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Middle Fork of the Salmon River Rafting

Whitewater Rafting in Idaho with O.A.R.S

Highlights

  • Soak in a steaming natural hot spring after braving Ramshorn rapids
  • Run huge rapids like Powerhouse and Pistol Creek
  • Hike to the magnificent Veil Falls

Full Description

It’s all part of a Middle Fork rafting vacation…world-class whitewater thrills, phenomenal alpine scenery, hiking, hot springs and Blue-Ribbon trout fishing!

It’s true — it doesn’t get any better than this.With over 100 winding miles of river — and more than 100 sets of rapids — there’s no wondering why the journey along the Middle Fork Salmon is considered unparalleled. One of the continent’s premium rafting destinations, the Middle Fork’s legendary waters churn through high country forest, granite canyons, swirling seas of grassland and some of Idaho’s most storied spaces. The river’s banks speak of the state’s proud heritage, its Native American history, pioneer sites and natural habitat for a wondrous world of wildlife.

Includes:

  • Skilled professional guide service
  • 5 nights catered camping
  • Meals from lunch on Day 1 through lunch on Day 6, with limited beer, wine, and soda at dinner
  • Expedition equipment including 2-person shared tent, sleeping bag with liner, sleeping pad, pillow with pillowcase, ground cloth, and waterproof bags to hold your gear
  • High quality inflatable rafts and kayaks, colorful handcrafted dories when conditions allow, and related river equipment including paddle, helmet, personal flotation device (PFD)
  • Wetsuits and splash jackets for paddlers-weather dependent
  • Transfer from Stanley to the river and from the river to Salmon, Idaho
  • Flight from Stanley to put-in for Indian Creek launches

Excludes:

  • Transportation to Stanley and back from Salmon
  • Pre- and post-trip accommodations and meals
  • Single supplement tent ($30 plus tax)
  • Insurance of any kind, including travel insurance
  • Items of a personal nature (an equipment list is in Middle Fork of the Salmon River Trip Planner)
  • Gratuities

Day by Day Itinerary

Day 1-6

We'll take a scenic flight to our put-in at Indian Creek, where your boats and crew await you. (At certain water levels, we may be lucky enough to put in further upstream at Boundary Creek, which we access by ground shuttle. Boundary Creek is the preferred launch point and the trip will start there whenever possible.) After an informative safety talk and paddle raft/inflatable kayak instruction, we take to the pure blue waters of the breathtaking Middle Fork. Within moments, you'll experience your first rapid, an appropriate introduction to this river whose exciting, consistent whitewater doesn't stop until its confluence with the Main Salmon.

Our high-elevation put-in point awards us with fantastic alpine scenery, and we spend our first day among deep green forests, dramatic mountains, and crystal clear creeks that pour out of the woods and into the river.

Our first day generally sets the pace for our week on the river. Typically, we spend a few hours on the water in the morning, sometimes stopping for a great hike, a visit to a waterfall or an Indian pictograph, or a soak in a natural hot spring. Come lunchtime, we pull over to a sandy beach and enjoy a delicious picnic. After feasting and relaxing on the beach (or perhaps swimming, a game of Frisbee, a nature walk...), we get back in our boats for more exciting whitewater. Be sure to try your hand at the paddleboat and inflatable kayak! Mid- to lateafternoon, we stop and make camp; you grab your bags and set up your tent while we take care of the kitchen and "living room"-camp chairs and the site for tonight's campfire (if permitted). Read, nap, or just sit back and laugh with friends and family as we prepare dinner. After a satisfying feast, the evening is yours to spend however you wish. Maybe music, stories, or jokes will bring us together tonight; maybe the popping of the fire, the whisper of the river and the clarity of the big, star-filled sky will encourage silent reflection on the amazing wilderness that is, for now, our home.

Continuing down the river the next few days, we'll see the scenery change from high mountains to gently rolling hills. Thick forests give way to miles of open grassland dotted with cool glades of pine. The views remain stunning and the whitewater action-packed. Huge rapids like Powerhouse and Pistol Creek are interspersed with less intense, yet still thrilling whitewater in the form of wave trains, chutes, and drops. Our journey downstream takes us to more hot springs, alcoves decorated with Sheepeater Indian pictographs, and magnificent Veil Falls, a unique waterfall that plummets freely into a natural amphitheatre from a high rock overhang.

