The Kings River Deck House ( www.kingsriverdeckhouse.org ) is a rental property that sits on a bluff, overlooking the Kings River, near Eureka Springs, Arkansas. 
The house and two adjoining bungalows are owned by The Nature Conservancy of Arkansas ( www.nature.org ). The home was originally built by the Liedtke family of Houston in 1970. 
The solid wood dining room will actually seat 20 guests at one time, which is the absolute maximum that the management allows to stay, for overnight rentals.
I took 
At the lunch stop on War Eagle Creek, one lady in our group got tangled into a grove of willow trees in the fast-rushing water, and her kayak filled with water. Her fellow WHOyakers rushed to the scene to rescue her and her boat!
My photo of a few bluffs on War Eagle Creek, for the "Look At The Front Of My Kayak" page on Facebook. 
Everybody pitches in,
The Monday before our Wednesday float of Kings River, several of us went with Peggy V. to scout out the location of the group's takeout point on the Kings River. The photo below shows our Marshall Ford Bridge stopping point. We all had instructions to NOT go past this bridge!
There is a very nice nature trail at the Kings River Deck House, that goes beneath one of the bungalows, and gives you a nice view of the pillars that support the structures. 
One of the points of interest along the trail is called "ShipRock", and I could not pass up the opportunity to have my photo made on it, since my son has the name "Ship Man"! Plus, he is a rock climber, so I called this photo "ShipMan's Mom on ShipRock"!
The nature trail ends at an overlook of the Kings River. Since the Kings River Deck House, has a hiking stick available for every guest at the entrance, we posed with the hiking sticks they supplied for this photo I call: "Girls in the 'STICKS'!"
The ladies in our group who so generously allow the use of their pickup trucks for hauling kayaks are greatly appreciated! In this photo, Becky wanted "evidence" to show her husband how FIVE kayaks could be packed into the vehicle!
When our group awoke on Wednesday morning, all eyes were on the weather! (Well, not ALL the eyes were on the weather, as I was looking through the wrong end of the powerful binoculars provided at the Deck House, so I could get a photo of the eyes of the elk on the fireplace wall!)
Fortunately, the living room was aglow with the rising sun!
Our group had to stage the launch into the Kings River on a gravel bar in the middle of the river. This meant we got wet at the very beginning of our float! However, thanks to help from the younger and taller ladies than me, I only got wet up to my thighs at the beginning! This would not be a big deal on a hot day, but it was NOT a hot day!
Amy took this photo of our group at the beginning of the epic (it was epic for me, but not so much for more experienced paddlers!) 11.3 mile journey down the Kings River. 
And here is a photo of Dee, as she loads up the kayaks onto her trailer at the end of the float. Do you notice there are no photos of the gorgeous bluffs that we saw along the Kings River? That is because my only goal for the day was SURVIVAL! The Bible verse I kept praying was from Isaiah 43:2a that says, "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you." Even though several ladies in our group had full-body immersions along the way, and swamped kayaks, (which required a full change of clothing from "the skin out"), we started with 19 ladies, and we ended with 19 ladies! Thank you JESUS!
And a big THANK YOU also, to Peggy V., for making this adventure possible for me! It is an expedition that gave me thrills, spills, and "MILES OF SMILES"!! Tricia
The tip of the kayak I had rented from the park is shown in this photo. I was trying to get a photo to put on a favorite Facebook page I follow, called "Look at the Front of My Kayak". The site lets people post photos of what the view is from the tip of their kayak and beyond---no "selfies" allowed on this page! It is fascinating to see the scenery kayakers enjoy, on their paddling excursions around the world!
Before we started, our leaders had told us that we would stop occasionally, and "raft up", to hear the leader share some interesting comments about what we were observing. To "raft up", each kayaker just holds on to the boat beside them. 
Along our paddling route, we passed some "GEO FLOATS", like the one in this photo. They are numbered, and there is a directory at the Visitor Center that gives an explanation of the significant geological formation that each float designates.
The little orange box attached to this kayak is a "GO PRO" , waterproof video camera that can be used to record action sports, without interfering with the user's hands. The video camera had a remote control device that the kayaker attached to his belt, so it could easily be turned on and off, without touching the camera. 
Since Lake Ouachita is the largest man made lake within Arkansas borders, it is not surprising to see sail boats out in the main channels. The lake covers 40,000 acres and has 975 miles of shoreline. It has been named one of the cleanest lakes in America!
Our group stopped on an island to have lunch, after a couple of hours of paddling. The blue line shown on the right of this photo is connected to the pontoon boat that accompanied us, carrying our camping gear, cookware, and food supplies.
