Which river offers the best whitewater, The Middle Fork or the Main Salmon?
Each of these spectacular river canyons in Idaho offers wonderful wilderness and whitewater rafting experiences. Nevertheless, there are differences between them. The Middle Fork is what we call a “continual gradient river.” The headwaters are at approximately 6,000 feet and it drops to an elevation of approx. 3,000 ft. Because of the constant drop, the Middle Fork has water activity from top to bottom. The Main Salmon is referred to as a “drop and pool” river. You float along quietly until you drop into large rolling rapids. The Main Salmon and the Middle Fork offer Class IV whitewater during the early part of the season with the Middle Fork offering Class V during those early June high water years. There are more rapids listed on the Middle Fork, but the “Big Six” found on the Main Salmon are some of the best whitewater rapids anywhere!
