Deep Creek Kayaking

Water levels in the Kootenai River were low up through mid-March, but just last week I noticed that they had jumped significantly. I decided it was time to try my luck on Deep Creek, a small tributary that flows north from MacArthur Lake into the Kootenai River about five miles west of Bonners Ferry. I knew from experience that water levels were generally too low in the creek during summer and autumn for paddling, but with spring runoff the levels would be high enough for a decent trip.

Finding a place to enter the creek is problematic since virtually all of the length is private property, except for the last stretch in the Kootenai Wildlife Refuge. I chose to take my chances at a small one-lane concrete bridge just north of Deep Creek Inn on Old Highway 2. It afforded a small rock slope to enter and a parking spot at a fire station just up the road. I unloaded my kayak into the brush, parked the truck and walked back to the bridge. An alternative put-in would be at Deep Creek Inn just up the road, but I didn’t relish trying to duck the low concrete bridge at my chosen put-in....

Continue Reading Add comment March 27th, 2006