SigMT

34 | SIGNATURE MONTANA w a t e r w a y s o f M o n t a n a Hit up the North Fork of the Flathead for easily accessible scenery. Starting at the Canadian border and heading south, the North Fork of the Flathead provides incredible scenery as you travel past Glacier National Park to the east and national forest land to the west. is undeveloped scenic corridor offers impressive views but is oen floated because of the water quality. "I have never seen water so crystal clear anywhere else." Says Kilwein, who floated a significant portion of the 153-mile river in the summer of 2023. If you can't score a permit to the Smith River, the North Fork should be your backup. e Smith River is the idyllic Montana River. A long and undammed section of the Smith is considered the primo float trip. So much so that you can only get on the river with a permit. If you're lucky enough to draw one of the 1,200 (or so) permits, you're set to experience one of the best waterways in the state. Cuing through the southwest corner of the Lile Belt Mountains, the Smith is mainly flanked by private land. Without floating, most of this area could never be seen by the public. Here in Montana, though, we're lucky. Some states don't allow you to float through an area with private land on either side. Formerly stocked with trout, the Smith is a prime fishing habitat– even though the brown, brook, and rainbow trout have forced out many of the native cuhroats, this river has been a "wild fishery" for decades with its self-sustaining fish population. As the day winds down, floaters gather at one of the Smith River Corridor's designated campsites, their boats pulled ashore in anticipation of a night under the stars. It's not unusual for adventurous floaters to sit and contemplate the majestic vistas of Glacier National Park to the east and the untamed wilderness to the west, along the serene currents of the North Fork of the Flathead River—an embodiment of nature's stark contrasts and beauty.

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