Bull Shoals Lake, Bull Shoals, Arkansas

brandi  Sunday, June 19, 2011

Adventure Review

We went down to Bull Shoals Lake in June of 2011.  The weather was absolutely PERFECT!   We rented a pontoon boat for two days to take out on the lake. The crew at Bull Shoals Lake Boat Dock were very friendly and informative.  They were very patient when explaining the boat to us and answered all our questions professionally.  We were able to get the boat at whatever time we wanted, so it was nice to be able to plan our day that way.  The boat was a 22 foot Voyager.  It was in great shape and very clean….in fact, I saw the crew cleaning and vacuuming the boats every day.  We were given a map of the lake and the crew gave us directions on where to go for smooth water for fishing.  The first day, we fished and just drove around.  The lake is so pretty and easy to navigate.  On the second day, we  went up to Pontiac Park, which was about an hour drive, and had pizza and the BEST garlic butter wings at Just Jackie’s restaurant.  Our kids thought it was so cool to be able to dock and go eat at a restaurant!!

Bull Shoals lake is virtually undiscovered, so we didn’t have any issues at all with other boats.   There is literally NOONE on the lake, so you can go a long way without seeing someone….which was nice for us because we don’t have much boating experience!  The second day was better for my husband because he felt like he had more of a handle on the boat.

This lake and Bull Shoals Lake Boat dock are hosts to BROstock every year towards the end of June, which is a HUGE wake boarding competition.  This is a huge boost for the town and would be an awesome event to attend if your into water sports.  I would recommend making your reservations a year in advance though, because the places fill up fast!

We stayed at Lighthouse Point, which is part of Bull Shoals Lake Boat Dock, so they just put the boat cost on our bill, which was so convenient because we paid for everything at the end of the week.  It was a daily rate of  $135 for 5 hours for the pontoon boat.  I have a review on the cabin under the camping page of OXR to see pics of the cabin, but I would highly recommend staying with them!!

It was so relaxing being on the water.  I guess the land on the lake is protected from developers so there are very few houses on the actual lake itself.  The scenery is wooded, with only an occasional house.  It’s a very clean lake and you can see down several feet because it’s so clear!!  The lake was approximately 40 feet above normal because of all the flooding in the northern states, however this did not affect the beauty of the lake.  The crew told us that the best time to visit for the water sports is during the summer.  The lake water gets quite cool in the winter, even though they are in the south.  The best months are June, July and August.

This was by far one of the most relaxing and enjoyable vacations we have taken and we will definitely be going back in the future!