Flathead River Fly Fishing Patterns. The South Fork of the Flathead, located in the heart of the Bob Marshall Wilderness, is a horsepack in/float out trip of 5-7 days, putting you over feisty Cutthroats to 22″ and “Bull Trout” to 15 pounds. The river begins in the Bob Marshall Wilderness south of Glacier National Park, as does the Middle Fork Flathead River, at the confluence of two streams, Danaher Creek and Youngs Creek, between the Flathead Range and the Swan Range.For some 40 miles (64 km), the river flows freely north-northwest, meandering through a forested and undeveloped valley. Contact Information. During times of high water, forecast crest information can be found in the text products. It would be a 30-mile two-day horse pack to the headwaters of the South Fork where Danaher and Youngs creeks join. Remnants of a very large forest fire from the early 2000's scar the landscape as the new vegitation is re-emerging. A Trip Down the South Fork of the Flathead From the Young's and Danaher Creek Confluence to Meadow Creek Gorge July, 2015 Click on any image for a larger view; Contact garya at this domain if you would like the high quality image for printing . Spotted Bear River is a tributary of the South Fork of the Flathead River above Hungry Horse Reservoir. "Brown Stain" rapid just upstream from final takeout is running strong pushing hard into a small gap in the rock- tipped some rafters The South Fork of the Flathead in Montana is perhaps the best packraft river in the lower-48. The South Fork is formed from the junction of Danaher Creek and Young’s Creek and runs for 45 miles due north, fed by dozens of small tributaries, where it … The South Fork of the Flathead, located in the heart of the Bob Marshall Wilderness, is a horsepack in/float out trip of 5-7 days, putting you over feisty Cutthroats to 22″ and “Bull Trout” to 15 pounds. For nearly 40 miles the river flows freely north-northwest, meandering through a forested and undeveloped roadless valley that forms the core of the 1.5 million acre Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex. The South Fork is also closed to rafting from Mid Creek to Woodfir Creek. To reach the trailheads to the Jewell Basin, look for Wounded Buck Road, West Fork Clayton Creek Road, Clayton Creek Road, Graves Creek Road or Wheeler Creek Road. Flow out of Palisades Dam was dropped to 6600 cfs ( 7300 cfs at Heise, 3360 cfs at Lorenzo) Thursday, 9/10. Unlike the other forks of the Flathead River, the South Fork fishery is not a migratory fishery owing to the completion of Hungry Horse Dam in 1952. For some , the river flows freely north-northwest, meandering through a forested and undeveloped valley. View a map of this area and more on Natural Atlas. Sunny, with a high near 85. All South Fork trips start with an early morning in Missoula and a beautiful drive to the trailhead. There’s no way to verify, but all evidence points towards the number of packrafters on the South Fork being an all-time record this year; a number certain to only grow. The Big Hole is looking extra good. We camped at the put-in and take-out, so we took 5 days and 5 nights overall. It gains volume with the contributions of the White River, Big and Little Salmon creeks, Black Bear Creek, and other small tributaries. The St. Regis River and Rock Creek remain popular, and the Kootenai River, Middle Fork of the Flathead, and South Fork of the Flathead are now becoming prime spots. Permalink. For the first few days of the trip, the water meanders lazily through a sweeping glacial valley and grand Ponderosa Pines. Widespread haze before 9am. See SMUD’s Slab Creek page for more information and current reservoir levels. Midges #16-20 (Black & Green body, white wing) Dry Fly – Griffiths Gnat, Poly wing midge, purple haze Nymph – Brassie, Green machine, shop vac. We planned to float north for four days—roughly 40 miles of river—taking out at the Meadow Creek trailhead. Winds could gust as high as 21 mph. Visit Colorado CDSS Station search to get current and historical conditions for streamflows, diversions, reservoir levels, and groundwater levels. Flathead National Forest Supervisor's Office 650 Wolfpack Way Kalispell, MT 59901 (406) 758-5208 (406) 758-5379 (fax) Office Hours: 2018 Packrafting South Fork of the Flathead River - Bob Marshall Wilderness The wilderness mountain settings, clear waters, campfires, wilderness lakes and streams, and superb fishing will wash away worldly cares. Clarks Fork Creek, also called Clarks Fork or Sand Creek, is a stream in Harding County, South Dakota, United States. We completed 43 miles from the Border to Big Creek. 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