Shane Preston rows down the Salmon River as the morning sun rises over the mile-deep canyon.
Hi all,
Last week, it was a real treat to float the Main Salmon - River of No Returnas it cuts across the mid-section of Idaho in the vast 2.3-million-acre Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness.
As a private boater, I used to float "The Main" every year, but permits are getting harder to obtain! My last trip was in 2015, and that gave me enough time away from the canyon to truly appreciate its virtues. I've actually spent more time on the Middle Fork and Lower Salmon than the Main in recent years.
Barth Hot Springs
One of the primary virtues of The Main Salmon, in my opinion, are those deep river channels between the rapids. I love to dig my oars deep into the water, and slowly push through those long, deep-water pools, following the thread of current exhibited by a bubble line on the river's surface. Looking down at the water on sunny day, you see thousands of diamonds dancing on the water. Definitely a "wow" moment.
Often times, just by the luck of having gorgeous weather last week, we had almost no wind. Some mornings we had this super-cool waft of downriver breeze that pushed us downriver in those deep-water channels, and I barely had to dip an oar into the river to make progress. I could just kick back and enjoy the mile-high timbered slopes on both sides of the canyon, look for elk and wild sheep, and check out the scenery.
New Sapp Creek Rapids. We all ran down the far left-hand side and did fine. Right side was full of big lateral folding flipper waves.
During our 7-day trip, we also experienced the new Sapp Creek Rapids below Allison Ranch - definitely a Class 4 rapids worth scouting - and witnessed the fire scars from this year's Elkhorn Wildfire. The fire scars extended from Magpie campsite down to Elkhorn Rapids ... a distance of more than 20 miles. The fire zone got hit with some heavy rain to form the new rapids at Sapp Creek, and also at Alder Creek, about 7.5 miles downriver from the Corn Creek boat launch.
We had a great group of 9 people, four from Portland, including our friends Anne Daly and Keith Jensen, who snagged the permit, and the rest from Boise. We took turns cooking every night, and that made things seem really easy and relaxed.
Keith Jensen is loving the retired life these days. He and his wife Anne are heading for the Middle Fork in mid-September.
With 80 miles to travel in 7 days, we only needed to cover about 12 miles a day, and that makes for a leisurely morning, and early arrival in camp, where you can swim and bake in the sun, read a book in a hammock in the shade, or just hang out in lawn chairs and marvel at the scenery.
Keep in mind that you can draw a cancelation on the Main, post-control season, on Rec.gov, if you want to think about that this year or next.
The bronze of Polly Bemis by her cabin was completed in 2021.
Overall, the Main is a real treasure. We loved seeing the new bronze of Polly Bemis at the Bemis Ranch, where you can see her historic cabin, next to the time-share condo buildings. We also stopped in at Buckskin Bills for ice, beer and ice cream!
-SS
Amazing to think we've been doing the Middle Fork and Main for almost 40 years now! Started doing it in our 20s (before kids) and now we're in our 60s.
Magpie used to be one of our favorite camps. Wonder how this will look next year?
Here in Idaho, we are blessed with many outstanding river systems, and the Payette River is one of our true and trusty gems, just 30-45 minutes from Boise.
I've been paddling the Payette River personally since the mid-1980s. I started with whitewater rafting, kayaking and canoeing, and then things have evolved to Stand Up Paddle Boarding (SUP) as well.
My first guidebook on the Payette River was published in 1995. I just reprinted the book in July 2023, creating the 5th edition, now hot off the press! New price is $19.95. Books will be available at Idaho River Sports, Alpenglow Mountain Sport, Rediscovered Books, Cascade Raft, River Gear at Kelly's Whitewater Park, Amazon, other outdoor retailers and my web site.
John Poole paddles Swirly Canyon on his SUP
The Payette River system is a special gift because it has such wonderful diversity -- including lakes, Class 2 streams, and full-on, world-class whitewater. The Payette is extremely accessible. Many roads and highways lead to your favorite paddling adventure, and no permits are required. All you need to do is gather up your boating gear and go, or call an outfitter and go.
My book provides details on 23 day trips in the Payette River system - something for all abilities - rafting, kayaking, sit-on-top kayaks, SUPs and canoes.
More than 20 of the day trips on the Payette River are suitable for SUPs - from tranquil easy-going floats on lakes to Class 3 whitewater.
The South Fork "Canyon" run has non-stop action. This is Lone Pine Rapids. (Courtesy Cascade Raft)
Two large reservoirs, Lake Cascade and Deadwood Reservoir, provide season-long flows on the Payette River. The dams store irrigation water for farmers downstream. River flows are slowly released throughout the summer to water crops. This flow regime benefits boaters of all kinds throughout the summer. When other streams in the West dry up or are too low to float in August, the Payette is still running strong.
