouachita National Forest. Across the state line, swimming holes in Texas run mostly to reservations and posted fees, a sharp contrast with this list, and our waterfalls in Arkansas guide covers several of the same rivers from a hiking-and-viewing angle rather than a swimming one.

No sourced coordinates are available yet for swimming holes — there is no government register for this category to map against (see methodology). Every spot is listed in the table below with directions in the text.

9 swimming holes: access, fees and status

Swimming hole	Nearest town	Access	Fee	Legal status
Lee Creek	Natural Dam / Cedarville	Roadside gravel-bar access	Free	Unofficial swim spot on public river frontage
Steel Creek (Buffalo National River)	Ponca	Short walk from campground	Free	Public, National Park Service
Buffalo Point (Buffalo National River)	Yellville	Roadside/short walk	Free	Public, National Park Service
Longpool Recreation Area	Dover	Short walk from parking	$3/vehicle day use	Public, Ozark National Forest
Blanchard Springs (North Sylamore Creek)	Mountain View	Short walk from parking	$3/vehicle day use	Public, Ozark National Forest
Falling Water Falls	Ben Hur	Roadside	Free	Public, Ozark National Forest
Kings River Falls	Boston	Hike, 1.8 mi round trip	Free	Public, Kings River Falls Natural Area (ANHC)
Byrd's Adventure Center (Mulberry River)	St. Paul	Roadside, private campground	Fee for day/camp access	Official, private property
Little Missouri Falls	Langley	Short walk from parking	Free	Public, Ouachita National Forest

The swimming holes

Lee Creek

Free public gravel-bar access along Lee Creek near Natural Dam and Cedarville, in the far western Ozarks. This is genuinely unofficial: no single agency manages or monitors the creek here, water levels rise fast after rain, and it's separate from Devil's Den State Park a few miles away, where swimming is explicitly not allowed in any of the park's natural water. Scout depth and current the day you visit rather than assuming last week's report still holds. Full details are on the dedicated Lee Creek page.

Steel Creek (Buffalo National River)

A deep, clear pool below Roark Bluff, next to Steel Creek Campground about 3 miles from Ponca. The National Park Service doesn't operate this as a designated swim beach, but it runs a swim-safety life jacket loaner program with a station here, and there's no fee to enter Buffalo National River (NPS, Swim Safe Life Jacket Loaner Program). No lifeguard, and visitors are responsible for their own safety, per NPS's standard river-recreation guidance.

Buffalo Point (Buffalo National River)

A paved-access swim area on the eastern end of the river near Yellville, with changing rooms, restrooms and picnic tables at the adjacent campground, no hiking required to reach the water. Like Steel Creek, it's one of the National Park Service's designated life-jacket loaner stations, though it's still unguarded and unmonitored. Free, no entry fee.

Longpool Recreation Area

A developed swimming and picnic area on the Big Piney Creek, with a $3 per-vehicle day-use fee covering the site's parking, restrooms and swim access (Ozark-St. Francis National Forests recreation fee information). One of the more developed, family-friendly options on this list, with a short walk from the parking area to the water.

Blanchard Springs (North Sylamore Creek)

Two swimming areas along North Sylamore Creek inside the Blanchard Springs Recreation Complex: a main site with a bathhouse and pavilion, and a second across a low-water bridge near the upper campground loop. Day use costs $3 per vehicle, and the complex opens for the season on May 1 (Ozark-St. Francis National Forests, Blanchard Springs Recreation Area). Higher-than-normal bacteria counts occasionally close the swimming area, so it's worth calling ahead in wet weeks rather than assuming it's open.

Falling Water Falls

The same 10-foot falls covered in our Arkansas waterfalls guide, worth a separate mention here because the pool at its base, right off Forest Road 1205 near Ben Hur, is one of the most popular free swimming spots in the Ozark National Forest. No hiking required, no fee, and it gets crowded on summer weekends given the roadside access. More on the dedicated Falling Water Falls page.

Kings River Falls

A 1.8-mile round-trip hike to a falls and pool inside the Kings River Falls Natural Area, managed by the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission. Free, no fee, and the same easy, blue-blazed trail covered in our waterfalls guide, but the pool below the falls is deep enough and calm enough for swimming, which is the draw for most summer visitors here. Full details are on the dedicated Kings River Falls page.

Byrd's Adventure Center (Mulberry River)

A private, 800-acre campground and outfitter on the Mulberry River near St. Paul, with river access built into its camping fees: primitive sites run $7 per person a night, RV sites with hookups $10 per person, and canoe, kayak and tube rentals are available on-site. This is the one paid, developed option in Ozark National Forest country on this list, useful if you want facilities (showers, a store) alongside river access rather than a bare gravel bar.

