Named “Saint Joseph” by Father Pierre-Jean DeSmet in 1844, the St. Joe River is a shadowy freestone river whose headwaters lie deep in the Bitterroot Mountains, on the western side of the Idaho/Montana divide. The nickname, the “shadowy St. Joe”, came from later steamboat passengers who were inspired by the thick cottonwoods overshadowing the river banks along some of the slow moving stretches of the lower parts of the river.
This pristine body of water, the highest navigable river in the world, runs nearly 120 miles down the craggy mountains of the St. Joe National Forest through pine and tamarack forests and over a stony river bottom until it reaches the southern end of Lake Coeur d’Alene, Idaho’s third largest lake. The Joe’s upper reaches are federally protected as a Wild and Scenic River.
The fishery’s cold, clean water and rocky canyon provide habitat where the native westslope cutthroat trout thrive. Once harvested to near extinction, the westslope cutthroat has made a remarkable comeback due to catch-and-release regulations that have been in place since the late 1980’s. Mountain whitefish also make their home in the Joe. Other wildlife to be seen along the banks includes elk, mule deer, bald eagles and more.
Wade/walk guided trip begin at Red Ives. Established in 1935 and named for a red-haired prospector called “Red Ives.” the station, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, now serves as a visitor information center for the area.
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