Steve guiding a paddle raft through "Howard's Plunge" at the end of the Cabarton section, North Fork Payette River in Smith's Ferry.
Overall, the Payette River promises to deliver lots of fun, as long as you are well-prepared for the journey. I don’t know how many times I’ve gotten up on a beautiful summer morning – no clouds in the sky – packed up the boating gear and whispered to myself, it’s going to be an all-Idaho day on the Payette – guaranteed fun. You feel the excitement on the way to the put-in, and you know it’s going to be an awesome day.
Two women SUP on a large pond near McCall. (photo by Steve Jones)
Hanging out around the campfire is one of my favorite things to do on fall float trips. I pack in firewood in a dry bag so we have plenty.
Hi all,
A week ago, I had the privilege of visiting Hells Canyon once again on a fall fishing trip with a small group of good friends. Even though I've done tons of fall trips in Hells Canyon, I always am awe-struck by the steep, gnarled black cliffs rising from the canyon below Hells Canyon Dam.
It's truly a magnificent sight to behold on a sunny day. On a rainy day, like we surprisingly had last Thursday, we had jet-black skies threatening overhead, combined with the austere black cliffs of Hells Canyon. My gut was churning big-time.
Looks like rain! I hate rigging and packing my raft in the rain! But at the beginning of a trip, I've always got a ton of adrenaline pouring through me - a mix of excitement about being on the river again, apprehension about the big rapids in the biggest-scale whitewater experience in Idaho, overstressing about what I forgot or didn't forget in terms of group gear, and now, the weather. Whatever!
We caught lots of nice small-mouth bass, all catch and release. Fun fighters!
We got the boats loaded before the rain hit, and then we sat out the first burst of rain under a shelter at the put-in. And then it let up for a few hours.
Time to start floating and fishing! My friends Jim Acee and Bruce Reichert were in the front of my raft, and Acee was ready to slay the bass and trout with two fishing poles in hand and all of the trusty spin-cast lures that work in Hells Canyon. Bruce was spin-fishing for the first time in decades since he normally fly fishes at high mountain lakes. But within minutes, both of them had fish on!
Very slowly, I worked the eddies alongside the river, and the boys caught a number of small-mouth bass. Very few trout!
In less than 4 miles, we made camp on this cool sand bar and natural cove in the cliffs on river right. Looking up at the sky, I could see a few patches of blue, but it looked mostly dark and more rain imminent. We put up my big-ass 16x20 foot tarp, set up our kitchen stuff under that, and we were ready to sip cocktails and enjoy the scenery, rain or no rain.
My tarp is big enough to cover the kitchen area, plus lawn chairs!
As many Idaho boaters know, fall river trips are a great way to enjoy cooler weather, fall colors, as well as fishing and bird hunting along the way, side-hikes, etc. Hells Canyon is one of my top picks because road access is relatively easy from Boise (5-hour drive), it's got more water flow (7,000-11,000 cfs) than other Idaho rivers this time of year, and the fishing is very consistent and pretty amazing, considering the variety of fish in the Snake River.
People fish for rainbow trout, small-mouth bass, and sturgeon, plus steelhead are running now, and fall Chinook salmon also are running now. If you don't have your own raft, you can go with a Hells Canyon outfitter or book a jet boat ride with Hells Canyon Adventures, Hammer Down River Excursions, Kilgore Outfitters and more. See Riggins Chamber or IOGA for a full list of outfitters.
The logistics for Hells Canyon are as follows: Put in a Hells Canyon Dam and float to Pittsburg Landing, a distance of about 35 miles. This trip is easily doable in three or four days. My advice: Take as much time as possible. After Labor Day, only self-issue permits are required, available at the put-in. Shuttles can be arranged through Scotty's gas station in Pine, Oregon for $225 cash. They do a marvelous job!
Below Sheep Creek ... sturgeon road ahead!
On Day 2, I had Bruce oar the raft and I fished with Jim in the bow. The fishing was hot! We hooked a ton of bass throughout the day. We cast against the black canyon cliffs into these nifty little coves and small pools, and bam! Fish on! We released all of the bass because we had Bruce's famous chicken piccata to look forward to for dinner! Plus pineapple upsidedown cake in the Dutch oven.
But first, we ran Wild Sheep Rapids, the first big Class 4 drop at about Mile 8. I went up on the mountainside to scout the big rapid, and at 7,000+ cfs, the best route looked like the typical run for this time of year. You enter on the left-center side of this massive rapids, and then row super hard to the right-center of the rapids, and hit a narrow slot as a giant left lateral wave merges with a giant right lateral wave.
