Lower Salmon River Rafting Travel Planning

Travel to Lewiston, Idaho, at 7:00 pm PST you will meet ROW’s Team Leader at the Hells Canyon Grand Hotel for a one-hour orientation meeting to answer last-minute questions. You'll also receive your waterproof gear bags. Dinner is on your own.

Meet your team leader at 7:30 am for a two-hour bus ride to the rafting trip launch point near Whitebird, Idaho. On the way, we'll stop briefly at the Nez Perce National Historical Park for an introduction to the native peoples who lived along the Salmon River for thousands of years. By mid-morning, we arrive at our launch point.

When we stop for lunch, we will have a camp orientation and "Leave No Trace" camping instruction. The afternoon of rapids and fun on the river will conclude as camp is established around 4:00 p.m. We will arrive at camp with plenty of free time for hiking, fishing, reading, or just relaxing.

You'll wake around 7:00 am to the smell of fresh-brewed coffee and tea. Breakfast is served around 7:30, and while we clean up the kitchen, you pack up your gear. We depart camp at about 9:30 for today's rafting adventure. Plenty of rapids, sun, and dramatic scenery await you on an adventure-packed day of family white water rafting.

Native American history is abundant in this area, and many sites will be explored throughout the day. exciting rapids of Wright Way Drop and Demon’s Drop. We stop for lunch on a big beach, perfect for swimming and beach games. The afternoon has a few more rapids, peaceful drifting, and the chance of seeing soaring eagles. Tonight we camp on a huge white sand beach, and after dinner, we enjoy the evening campfire and marvel at the star-studded sky.

Today your rafting holiday takes you through “Cougar Canyon” and “Snowhole Canyon” for a full day of whitewater rafting fun. Big, splashy rapids like Lorna’s Lulu, Bunghole, the Gobbler, Bodacious Bounce, Snowhole, and China make for great stories and beaming smiles.

Historical sites are visited, including the mining exploits of Chinese immigrants. At camp, our guides have a bagful of games and fun for kids and adults, and this evening we may set up a volleyball net, play horseshoes, or hike up a nearby mountain for stunning views. Summer evenings in Idaho are long, with darkness arriving after 9:30 pm in July and early August. The night sky, crackling campfire, and fresh mountain air will help you sleep like a baby.

More rapids and canyons to explore and splash through today. More homesteads and Native sites to explore as time allows, and maybe even a jump from a rock and a swim through a rapid before lunch.

After lunch, we enter “Blue Canyon,” named for the bluish/black tone of the igneous rock that forms the dramatic landscape. Here the river is forced into a narrower channel and a long series of cascading rapids treats us. We'll bounce through Devil’s Slide, Sluice Box, Checkerboard, and Eye of the Needle. These rapids are the perfect finale to your Salmon River journey. We make camp near the Salmon's confluence with the Snake River. It’s our last night on the river and we'll camp on another expansive white sand beach. These natural beaches can only be found on an undammed river where ground-up rock is free to travel as sediment downriver, settling to create these beautiful oases of glistening sand. When a river is dammed, the dam traps sediment behind its concrete walls and robs beaches of sand rather than replenishing them.

The confluence of the Salmon River and the Snake River will likely happen today (if not the evening before), where the river doubles in volume and creates a border between Oregon and Idaho. We will stop for another fine lunch on a sandy beach. After a few more miles of magnificent scenery and around 3:00 pm, we reach our take-out just below the Snake River's confluence with the Grande Ronde River. Gear is untied, and everyone carries their gear to the waiting bus.

It’s a quick 45-minute ride back to the town of Lewiston, Idaho.

• Professional, licensed guides
• All meals between trip departure and return
• All eating utensils and souvenir insulated bottle
• Unlimited water
• Freshly laundered sleeping bag and sheet
• Tent and ground cover
• Water-resistant dry bag for sleeping gear and personal duffle bag
• Custom rafts
• US Coast Guard approved whitewater life jackets
• Wilderness First-Aid kit

Through several decades of experience on the river, Western knows what clothing and gear will keep you smiling every second of your adventure. Specifically, we’ve bundled “The Works” for him, for her and one for gear in general. For your convenience, you can order all these items online with Western’s retail division Red Rock Outfitters.

• Duffel bag (approx. 12”x13”x24”), packed with personal items outlined on the packing list
• Extra drinks, if desired. (Water is available in unlimited quantities on the boats and in camp. Beer and wine in limited amounts are available in camp)
• Extra snacks, if desired. (Snacks will be provided during the trip)
• Photo ID, a major credit card, and cash for gratuities.
• Camera(s) - Phones as cameras in waterproof cases/sleeves (Cell service unavailable)

• Unnecessary electronic devices (game devices for kids, etc.)
• Extra Luggage
• Valuables

You will want to have photo ID, a major credit card, and some cash for gratuities. All other valuables and jewelry should be left at home or in a safety deposit box at your hotel. In addition, as a safety precaution we suggest that you not wear rings on the river. Also, each year a few of our guests traveling on airlines arrive without luggage. With this in mind, we suggest you carry with you medications, prescription glasses, and anything you may not be able to replace the evening before your trip departs.

Transfer all your personal clothing and gear which you will need on your rafting trip to a small, lightweight duffle bag. Identify duffle bag with label, and leave any extra suitcases or luggage in your vehicle or at the hotel. Please DO NOT BRING SUITCASES on your river trip. As part of your camping equipment package, we provide a water-resistant bag in which you will place your duffle bag as well as the sleeping bag that we provide.