Middle Fork of the Salmon River Rafting

Rafts running Pistol Creek (IV). Photo: Zachary Collier @ NWRC

The Middle Fork of the Salmon is a breathtaking 7-8 day trip through Idaho’s Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness. Unlike desert rivers, the water here is clear and the fishing is world class. There are also a myriad of hot springs along the river and there are many camps that have hot springs in them. The river drops quickly over the 100-mile float from Boundary Creek to Cache Bar, which creates some fun rapids. The rapids are rocky and technical right from the start, and there are many exciting rapids to get your fix of whitewater. Tappan Falls, Velvet Falls, and Rubber are few big rapids that can be up to class IV depending on the flows. The best time of year to float is in June and July. It is freezing before then, and too rocky to float much later than that. There is a trail that follows the river, but there are few entry and exit points once you are on the river.

Like the Main Salmon, permits for the Middle Fork are controlled through a lottery. For more info check out our Permit Lottery for Rafting Western Rivers 2017 Guide.