Creek Rock and River Gravel for a Natural Dry Creek Bed

Smooth creek rock and rounded boulders turn a strip of your property into a natural dry creek bed. Creek rock covers the channel of the bed. Ouachita Oversized Gravel and River Boulders go on the banks. At our yard in Hot Springs Village, you see the stone you pick before you buy it.

You may have saved a few dry creek bed ideas from photos already. A photo shows you the look. You still need the right stone for the channel and the banks, plus the tons of each stone.

Creek rock for the channel of your dry creek bed

Creek rock is smooth river stone in various sizes and colors, and we sell it for dry creek beds. You can pick it in Arkansas Brown or in High Color. We also sell it in Arizona Pink.

If you are planning dry creek bed landscaping, start with the stone for the channel. Each color comes in three sizes, and Creek Rock Flats give you a fourth choice:

• Creek rock in the 3 to 5 inch small size
• Creek rock in the 5 to 8 inch medium size
• Creek rock in the 8 to 12 inch large size
• Creek Rock Flats in the 3 to 5 inch medium size

You can see every color and size on the creek rock page on our site. For the same channel, you need fewer tons of the 3 to 5 inch size than of the two larger sizes.

Ouachita Oversized Gravel and River Boulders for the banks

Ouachita Oversized Gravel is large, river-rounded stone in a blend of warm earth tones with smooth faces. We sell it for dry creek beds, and its stones stay in place. Call us for the size of the stones on the ground this week before you plan your banks.

We also sell this gravel for heavy drainage areas. If storm water crosses your property, ask your engineer where that water should go.

Water shaped River Boulders into smooth and rounded stones. Their colors range from warm browns and tans to grays and muted reds. Our buyers often use River Boulders to give a property the look of a dry creek bed. A boulder beside the bed also makes natural seating.

If your bed ends at a pond, you can line the pond with the same creek rock and keep one color from the channel to the water. You can set River Boulders at the edge of the pond as well.

How many tons of stone you need for the bed

Our River Rock and Gravel calculator turns the square feet of a river rock dry creek bed into tons. It figures each size class of rock at its own depth. A ton is 2,000 pounds.

For a curved channel, measure the length along its center from one end to the other. Then measure the width in a few places and use the average of those widths. Measure the length of each bank along the channel as well.

The calculator figures 5 to 12 inch rock at 8 inches deep, and one ton covers about 25 square feet. The 5 to 8 inch and 8 to 12 inch creek rock both fall in that class. For 2 to 5 inch rock, the calculator figures 4 inches deep, and one ton covers about 60 square feet. The 3 to 5 inch creek rock falls in this second class.

A channel 30 feet long and 3 feet wide comes to 90 square feet. For either the 5 to 8 inch or the 8 to 12 inch size, 90 divided by 25 gives about 3.6 tons, or 7,200 pounds of creek rock. In the 3 to 5 inch size, 90 divided by 60 gives about 1.5 tons, or 3,000 pounds.

If your channel opens into a wider end, measure that end as its own rectangle and add it to the total. A wider end 6 feet long and 5 feet wide adds 30 square feet, and the channel then comes to 120 square feet. That raises the 5 to 8 inch creek rock to about 4.8 tons, or 9,600 pounds.

For a path beside the bed, see Ouachita River Gravel in the 1.25 inch size. It is a medium aggregate in a natural mix of tans and browns for walkways and driveways. Its size falls in the 1 to 2 inch class, where our calculator figures a depth of 2 inches and one ton covers about 100 square feet. A path 20 feet long and 3 feet wide comes to 60 square feet, so you need about 0.6 tons, or 1,200 pounds. For other gravel sizes, see our post on gravel sizes and coverage.

Pick your stone by eye on our 7 acres

Our yard covers 7 acres. The stone you are looking at there is the stone you are buying. We also own Bennett Brothers of Hot Springs, a name in Arkansas stone since 1972.

Set a few pieces of creek rock next to a River Boulder and compare the colors, because both stones end up in the same bed. Bring a photo of the spot on your property and compare it with each color to find the one that suits your ground.

We sell creek rock and River Boulders by the pound, and we weigh the stones you pick on the yard scale to get your total. We sell the flats and both Ouachita gravels by the ton, and you can see today's price on the product page for each stone.

Jobsite delivery for contractors and pickup at our yard

Contractors, we deliver straight to your jobsite and save you the quarry run and the wear on your truck. For a job beyond the local area, we coordinate the freight. Tell us the day you need the stone. If you buy for more than one job, say which stone goes to each jobsite.

Homeowners can arrange local pickup at our yard. Ask us by phone how to get your stone home, and tell us the size and color you picked.

Call 501-532-1905 with these four things ready

We work out material quantities for free from your measurements. Have these four things ready when you call:

• The length and width of the channel in feet
• The length of each bank and the stone you want on it
• The creek rock color and size you like, or the two you are choosing between
• The address of each jobsite, if you are a contractor and want delivery

Call us at 501-532-1905, or come see the stone at 5643 N Hwy 7 in Hot Springs Village. We are open from 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM on weekdays. We will help you pick the stone for every part of your dry creek bed.