The White River

The White River meanders 720 miles from a small meadow near Huntsville, Arkansas through Northwest Arkansas, Southwest Missouri, and cuts across Arkansas to the Mississippi River.  If the river took a direct route it would only take 225 miles.



Calico Roche

French fur traders and explorers were among the first white settlers to travel up river to a place they called Calico Roche.  The black and rust coloring on the gray bluffs reminded them of calico colored cloth popular in the day.

 

Henry Schoolcraft
Famous explorer Henry Schoolcraft took an expedition up the White River in 1819 and found himself at the place the French had already begun calling Calico Rock.  He said, "On turning a bend in the river, suddenly the rock appears before you..."  It's still true today.  The impressive rock beckons travelers here.