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Obtaining a Permit to Float the Middle Fork of the Salmon
Permits Required
A permit is required year-round to be on the waters of the Middle Fork of the Salmon River. The permitted section begins at Dagger Falls and ends at the confluence with the Main Salmon River.
# Launches Allowed/Day
A maximum of seven float boat parties (commercial and non-commercial) are allowed to launch per day.
How do I make a Reservation for a Permit?
To obtain a permit to float the river, a person must first make a reservation in Recreation.gov. Check Middle Fork of the Salmon (4 Rivers) to look for an available date.
I have a Reservation. How do I get my Permit?
When Boundary Creek is open and you are launching from Boundary Creek:
- Pick up your permit at the Boundary Creek office on the day of your launch.
When Boundary Creek is closed and Indian Creek is open (usually May and October) and you are putting in at Indian Creek or upstream:
- Pick up your permit at the Indian Creek office when you float by.
When you are putting in below Indian Creek (any time of year) OR when both offices are closed (early and late season):
- Contact the River Office at sm.fs.middlefork@usda.gov at least three days prior to your launch.
A reservation is not a guarantee that you will be able to float the river. The Middle Fork of the Salmon is a wild river. Natural events such as wildfire, debris flows, logjams, or other events may prevent you from being able to carry out your trip as planned. The Middle Fork of the Salmon is also accessed with the help of infrastructure such as roads and airstrips, which require maintenance over time. Your reservation may conflict with the maintenance schedule of this infrastructure, and you may not be able to access the river as planned. The Forest Service cannot guarantee that all access points will be available on your launch date or that the entire stretch of river will be navigable on your launch date.
Reservations for the year are initially allocated in two ways, depending on the launch date.
Lottery Control Season (May 28 - September 3):
Reservations for private boating permits are initially assigned by a randomized lottery. Applications are accepted annually from December 1 through January 31. All successful lottery reservations must be accepted and confirmed by March 15th or they will be revoked.
Pre/Post Seasons (before May 28 and after September 3):
Reservations for the next year are available on a first-come, first-served basis beginning October 1 at 8:00 AM Mountain Time.
Reserving a Cancellation
Cancelled reservations are made available on Recreation.gov as follows:
- Cancelled reservations for dates outside of the lottery control season are randomly released within 24 hours of cancellation
- Reservations for dates during the lottery control season that are cancelled during the confirmation period (February 14 – March 15) are released on March 16 at 8:00 AM Mountain Time
- Reservations for dates during the lottery control season that are cancelled after March 16 at 8:00 AM Mountain Time are randomly released within 24 hours of cancellation
Recreation.gov
All reservations, lottery applications, cancellations, and payments are handled by Recreation.gov. Search for Middle Fork of the Salmon (4 Rivers), or call 877-444-6777.
Commercial Allocations
Commercial outfitters are allocated 306 launch dates (link to *.pdf of allocated launches) during the lottery control season. They may also reserve pre/post season launch dates. To see a listing of these outfitters, click here.