Selway River (Four Rivers Lottery)

The Main Salmon, Middle Fork of the Salmon, Selway, and Snake-Hells Canyon Rivers, located in central Idaho and eastern Oregon, offer a broad range of floating and recreation opportunities.  These exciting rivers provide scenery, steep canyons, wildlife, and whitewater thrills for thousands of river runners each summer during the floating season.

Non-commercial permits to float these four rivers (the Main Salmon, Middle Fork of the Salmon, Selway, and Snake-Hells Canyon) are allocated through a computerized lottery system.  Applications for the upcoming Selway floating season must be submitted online through Recreation.gov.  Hard copy applications are not accepted.

The application period is December 1 through January 31 each year.

Email notices will be sent to all applicants on February 14^th after the lottery period has concluded. Applicants will need to log into their recreation.gov profile to see the results of their lottery application(s).

To confirm your reservation, log into your profile and accept your reservation by March 15^th. Upon reservation confirmation, you will be sent links to important information and regulations that you MUST review in full to have a successful and safe trip.

Cancelled, declined, revoked and unconfirmed award dates will be released March 16^th at 8:00 AM Mountain Standard Time on the recreation.gov website. Available dates will be reserved on a first-come, first-served basis. 

To learn more about floating the Selway River, see the information under “quick links” or “related links” on the right-hand side of this page, or call the West Fork Ranger District at 406-821-3269.