3 - Wilderness Gateway or Fish Creek to Split Creek Recreational

The Lochsa is truly an Idaho Classic, offering paddlers miles and miles of big beautiful whitewater. The most commonly run section is from Fish Creek (2.5 miles downstream of Wilderness Gateway) to Split Creek, and features over a dozen big named rapids and some great playboating. At low water the Lochsa is an enjoyable paddling trip with some technical moves, some nice small play features, and pools between each of the rapids. At medium water the rapids link up with swift water and become big fun rollercoasters with few technical moves but there are a few holes to avoid. At high water the Lochsa is a wild ride of towering waves and thundering holes that is ridicuously fun (if you stay in your boat). Lochsa Falls is one of the classic drops on this run and around Memorial Day weekend, typically in the highwater season, it's quite a scene with spectators lining up to watch the show from the pullout adjacent to the rapid at Highway 12 mile 114.1. You will find a number of good play waves with Pipeline as the centerpiece, a beautiful surf wave that can be enjoyed as a park-and-play feature from the pull-out at Highway 12 mile 113.5. Most rapids are run right of center as a general rule of thumb and can be scouted from highwater 12 (beware, though, of the Idaho sandbag: many Idaho rivers look easy from the road and are actually confusing and stompy on the water). The camping and hiking around the Lochsa are great. Superb water quality and scenery, along with booming and relatively straightforward whitewater, make the Lochsa a true Idaho treasure. Access: Wilderness Gateway at Highway 12 mile 122.7 is typically identified as the start of the run known as the 'Lower Lochsa' but boaters, and particularly rafters, often use the nice Fish Creek River Access site 2.5 miles downstream at Highway 12 mile 120.2. The Fish Creek Access has a nice raft slide that is easier than the carry in at Wilderness Gateway. The take-out is at Split Creek River Access, where the pack bridge crosses the river at Highway 12 mile 111.4. Rafters can continue downstream 3 miles on the next run to find easy shoreline access at Knife Edge located at Highway 12 mile 108.3. Of course park-and-play at Pipeline at Highway 12 mile 113.5 is also a popular option. While there are several camping options along the entire Lochsa River, including some nice undeveloped sites, Wilderness Gateway Campground at Highway 12 mile 122.7 (cross the bridge to the campground on river left) offers the most sites and is a popular gathering place for whitewater paddlers in the spring. The C loop is on the river and has a few sites where you can launch directly from your campsite. The A loop can be reserved and is a popular option for big groups. The picnic shelter between loop A and B can be reserved for a group gathering.