The river is class II from the pack bridge at Poverty Flats Campground 1.5 miles down to the
Teapot Hot Springs. Another mile or so below the hot springs is a
short canyon where the river cannot be seen from the road. This can be class
IV-V at very high water.
The river returns to the road downstream of Reed Ranch and Camp Creek and is class
II-III for about 11.5 miles to the Secesh confluence. This whole segment can be easily scouted from the road. The class III whitewater is at the top and bottom of this segment and those looking for class II can paddle from the Buckhorn Creek bridge down to the Krassel Work Center.
This section is closed to paddling during April, May, August, and September in an effort to reduce disturbance of spawning salmon. Review the rules
here. Paddlers should also be aware of wood as trees in this segment can extend across the entire channel width.
Logistics: To reach the South Fork Salmon, turn east on Warm Lake Road (FR 579) in Cascade at Highway 55 mile 116.1. It's 24 miles up this road to the turn for the South Fork Road (FR 474) at Warm Lake Road mile 55.9 (on the way you will pass Trail Creek Hot Spring at Warm Lake Road 60.5, 0.1 mile up the hill west of the FR 409 junction). The South Fork Road (FR 474) parallels the river on river right and climbs high above the river along the Goat Creek section before descending down to river level at Poverty Flat Campground located at mile 13.6 on the South Fork Road. The entire road is paved.
The following points along the South Fork Road, ordered from upstream to downstream, can be used to access different segments of this reach:
13.6 Poverty Flat Campground
14.0 dispersed access sites
15.3 Tea Pot Hot Spring (steep trail to river), class IV/V rapids downstream where river is away from the road
16.5 Four Mile Trailhead (away from the river)
19.8 Reed Ranch airstrip (away from the river)
20.1 Camp Creek (away from the river)
20.9 bridge, class III roadside rapids downstream of this bridge
22.9 Buckhorn Creek Bridge, class II roadside rapids downstream of this bridge
24.5 Buckhorn Bar Campground
27.2 Krassel Work Center
28.7 Krassel USGS Gage, class III roadside rapids downstream of the gage
30.9 road end, turn left at the T-junction and continue 1 mile downstream to the Secesh confluence with the South Fork Salmon River and a good access point.
An alternative to coming in on the Warm Lake Road is to take the Lick Creek Road out of McCall which is a 35 mile route from McCall that drops into the Secesh river drainage and parallels the lower segment of the Secesh River. This route is unpaved and is likely to be snowed in early in the season.
Downstream of the Secesh River confluence the road is closed and this represents the start of the classic multi-day trip on the South Fork Salmon.