2024
June 24 – 29 call for availability
July 2 – 7 1 space available
Trip Price $3250
We seek out prime dates for the best water levels and weather.
6 day / 5 night raft-supported camp trip
Rafting Guests Welcome
Difficulty: Class III-IV; technical upper reaches give way to larger volume pool/drop.
Distance: 100 miles
Average Gradient: 28 ft/mile, 50 ft/mile Day One
Raft Support: ARTA River Trips*
The spaces for this trip fill up fast!
For reservations contact DeRiemer Adventure Kayaking (530) 295-0830
“Thank you for such a tremendous week, truly an amazing journey through the Canyon…with each turn of the river revealing something majestic and inspiring…thank you for your skill in teaching, your passion on the river and for making learning fun and each day unforgettable… thanks to each of you, for making us richer through this wonderful experience… ”– Angie K. currently living on the road
The Middle Fork is without a doubt America’s premier alpine, whitewater river. Congress recognized it’s “outstandingly remarkable values” in 1968 by including it with those first protected by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. This extremely remote river has cut through the heart of the Frank Church Wilderness, the largest contiguous wilderness area in the lower 48 states. The Middle Fork hosts hot springs, pictographs by the 8,000 year-old Sheepeater Indian culture, waterfalls, hikes, majestic vistas, and playful and challenging whitewater. You are sure to lose track of time on these 100, pristine miles of classic Class III and IV rapids.
The Middle Fork can be viewed as three distinct rivers in three different canyons. It takes shape as a creek near the Sawtooth Mountains of Central Idaho around 5,700 feet above sea level. It starts small and swift, cavorting down a steep rocky bed cut through dense spruce and lodgepole pine forests. The stream quickly grows into a river as countless tributaries join in and the canyon widens. Its waters are crystal clear, and its canyons serve up views as stunning as they are varied. We’ll paddle through sage-covered hills sprinkled with natural hot springs, and gorges with sheer cliffs of pink granite. Along the shores we’ve spotted deer, elk, bear, coyote, fox, river otter, big horn sheep, and mountain goat, and have seen eagles and osprey soaring overhead. The fishing is world class.
It all begins in the tiny, mountain town of Stanley, Idaho, where the evening before the trip we meet for introductions and final preparations for our 6-day journey traveling 100 river miles.
Pre Trip We meet in Stanley the evening before the trip where we’ll have a chance to meet each other, hand out gear you’ve requested and cover any last minute details and questions.
Day 1 Ok, so there’s a 2-hour bus drive from Stanley to Boundary Creek put-in at the end of a dirt road and the beginning of the wilderness. By lunchtime you won’t even remember it! The river starts with a bang, fast, continuous and technical. The canyon is intimate, bordered by groves of lodgepole pine and Doug fir. Even on this first day there are hotsprings! This night’s camp, roughly 5,000 ft, is the coldest night we’ll have. Arriving tired and content with a satisfying sense of a good day’s travel, you’ll find hors d’oeuvres, optional games, beverages, a home-cooked meal and a delightful dessert waiting. Those with energy can hang by the campfire for warmth and good company.
Day 2 – 5 These next four days we set a routine of breakfast followed by packing up and hitting the river. We play and snack, then take a break for lunch, and then we play some more before stopping for camp. While hors d’oeuvres and dinner are being prepared, there’s always time for a hike or a chance to hook a trophy fish. And of course, as night settles in, the campfire stories and river tales get taller. The abundance of play spots ensures a great night’s sleep, and if you’re like me, you’ll hit the sleeping bag sooner than you plan.
In the second section the canyon opens up. The nights are warmer, the vistas broader, and the campsites larger. Walking is easier, and a short hike uphill always reveals foto worthy views. The lodgepole pine forest is replaced by grass, sagebrush and the occasional but majestic ponderosa pine. This is the winter home of the elk, already gone to the high-country. The river is now pool-drop, sometimes broad and shallow, sometimes constricted into narrow slots of rushing water, waves, and holes. There’s the opportunity to be worn out at the play spots, or cruise into camp and chill!
The last section begins as we pass Big Creek and enter the Impassable Canyon, where the riverside trail leaves the river, and the only way out is downstream. Here the river has cut its way through the Big Horn Crags, one of the most rugged mountain ranges in the nation. There is dramatic beauty in this narrow canyon as the colors and shades of the sheer walls change with the evening glow. In places the canyon becomes so tight that, looking downstream, one might wonder if there’s room for the rafts! The camps become smaller too because there is simply not much space between the water and the cliffs. But the rapids become larger, more exciting and more frequent! Redside, Porcupine, Cliffside, Weber, and Rubber come in quick succession.
The last evening sometimes becomes a party, with costumes and even skits. Other times it is a subdued occasion, as folks choose to talk reflectively about the trip and the place it already holds in their hearts.
Day 6 We’re not done yet! The rapids continue with House Rock, Hancock, Devil’s Tooth and others. After a final river lunch we confluence with the Main Salmon and our flow doubles! It “ain’t over ‘til it’s over” at the bottom of Kramer Rapid, then it’s a slow float to our take-out. Once loaded on our bus, there’s a two-hour ride to the town of Salmon where your cars or air flights await.
