Know before you go on the Bitterroot River

HAMILTON — The weather warming up, the plants blooming, the birds chirping and most importantly, the water flowing. It's no secret that in Montana, river activities are a staple.

But before you go ahead and hop in or on the river, there are a couple of things to know because, with rivers like the Bitterroot that are constantly changing, you can end up in a precarious situation.

“Problem we have here on this river...on the Bitterroot, is that it's kind of a sleeper. You go up to a lot of the fishing ramps and you look and you go ‘Oh, yeah, man, look, this thing's barely moving. We're, we're good. Come on’," said Bitterroot River Guides outfitter Jed Fitzpatrick.

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Fitzpatrick — who has been guiding in the Bitterroot for 27 years — says some of the challenges that people can expect to face on the Bitterroot River mainly come in two forms.
The first is rough waters that are flowing at exorbitant rates which causes the river to be unpredictable in its shape, with the channels constantly changing and creating new routes for the river to flow, making it difficult to navigate.

“I have seen it where it’s moved, you know, a quarter mile — the main channel. Just, you come into something and you’re like wait a second," Fitzpatrick told MTN.

Zach Volheim/MTN News

The second challenge that may emerge is debris in the water. The debris is typically log jams — a coagulation of sticks, branches and logs that have piled together in a spot where the river’s current forces it. This typically happens at a bend in the River.

The danger of a log jam is that you could get trapped. You could either capsize your vessel or, worse.

“Don’t be that person that just assumes you can do this — not on this river system. Not on the Bitterroot. It’s just not the place for it," Fitzpatrick cautioned.

So as the weather continues to warm up and the urge to jump in the river grows stronger and stronger, be sure to know what you're getting yourself into and be prepared because the last thing you want is for a river day to end up as a bad day.