This is the story of a bunch of river guides and ski bums who dreamt of floating to ski in the Middle Fork of the Salmon River in Idaho. This float to ski expedition took six years of daydreaming before the crew realized no time was a good time to embark on what unfolded as a true adventure of a lifetime. The river still remains the only viable (and machine free) way to access the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness. The Middle Fork flows through the center of this 2.5-million-acre wilderness area, which is the largest contiguous federally managed wilderness in the Lower 48. Similar to the Grand Canyon, only a select group of permit drawers, paying clients and river guides get to float the river each season. Unlike the Grand Canyon, the Middle Fork’s elevation starts around 7000 feet and is free-flowing, snow and rain-fed for 425 miles until the Salmon River joins with the Snake River.