Little Missouri Falls

A series of terraced falls on the upper Little Missouri River in the Ouachita National Forest, reached by a short paved trail from a parking area with restrooms. The pool below stays cool even in summer since it's fed directly by the falls, and flow peaks in winter and spring. Free, no fee, and the only entry on this list south of the Arkansas River, in the Ouachita rather than Ozark mountains.

How this guide was researched

This guide was compiled from public land-manager sources (the U.S. Forest Service for the Ozark and Ouachita national forests, the National Park Service for Buffalo National River, and the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission), Byrd's Adventure Center's own site for pricing, and published trail and river reports, with official and unofficial status verified separately for each site rather than assumed. We haven't visited these sites ourselves. Fees, access rules and water conditions change; every listing links to its primary source, last checked August 2026. Verify with the land manager before you go.

Before you go

Most of this list is free. Only Longpool and Blanchard Springs ($3 per vehicle each) and Byrd's Adventure Center (built into its camping fees) charge anything at all; Lee Creek, Steel Creek, Buffalo Point, Falling Water Falls, Kings River Falls and Little Missouri Falls all cost nothing. Land ownership varies more than fees do: national forest (Longpool, Blanchard Springs, Falling Water, Little Missouri), National Park Service (Steel Creek, Buffalo Point), a state-managed natural area (Kings River Falls), private land (Byrd's), and unmanaged public river frontage (Lee Creek).

Lee Creek is the one true "unofficial" spot on this list: swimming here isn't managed or lifeguarded, and access can change without notice since no single agency oversees the site. Every other entry sits on land actively managed by a public agency or a private operator, even where swimming itself isn't a designated activity, as at Steel Creek and Buffalo Point.

None of these sites have a lifeguard, and depth changes fast at gravel-bar and bluff sites, so check before jumping or diving rather than assuming a pool is as deep as it looks. Currents on the Buffalo, Mulberry and Big Piney rivers pick up quickly after upstream rain, even under clear skies where you're standing; treat any rise in water color or speed as a signal to get out. See our waterfall safety guide for more on reading fast-changing water conditions, since several of these spots sit right below a falls.

Warm, slow-moving freshwater in Arkansas carries the same rare Naegleria fowleri amoeba risk as it does across the rest of the South. Arkansas has at least one documented fatal case, tied to a splash pad rather than a swimming hole, in Pulaski County in September 2023 (CDC MMWR). The CDC recommends keeping your head above water or using nose clips in warm, still or slow-moving freshwater, since infection only happens when contaminated water is forced up the nose (CDC, preventing Naegleria infection when swimming). The risk stays very low in absolute terms, but it's a real and current risk specific to this kind of water, not a hypothetical one.

FAQ

Are Arkansas swimming holes free?

Most of them. Six of the nine spots on this list, including Lee Creek, Steel Creek and Buffalo Point, charge nothing to swim. Longpool and Blanchard Springs each charge a $3 per-vehicle day-use fee, and Byrd's Adventure Center folds river access into its camping fee.

Is it legal to swim at Lee Creek?

Yes, if you're on public river frontage, but no single agency manages or monitors the site, which is why it's marked unofficial rather than official on this list. That's different from Devil's Den State Park nearby, where swimming isn't allowed in any of the park's natural water at all.

Which Arkansas swimming holes are inside a national park?

Steel Creek and Buffalo Point, both on Buffalo National River, are managed by the National Park Service. Neither is a designated, lifeguarded swim beach, but both have a swim-safety life jacket loaner station.

Is it safe to swim in Arkansas rivers and creeks?

Yes, as long as you treat every site as unguarded, because every one of them is. The two habits that matter most are checking depth before any jump and getting out when the water starts rising or changing color after upstream rain. Arkansas has also documented at least one fatal case of the rare Naegleria fowleri amoeba, so keep warm, still freshwater out of your nose when jumping or diving.

Can I swim at Arkansas's tallest waterfalls?

Not usually at the biggest ones. Hemmed-in-Hollow and Eden Falls, covered in our Arkansas waterfalls guide, are better suited to viewing given the terrain. Falling Water Falls and Kings River Falls, both on this list, are the two waterfall-adjacent spots where swimming is the main draw.

We haven't visited these places ourselves, and every page says so rather than implying otherwise. Details are compiled from public land-manager, USGS and NOAA sources and cross-checked where possible; conditions, access rules and fees change without notice, so confirm with the managing agency before you go. Page last checked August 2026. Read our full methodology.