We saw a group of kayakers and one raft approach, and the lead kayaker was barking orders to the other kayakers and they didn't scout. Well, the lead kayaker made the right move, and the rest of the kayakers got absolutely slammed by a wall of 12-foot left lateral waves on the left-center side of the rapids. That was interesting to watch! Long swims for those dudes.
Bruce and Jim
But I hit the slot, and Kristin Nelson nailed the run as well in our group, so we were homefree to make our next camp and enjoy Bruce's chicken piccata. This time around, Bruce moisturized his dried morels with white wine, and that really added a tasty zip to those luscious shrooms!
Third night camp. Rosy clouds hint of the sunset to come.
The next day, we needed to make some tracks. We floated through all of the whitewater rapids without a problem, caught more bass, and lunched at Johnson Bar. We ended up at Caribou Creek camp that night and had chili from Kristin and her husband, John Blanchard. The sun came out with a vengeance that afternoon, to the point where I had to swim to cool off! Quite the contrast to the start of our trip.
Anyway, I highly recommend a fall trip in Hells Canyon.
Here are a few other options for fall trips:
Lower Salmon Canyon - Float from Hammer Creek to Heller Bar or arrange for a jet boat shuttle to Pittsburg Landing from the mouth of the Salmon. It's almost 50 miles from Hammer Creek to the mouth of the Salmon, and the river is running very low, so allow for plenty of time to do your float. Fishing is limited to small-mouth bass and steelhead in this section.
Salmon River near Riggins - If you don't have time to do a longer trip, you could put in at Carey Creek or Vinegar Creek and float down to Riggins while fishing for steelhead and hunting chukars.
South Fork Snake River - Put in at Palisades Dam for the long version of the float or at Swan Valley and float to the takeout at Heise. The South Fork Lodge in Swan Valley does shuttles. Check with the experts on what kinds of flies the fish are taking. The cuts on the South Fork get fished very hard by a steady stream of outfitters every day. By this time of year, it's more locals than outfitters. Here's a blog post I did on the South Fork two years ago.
Fall trips provide great opportunities to see wildlife. We've seen multiple black bears in Hells Canyon.
Steve talks about his latest outdoor adventures with Ken and Melissa on 94.9 FM The River every Friday morning at about 7:40 a.m. Please tune in!
If you've got a suitable 4x4, truck camping in hard-to-reach places can be gratifying!
Hi all,
The 4th of July long weekend is coming up! Many people have already made plans, but in case you haven't and need some inspiration, I am recommending 10 must-see, must-do activities not only for this weekend, but for the whole summer season:
1. Float a river (day trip) - we're blessed with so many options here, but the summer season is now open on the Boise River! See details about floating the Boise River, renting a raft, etc. Warm summer weather also gets people jazzed about floating the Payette River, either the Main Payette, South Fork Payette or Cabarton run on the North Fork. Check with Cascade Raft & Kayak, Bear Valley Rafting, Idaho Whitewater Unlimited and the Payette River Company about guided trips. The Payette's calmer sections are great for stand-up paddle boarding (SUP), sit-on-top kayaking and canoeing. See my post about 10 premium locations to go kayaking or SUP'ing in SW Idaho.
Float a river! This is on the Cabarton stretch of the Payette River.
2. Climb a mountain - The pinnacle is to climb Mount Borah, but there are so many other options in Idaho, with dozens of peaks over 10,000 feet and 8 peaks over 12,000 feet. See Idaho mountain expert Tom Lopez's list of recommended mountain peaks. McCall mountain expert John Platt also has an extensive list of peaks and mountains that he's climbed.
4. Take your kids fishing - See the list of Idaho Fish and Game's Family Fishing Waters to find some great recommendations close to home.
5. Go backpacking in the Sawtooths, White Clouds, Pioneers or Big Lost Mountain Range. Snow levels are at roughly 7,500-8,000 feet in the Sawtooths, creek crossings are high and hazardous, See Michael Lanza's recommended hikes in the Sawtooths in his blog, the Big Outside. See a recommended major loop in the White Clouds in Backpacker mag. For a great hike in the Pioneers, see my blog post about hiking Broad Canyon. For the Big Lost range, see this overview in Summit Post.com.
6. Sleep under the stars in a dark sky venue like Bear Valley in the Boise National Forest, the Owyhee Canyonlands or outside of Stanley.
Catch a trout on the Middle Fork Salmon River.
7. Fly into the Middle Fork of the Salmon River and go fly-fishing for native cutthroat trout. Air taxi services in Boise, Cascade or McCall can take you into the Middle Fork in less than an hour. All fishing is catch and release.
