Flathead River (mainstem)

No. 01 · The river

Where the runs sit

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Every run drawn as its actual river channel, colored by today's runnability. Hover a line for the run; tap to open it.

Too low
Low
Prime
High
Too high

No. 02 · Runs

The sections, top to bottom

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Listed headwaters to confluence. Pick a run for live conditions, rapids beta, and the whole plan.

Blankenship Bridge to Teakettle (Columbia Falls)
TOO HIGH
I · 10 mi · 4 ft/mi · ≈ 3 hrs · Half-day
The upper mainstem — confluence-to-Columbia Falls. Wide, scenic, mostly Class I with strong steady current. Bad Rock Canyon scenery and the House of Mystery as a midway landmark; the South Fork joins about 5 miles below the put-in.
42,000 cfs todayprime 2,000–25,000
Teakettle (Columbia Falls) to Old Steel Bridge (Kalispell)
TOO HIGH
I · 4 ft/mi · Half-day
Wide, braided mainstem. Island scenery. Float-fishing and family-float water.
42,000 cfs todayprime 2,000–25,000
Downstream →

No. 04 · Reference

Gauges & outside resources

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Where the live readings come from, and the outfits with the deeper river-by-river database.

Gauges & flow

USGS 12363000 · Flathead River at Columbia Falls MTUpdates every 15 min

Run databases

American WhitewaterNational run database; per-run pages with rapid-by-rapid detail, access advocacy.
Flathead Rivers AllianceThree Forks alerts, river-mile access maps, permitted outfitters.

No. 05 · From the group

From the group

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Ranger's note ·Beta pulled from the Flathead Valley Paddling Society on Facebook — organized, attributed, and kept here so it doesn't vanish into the feed. The original conversations are at the bottom.

Safety

North Valley Search and RescueMay 25, 2026Recent report

May 2026: North Valley Search and Rescue responded to two boat flips at the same spot just downriver from the old CFAC plant, river-right. A large rock there has logs caught on it this season, with a hole just upstream at current flows. One paddler reported the logs had cleared a few days later — confirm current conditions before you commit. All flipped rafters were wearing PFDs and were fine.

DonnaMay 27, 2026Recent report

Late May 2026: another raft flipped near Kokanee Bend due to logs — the second flip that week on the mainstem (alongside the CFAC-area incidents). High water plus moving wood; pick lines carefully.

Flathead Rivers AllianceMay 29, 2026Recent report

Late May 2026 (Flathead Rivers Alliance): the forks are still rising with large woody debris moving in the channels. Check current conditions at flatheadrivers.org before launching.

The original conversations

North Valley Search and Rescue asked

North Valley responded to two flipped boats this month at the same problem area — just downriver from CFAC, river-right. The large rock has logs on it this season and there is a hole just upstream at current water levels. Thankfully, all rafters from both incidents were wearing PFDs and are safe and healthy. Please be safe out there and prepared for the unexpected.

TianaWe were one of the families that flipped — cannot thank North Valley Search and Rescue enough. Our family was split up and they worked fast to bring us back together, and the community stopped to help and found our belongings along the way.

DavidWe ran this yesterday — the logs were gone. Even so, this section has plenty of space to navigate around any obstacles.

View the original thread →

Flathead Rivers Alliance asked

Flathead rivers are still on the rise with large woody debris moving in river channels. Current river conditions at flatheadrivers.org. Photo: below the confluence of the South and Middle Forks before Badrock Canyon.