The Caddo River is located in southwestern Arkansas, originating in Montgomery county near Black Springs, Arkansas.. The river receives its name from the Caddo Indians, native americans who lived in along its banks. It is about sixty miles long, emptying into the Ouachita River near Arkadelphia, Arkansas.
Near its confluence with the Ouachita the Caddo is dammed and forms DeGray lake, a popular recreation lake in the area. The upper portions of the Caddo is fast flowing and has some nice class III rapids, while the river below DeGray lake is lazy and slow and is popular with college students and families for easy floats.
The river is well populated with small mouth bass, bream, and crappie. It has been classified by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commision as a "pristine river" from its head waters to Glenwood, Arkansas.