Climbing up a short hill to finish the Fisher-Williams Loop (courtesy Salsa cycles)
9. Go SUP'ing, boating or swimming in a refreshing, natural Idaho mountain lake like Payette Lake, Redfish Lake, or Priest Lake. See my post on 10 perfect paddling destinations for kayaking and SUPs in SW Idaho for ideas.
10. Go car camping in the Middle Fork Boise River area, North Fork Boise River area, the Middle Fork of the Payette River area or Bear Valley. There are some reservable fee campgrounds and some dispersed camping areas. See the Boise National Forest, Payette National Forest or Sawtooth National Forest web sites for more information.
For further enrichment on Idaho bucket list trips, see an Idaho bucket list post from Boise State radio, and a post that I did listing another 30 bucket list trips that they didn't cover.
Remember: Be smart about Fire Safety this weekend ... we put out a post yesterday from Recreate Responsibly Idaho reminding folks that no fireworks are allowed on public lands, no exploding shooting targets, and be sure to put out your campfire before you leave the site ... make sure it is completed out, cold to the touch. - SS
Pruitt's Castle rises from the sagebrush on the Owyhee River.
Hi all,
It's a special thing when you can escape to a never-never land like the Wild and Scenic Owyhee River, tune into the nature channel all around you, and enjoy some very special moments that stay with you long after the trip.
Pulling out of camp, floating on a quiet section of the river, it's mesmerizing to just sit back and listen to the river, the birds, and the bugs, while dipping your oars in and out of the water in a rhythmic motion.
And then the rapids come up around the corner. You're greeted by a thunderous sound of whitewater in a tight canyon, and it's time to focus on the river!
Katie Metzger on the sticks in the cataraft; Make and Shane on the SUPs
Over 25+ years of doing spring trips on the Owyhee River, I feel like I've experience such an amazing array of challenging conditions with any combination of stiff headwinds, torrential rain storms, horizontal snow, muddy roads, even medical evacs.
But in my most recent trip, March 22-25, the stars aligned for the most perfect conditions imaginable - conditions that I'm sure will never happen again! But we had a combination of solid river flows, perfect weather and ... shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh no wind!
OMG, that never happens on the Owyhee River!
Bruce and Norm are pumped about the river trip at the put-in ...
I'd been watching the river gauge daily, and I knew with a flow of 2,000 cfs in mid-March, that flow would not last long with 70 percent snowpack!
And I'd been watching the weather daily, and the Rome, OR, forecast that week was amazingly nice and sunny with afternoon highs in the 70s.
So I pulled together a trip in a matter of days. I got commitments from my friends Katie Metzger and Dan Popkey immediately. They both have their own rafts, so that meant we had 3 boats including mine, and our trip was a go! Just had to fill in with passengers. We were really lucky to get a bunch of super fun people together who could take off Tuesday-Friday during the middle of the week.
Shane and Mark getting into their dry suits at the put-in.
My longtime friend Bruce Reichert, Mr. Outdoor Idaho, jumped at the chance to join us, as did my friend Norm Nelson. Morley Nelson's oldest son, Norm's spirit soars when we see golden eagles, prairie falcons and hawks flying above. Mine does too! We ended up seeing a ton of eagles, falcons and hawks! So special!
My friend Mark Anderson and fellow SUP expert Shane Preston paddled their SUPs while I carried their gear. And Katie invited her friend Eric, a BSU math professor, to join us and ride in her cataraft.
Natural hot springs along the way ...
We had a crew of 8. Everyone took turns cooking. We ate like kings and queens every night.
The trip: We floated 48 miles from the BLM put-in at Rome to the BLM takeout at the old Birch Creek Ranch. This section is known as the Lower Owyhee. You hire locals to drive your shuttle. It's a pretty gnarly 4WD high-clearance road to go from the Birch Creek takeout back to U.S. Highway 95, so you need a solid vehicle for the river trip. It's all pavement to the put-in.
Norm does an oil painting of Pruitt's Castle in camp
Trip map: BLM river guides are available for all of the forks of the Owyhee River and the Jarbidge-Bruneau river.
I'm just going to share a few photos from our trip. Not much more needs to be said about the Owyhee River canyon's beauty. The pictures do the talking.
Bruce works on his Chicken piccata dish with plenty of butter, garlic and morels in the Dutch oven.
Katie is talented with her magical colored balls at night ... check out the video.
Adam Bass, right, with Chel and the new Boise River guide.
