The Lower Salmon – from Spring Bar to the confluence with the Snake River – is open to powerboating year round.
Down river from Riggins there are several large rapids that demand respect including Ladder Creek, Chair Creek, Fiddle creek, and Blackhawk Rapids. All should be scouted before running. Since Highway 95 runs along the river, scouting is a matter of pulling over and taking a look.
In “the Gorge” – the section from Hammer Creek to the Snake River confluence – there are several rapids that demand due respect. They are Snow Hole, China Bar, Slide, and Eye of the Needle. Before you access the Salmon below Hammer Creek, you are required to complete a “self-issue” use permit. These permits are available at the ramp at Hammer Creek.
All along the Lower Salmon there are launches maintained by the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and other public agencies. The most notable are at Shorts Bar, the park in Riggins, Lightning Creek, Lucile, Steelhead Inn, Slate Creek, Twin Bridges, Whitebird, and Hammer Creek.
The whole of the the Lower Salmon is a river environment with ever-present rock and current hazards. Water level dictates difficulty.