As we "broke bread together", I was DELIGHTED that the sandwich bar choices included my personal favorite----Nature's Own bread, with just 40 calories per slice! YEA! Other items available included a variety of deli sandwich meats, condiments, lettuce, tomatoes, chips, cookies, and beverages. Plus, a great advantage of this particular event the park sponsors, is that the big boat that accompanies us is equipped with a "Port-A-Potty"!
Since the weather we had was absolutely fantastic, no rain covering was needed, so this person's tent was taking advantage of the pleasant breeze, while at the same time keeping out insects. 
One lady in the group did not want to sleep directly on the ground, so she chose a tent style that would fit on top of her very wide cot. She said she had a very comfortable night, and never rolled off the edge of the cot!
I liked the twinkly lights inside this tent. There was no electricity on the island, so all our lights were battery operated. ( For those people who do not have a tent, you can rent them from the state park. )
Our leader, Kayla---accompanied by Jill in her yellow inflatable kayak---took an exploratory paddle trip after supper, to an adjoining island. 
The rest of us relaxed around our camp circle, satisfied by the delicious catered BBQ meal that Kayla's husband had delivered to us, via power boat. The food was from Stubby's, a well-known and popular Hot Springs restaurant. 
Before it got totally dark, a campfire was started---without matches---just to demonstrate that it WAS possible! Several of us offered up matches we had brought with us, but the staff was determined to do it "cave-man" style!
And the "Icing on the Cake", was the campfire standby of the class " S-'mores ", as in "I want some more!" Who can turn down the opportunity to toast marshmallows!
This photo shows Kayla's husband, who brought his guitar, so we could sing a few campfire tunes. He had a large repertoire of songs, and allowed us to make requests of whatever we wanted to hear. Even though I sound like a crow when I sing, it was fun belting out the lyrics to some old familiar choruses from the past!
The lake level was a bit higher than normal, which accounts for the grasses along the shoreline being partially covered. This life-saver ring with the park name on it, is a reminder for me to mention that their website is 
This photo shows one of our kayak participants, who is a seasoned camper, and likes to help others also enjoy time in the outdoors. He has tutorials on outdoor equipment, as well as records of his explorations, on his website at 
It was fun seeing people on this trip, that I had met on previous trips a few years ago. Deanna and some of her family/friends from the Dallas area, have been coming up to Lake Ouachita State Park for several years, to participate in the kayak camp out. 
The very first overnight kayaking/campout event the park sponsored over a decade ago, was led by a staff member who was not a coffee drinker, and was unaware how important morning coffee is to those who are used to it. He told the story of how that first trip, when his campers woke up and discovered there was no coffee, got in their kayaks and paddled immediately to the closest marina, abandoning him on the island to contemplate his "oversight"! The situation has been fully remedied since then, with a WONDERFUL setup for fresh brewed coffee, as well as steaming hot water for tea or instant oatmeal. KUDOS TO THE "KOFFEE KREW"!
Other items on the breakfast table included orange juice, assorted fresh fruit, packaged granola bars, instant cereals, and peanut butter.
In addition, in what might be called a "Dutch-oven Cooking Demonstration", Kayla cooked sausage, and Tim cooked scrambled eggs. We then put these on flour tortillas, to make breakfast burritos. They were delicious!
We once again enjoyed relaxing around the campfire, as we swapped stories about our outdoor life experiences. Later, we all packed up our tents, loaded the pontoon boat, and got back in our kayaks, to start the six-mile paddle back to our starting point. If a reader thinks they could not paddle six miles, do not be concerned. Anyone who wants to, can load their kayak into the pontoon boat, and ride it back to the marina, instead of paddling the entire distance. Likewise, in the past when the weather or wind was threatening, the staff loaded all the kayaks into the pontoon boat to return them safely to shore. If you have ever been paddling on "unfriendly" water during a weather event, you can appreciate this "power boat" option!
This photo of the back of Jill's boat, shows the wheels of the cart she uses to haul it in and out of the water wherever she goes. She travels alone (except for the little doggie, Logan, you can see), so she said she needs the wheels to assist in those maneuvers.
The 
A nice feature of this event is that the staff has "walkie-talkie" devices that allow them to communicate with the driver of the pontoon boat, as well as the staff member at the front of the kayak paddling caravan communicating with the staff member at the back of the kayak paddling caravan.
The 
The island where we stopped on the way back was famous because it is literally covered in quartz crystal rocks! It was fun to roam the narrow island, looking for a pure crystal specimen!
I want to say a big THANK YOU to the park staff that made our event so enjoyable! I can highly recommend this outing to both beginners and advanced kayakers/campers, as all skill levels can be accommodated.
As I was preparing my gear for this event, I was also doing a First Place 4 Health Bible study ( 