Photo: The Lochsa River holds giant steelhead and salmon, as well as countless cutthroat and whitefish, in its shallow water. Photo courtesy Drew Winterer.

The wild Lochsa River runs between the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Area and the last remaining roadless portion of the entire Lewis and Clark Trail. Here, in the mountains of north-central Idaho, the river and its valley look much as they did in 1805 (with the exception of some ugly and blatant logging activity).

The Lochsa does not currently have the dams that plague other rivers (the two small dams that previously existed on the Clearwater River have been removed). Homesteaders never lingered near the cold and tough-looking Lochsa Face. The Lochsa Face is the giant tree-covered wall that rises north of the river, sometimes over 2,000 feet above the river and its creeks. The river falls, cutting and weaving at the base of the Face, turning giant rocks into pebbles over time.

The Lochsa River is known more for white-water thrills than for fishing. Every spring, kayakers and rafters from around the northwest flock here for high water. The big drops, fast water and numerous rapids, combined with a road that follows the length of the river, make this a busy river when the water is up. After the snow melt, though, attention goes elsewhere, leaving the river alone to just a handful of anglers, which is just how the anglers like it.