Towards the end of our voyage, the Middle Fork rushes into Impassable Canyon, a narrow gorge that creates some of the most high-intensity and continuous whitewater of the trip. Paddle hard through Redside, Rubber, and Hancock rapids and enjoy the sudden spectacular change in scenery from wooded hills to the sheer granite walls and huge boulders of Impassable Canyon. On Day 6, we reach our take-out at the confluence with the Main Salmon. Our journey has ended, but we're sure that although you leave the river, the river will never leave you.

About The Operator:

O.A.R.S

Headquarters:

Angels Camp, CA

O.A.R.S. was the first exclusively oar-powered rafting company permitted to operate trips on the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. Through our four decades in the adventure travel industry, we have become the largest and most diverse family of river-based adventure travel companies in North America, operating on over 1230 miles of rivers in the continental U.S. In addition to our signature Grand Canyon trips, we offer adventure vacations in Alaska, California, Colorado, Idaho, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming, as well as in British Columbia, Chile, Galapagos, Fiji, Baja and Peru. The heart and soul of O.A.R.S.-from president and founder George Wente to the more than 300 dedicated guides and employees on our team-is that we are all genuinely invested in every passenger, every trip and every lifetime memory.

Our Staff

We consider our O.A.R.S. outdoor adventure guides to be among the best in the industry! Some began their river-guiding careers more than 30 years ago; others were born into it. They are entertainers, historians, geologists, botanists, chefs, medics, anthropologists, event planners, authors, photographers, wilderness pathfinders, and they are the single most complimented component of our organization. Our guides are also professional, playful and ever mindful of your wants and needs, and their enthusiasm for the natural world is contagious. Learn about our guides through reading their detailed biographies, experience and interests.

Our Adventure Consultants and our year-round office staff who provide you with all the trip-specific tips, trip planning assistance and adventure travel trip logistical support have more than 100 years of combined experience in the adventure travel industry, as well as close to 1000 river trips between them.

Your O.A.R.S. Adventure Vacation

You concentrate on fun. We brew the coffee, cook the meals, pump the boats, provide the gear, plan the day, find the best camp spot, and we strive to fill each day with excitement, discovery and the attention to detail you deserve. O.A.R.S. provides the best average guide-to-guest ratio in the adventure travel business (1:4).

You do only what you feel like doing. Want to paddle a ‘ducky' or admire the view from the bow of a boat; go on a day hike or stay in camp and read; save room for dessert or have two pieces of seared salmon? Every day is yours to do with as you please.

Camaraderie

Is there any other experience more conducive to creating new, lasting friendships and deepening family bonds than an O.A.R.S. adventure? Our outdoor trips are wonderful equalizers, bringing together like-minded people from diverse backgrounds. Time and again we hear from guests about their joy of having met kindred spirits and new traveling companions. Parents bask in their child's newly-gained confidence in the natural world. Gone are electronic distractions, commutes and deadlines, leaving guests with uninterrupted time to relax, snuggle under the stars, savor a sunset and swap tales around the campfire.

When you join an O.A.R.S. adventure travel trip, you're not just a customer-you are a friend, a member of the crew and an extension of our family-owned and operated company. We'll answer your questions, feed you well, show you a good time and share with you our passion for the world's waterways.

Our Pledge

Outdoor adventure vacations are our specialty, and we work hard to provide our guests with the best travel experience of their lives. If part of your trip under our control wasn't everything you expected, we will work with you to make it right.
Responsible Travel

Environmental stewardship is nothing new to O.A.R.S. We've been at it for four decades. In partnership with our guests, we have contributed more than $3 million in donations and fees toward the preservation of the environment and to environmental and wildlife conservation initiatives. For a detailed account of our environmentally responsible practices, check out our Responsible Travel page.

Don't Just Take Our Word for It

O.A.R.S. has been routinely recognized by adventure industry experts, media and our guests for our commitment to excellence and innovation in travel. In both 2008 and 2009, National Geographic Adventure magazine selected O.A.R.S. as "The Best River & Sea Outfitter on Earth" based on their criteria including education, sustainability, quality of service, spirit of adventure and references. Since 2007, Condé Nast Traveler's Wendy Perrin has recognized our Reservations Manager, Mindy Gleason, as the "Top Travel Specialist" in the River Rafting category for her unique ability to offer O.A.R.S. travelers "the best blend of expertise, access, and good value." Additionally, year after year magazines such as National Geographic Traveler, Outside, Men's Journal and Sunset along with NBC, CNBC, Forbes Traveler and SmarterTravel.com have all recognized O.A.R.S. for serving up some of the "Best Trips on the Planet."