Pendleton Bend

Pendleton Bend Campground and Day Use Park is located on the bank of the Arkansas River, in the lush Eastern Arkansas alluvial bottomland forest of Desha County, approximately 3.5 miles upstream of the Wilbur D. Mills Dam and Arkansas Electric Coop Hydropower Dam. Hiking, fishing, boating, birding and hunting are all popular activities for visitors. World-class bass and crappie fishing is found in Pool 2, and the tailwaters of the dam provide excellent opportunities to catch a variety of gamefish, especially catfish. Hiking and birding are available in the nearby Trusten Holder Wildlife Management Area. Pendleton Bend offers 31 campsites with electric and water hookups, 25 of which may be reserved. Additional amenities include a two lane boat ramp for access to the Arkansas River, a comfort station with hot showers and flush toilets, a group picnic shelter that can accommodate 75 users, and a playground with picnic sites. The park sits along the track for migratory birds as they come and go from the Gulf of Mexico, making it a destination for birders, and many species of waterfowl frequent the lower Arkansas River and its adjacent wetlands, making it a destination for waterfowl hunters. Nearby is the Arkansas Post National Memorial, where Henri de Tonti established the first European village west of the Mississippi River in 1686; in 1819 Arkansas Post became the capital of the Arkansas Territory and remained so until the Civil War. The Dale Bumpers White River Refuge is also nearby, with 160,000 acres of excellent hunting, fishing and wildlife viewing.