Idaho River Trips: What to Bring and Wear
Equipment needed on Idaho river tours will depend on duration of the trip and time of the year. Most Idaho river outfitters provide all but personal items. On our summer day floats, which have trivial white water, you would need very little-- sandals or sneakers that can get wet, swim suit, and tee-shirt, maybe a light jacket preferably of polar fleece, maybe a rainsuit if weather is threatening. Like most Idaho river outfitters, we provide life jackets.
In colder water or heavier rapids, a wet suit or helmet may be needed. We provide and require use of helmets in paddle boats. Wetsuits sometimes are needed in high, cold water, especially for people in paddle boats. We do not include them, but they can be rented at the beginning of the trip from the River Wear store. Multi-day Idaho river tours will require sleeping bags and additional clothing. Like most Idaho river outfitters who run overnight trips, Aggipah provides tents. We also provide sleeping pads, waterproof duffle bags for your gear, and day bags and boxes for cameras, sun tan lotion, sun glasses, etc. Most people bring their own sleeping bags, but we do have rental bags available. We bring folding dining tables and chairs.
Multi-day trips require appropriate clothing for changing weather conditions. Layers are the key. You need a good rain suit as an outer layer. It can shed splash as well as rain. A nylon windbreaker, both jacket and pants, can be very nice on a chilly but dry day. For insulation, pants and tops of polar fleece or polypropylene-type fabric should be available. Wool is good but dries slow. Cotton, except T-shirts, should be avoided for river use. Most summer days are warm and sunny, and sandals, shorts, and T-shirts are normal wear. However, you need to be prepared for chilly or rainy weather, just in case.
We furnish tents, life jackets, waterproof duffel and day bags, camera boxes, and basic first aid equipment. We use two-person tents, which have floors and mosquito netting (although mosquitos are usually not a problem). We furnish self-inflating sealed foam sleeping pads. These pads are the most comfortable we’ve found, and eliminate pumping up an air mattress. You may want to bring a small pillow, and a ground cloth to keep your sleeping bag clean and dry if you decide to sleep under the stars without a tent. Sleeping bags are available by reservation on a rental basis, to cover cleaning.
Night temperature can drop into the 40s, especially early or late in the season. You may wake up to frost the first morning of an early-season Middle Fork trip, though day-time temperatures warm quickly--usually rising 40 degrees by mid-afternoon. As the trip progresses and we lose elevation, temperatures rise. Daytime temperatures are warm in mid-summer, and can be downright hot, into the 90s in mid-summer.