Hi all,
Just when we're seeing more and more people floating non-traditional sections of the Boise River in rafts, canoes, stand-up paddle boards and inner tubes, the Boise River Enhancement Network (BREN) has produced a new guidebook for the Boise River, providing details on navigating the river from Lucky Peak to Parma.
Adam Bass is the author of the full-color, waterproof guide. BREN had a little party at Idaho River Sports on Wednesday night to celebrate the launch of the new guide. The spiral-bound guide is available for sale for $35 retail.
"My
first printing of “Canoeing the Boise river” served to jump start
our community’s awareness of the recreation opportunities beyond Barber Park to Ann
Morrison," Chel says. "I am delighted that Adam has incorporated some of that early work and
made a much more detailed, user-friendly guidebook.
"The book is a great tribute to the efforts of so many people
to improve access and information about the river. Shout out to IRU, Boise
River 2000, the Boise River Trails Coalition and Boise River Enhancement
Network for 25 years of great work!"
Here's Drew on the Boise River with his friend Jenny McIntosh.
Adam Bass said this about the book:
"The
Guidebook introduces river users to the beautiful plants and fascinating
wildlife of the lower Boise River as well as the natural and human-created
hazards. Experienced boaters can use the Guidebook to safely explore our
backyard treasure and become ambassadors for a healthy river."
In the introduction, Bass writes "The Boise River flows nearly 70 miles from Discovery Park, just below Lucky Peak Dam east of Boise, to its confluence with the Snake River west of Parma. The river provides wonderful paddling opportunities and scenic views over its entire length. There are many accesses and most are easily reached on major roads, which make for simple shuttles."
They break the river down into the following sections:
Lucky Peak to Barber Park
Barber Park to Ann Morrison Park
Glenwood to Eagle Road - South Channel
Glenwood to Eagle Road - North Channel
Eagle Road to Linder - South Channel
Eagle Road to Linder - North Channel
Star Road to Lansing Lane
Middleton Road to Wittenberger Park
Wittenberger Park to Notus
Notus to Parma
Parma to Fort Boise
Each section has notes on put-ins and takeouts, hazards or points of interest, wildlife you might see along the way, etc.
BE SMART AND SAFE OUT THERE!
Try to scout unfamiliar sections of the river before you go, or at least hazards that you expect to encounter such as irrigation diversions. The best advice is to "scout" any hazards before floating them.
The guidebook says, "Paddling on rivers is never completely safe. Develop your skills on lakes, paddle within your ability, and always wear a properly fitted PFD (life jacket). You are responsible for your safety while paddling and only you can judge the suitability of the Boise River for your skill level."
Also ... "Keep other river users in mind," Bass says. "If you plan a trip through town, keep in mind other floaters. If you plan a trip downstream of Eagle Road, keep in mind potential waterfowl hunters. Always be aware of fishermen."
Truth be told, Chel approached me about printing a guidebook on the Boise River when he was researching all of the different sections of the river shortly after I had published my first edition of "Paddling the Payette," a guide to 24 day trips on all forks of the Payette River. At the time, I didn't think there would be much of a market for a canoeing guide to the Boise River ... because it was a very small small number of people who do that type of thing.
But now that SUPs and sit-on-top kayaks are commonplace on the Boise River -- and full-sized rafts with anglers on board -- there definitely is a need for a detailed guide about the more unsung sections of the Boise River, in my view.
Be sure to bring plenty of food and water with you. Wear good river shoes/sandals for navigating around hazardous areas.
And have fun!
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR IDAHO CITY YURTS!
Hey folks, Idaho Parks and Recreation is having a hard time recruiting volunteers for stocking up the Idaho City yurts with fresh firewood and other things for the winter season. Contact Steve Schaps, thewildwestguy@gmail.com if you'd like to help out.
August 11-12 -
Skyline Yurt organized by Brian McMahan. Meeting at 7:45 am at the Idaho Parks and Rec office on Warm
Springs Road. Carpooling available.
August 17-18 - Hennessey Yurt organized by Leo Hennessey himself. Meeting at
the yurt at 9-10 am.
August 30-31 - Elkhorn
Yurt organized by me (Steve Schaps) meeting at the Parks and Rec office on Warm
Springs Road at 7:45 am. Carpooling available.
August 31-Sept 1 - Banner Ridge Yurt organized by Julie Rittenberry.
Please spread the word to your friends. Thanks! - SS
Read all about Steve's outdoor trips in Idaho, including hiking, mountain biking, backpacking, camping, trail-running, whitewater boating, canoeing, SUP’ing, skiing and snowshoeing.
I love being outdoors and hanging out in the mountains. It's my favorite place to be. I love to explore new places and experience different outposts in the Idaho backcountry.
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