List of longest streams of Idaho

A total of seventy streams that are at least 50 miles (80 km) long flow through the U.S. state of Idaho. All of these streams originate in the United States except the Kootenai River (third-longest) and the Moyie River (thirty-first-longest), both of which begin in the Canadian province of British Columbia. At 1,076 miles (1,732 km), the Snake River is the longest and the only stream of more than 500 miles (800 km) in total length. It begins in Wyoming and flows through Idaho for 769 miles (1,238 km), and then through Oregon and Washington. Some of the other streams also cross borders between Idaho and Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, or Wyoming, but the majority flow entirely within Idaho, the longest of which is the Salmon River at 425 miles (684 km).

The Big Wood River (10th-longest) in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area in Blaine County

All but four of the streams lie within the large basin of the Columbia River, although the river itself does not flow through Idaho. Consequently, the predominant direction of the state's streamflow is northwest towards the Columbia River and its mouth at the Pacific Ocean. The only other major drainage basin in Idaho is the Great Salt Lake watershed in the state's southeastern corner, which is part of the Great Basin and has no outlet to the ocean. The Bear River, the second-longest stream, is within this watershed, along with the Malad River, Deep Creek, and the Logan River.

Source data for the table below comes from topographic maps created by the United States Geological Survey and published online by TopoQuest, and on the Idaho Road and Recreation Atlas, the National Hydrography Dataset, the Geographic Names Information System, and other sources as noted. In the table, total lengths are given in miles (mi) and kilometers (km).

Table

Longest streams of Idaho Rank Name Mouth[1][2] Total length[3] Length in Idaho[3] Mouth coordinates[4] Source coordinates[4] mi km mi km 1 Snake River Columbia River 1,076 1,732 769 1,238 46°11′10″N 119°01′43″W 44°07′49″N 110°13′10″W[5] 2 Bear River Great Salt Lake 490 789 185 297 41°27′30″N 112°17′25″W 40°52′02″N 110°50′09″W[6] 3 Kootenai River Columbia River 485 780[7] 65 105 49°19′00″N 117°39′04″W[8] 51°02′21″N 116°26′33″W[9] 4 Salmon River Snake River 425 685 425 685 45°51′23″N 116°47′37″W 43°47′48″N 114°46′36″W[10] 5 Owyhee River Snake River 347 558 91 147 43°48′46″N 117°01′32″W 41°30′17″N 115°44′30″W[11] 6 Clark Fork Pend Oreille Lake 347 558 9 15 48°11′00″N 116°16′09″W 46°11′12″N 112°46′18″W[12] 7 Palouse River Snake River 167 268 43 70 46°35′24″N 118°12′55″W 46°58′07″N 116°27′32″W[13] 8 Bruneau River Snake River 153 246 94 152 42°56′57″N 115°57′43″W 41°34′42″N 115°24′50″W[14] 9 Saint Joe River Coeur d'Alene Lake 140 225 140 225 47°23′35″N 116°45′15″W 47°01′07″N 115°04′58″W[15] 10 Big Wood River Malad River 137 221 137 221 42°56′42″N 114°47′44″W 43°51′38″N 114°42′48″W[16] 11 Big Lost River Big Lost River Sinks 135 217 135 217 43°47′39″N 112°50′26″W 43°56′01″N 114°06′38″W[17] 12 Blackfoot River Snake River 135 217 135 217 43°07′38″N 112°30′22″W 42°50′22″N 111°18′32″W[18] 13 North Fork Clearwater River Clearwater River 135 217 135 217 46°30′00″N 116°19′50″W 47°00′11″N 115°06′16″W[19] 14 Little Wood River Malad River 130 209 130 209 42°56′42″N 114°47′46″W 43°45′41″N 114°00′13″W[20] 15 Henrys Fork Snake River 127 204 127 204 43°45′10″N 111°57′28″W 44°29′34″N 111°16′58″W[21] 16 South Fork Owyhee River Owyhee River 127 204 33 53 42°15′55″N 116°53′17″W 41°13′40″N 116°09′39″W[22] 17 Portneuf River Snake River 124 200 124 200 42°57′06″N 112°45′02″W 43°06′10″N 112°00′13″W[23] 18 Goose Creek Snake River 123 197[a] 75 120[a] 42°32′37″N 113°45′47″W 42°10′29″N 114°17′31″W[24] 19 Salmon Falls Creek Snake River 121 195 73 117 42°42′55″N 114°51′12″W 41°47′22″N 114°57′43″W[25] 20 Pend Oreille River Columbia River 118 190 32 52 49°00′14″N 117°37′04″W 48°15′30″N 116°32′04″W[26] 21 Spokane River Columbia River 114 183 15 24 47°53′38″N 118°20′03″W 47°40′41″N 117°07′34″W[27] 22 Raft River Snake River 109 175 98 158 42°36′20″N 113°14′26″W 41°56′34″N 113°43′37″W[28] 23 Middle Fork Salmon River Salmon River 106 170 106 170 45°17′50″N 114°35′36″W 44°26′57″N 115°13′51″W[29] 24 North Fork Payette River Payette River 106 170 106 170 44°05′06″N 116°06′57″W 45°10′47″N 115°59′37″W[30] 25 Weiser River Snake River 103 166 103 166 44°14′19″N 116°58′20″W 45°01′13″N 116°26′05″W[31] 26 Boise River Snake River 102 164 102 164 43°49′15″N 117°01′34″W 43°42′48″N 115°38′09″W[32] 27 South Fork Boise River Boise River 102 164 102 164 43°36′06″N 115°51′25″W 43°46′25″N 114°55′45″W[33] 28 Selway River Middle Fork Clearwater River 100 161 100 161 46°08′25″N 115°35′58″W 45°29′49″N 114°44′37″W[34] 29 Jordan Creek Owyhee River 99 159 42 67 42°51′45″N 117°38′29″W 42°58′21″N 116°44′39″W[35] 30 Malad River Bear River 97 156 36 58 41°35′10″N 112°07′03″W 42°13′18″N 112°21′54″W[36] Note: Incomplete record. Source coordinates derived from Big Malad Spring.[37] 31 Moyie River Kootenai River 92 147 26 42 48°42′56″N 115°11′11″W[38] 49°17′00″N 116°09′00″W[39] 32 South Fork Salmon River Salmon River 90 145 90 145 45°22′40″N 115°30′47″W 44°28′47″N 115°41′06″W[40] 33 Willow Creek Snake River 84 136[b] 84 136[b] 43°33′10″N 111°59′17″W 43°05′40″N 111°42′52″W[41] 34 Salt River Snake River 84 136 2 4[c] 43°10′02″N 111°03′52″W 42°35′38″N 110°48′08″W[42] 35 Payette River Snake River 83 133 83 133 44°05′32″N 116°57′09″W 44°05′04″N 116°06′54″W[43] 36 Teton River Henrys Fork 81 131 81 131 43°53′56″N 111°50′21″W 43°36′38″N 111°09′16″W[44] 37 South Fork Payette River Payette River 80 129 80 129 44°05′04″N 116°06′54″W 43°57′51″N 115°00′02″W[45] 38 Hangman Creek Spokane River 79 127 21 33 47°39′36″N 117°27′28″W 47°06′53″N 116°43′00″W[46] 39 North Fork Coeur d'Alene River Coeur d'Alene River 77 124 77 124 47°33′26″N 116°15′22″W 48°00′03″N 116°18′27″W[47] 40 Clearwater River Snake River 75 120 75 120 46°25′30″N 117°02′14″W 46°08′45″N 115°58′57″W[48] 41 Deep Creek Great Salt Lake 73 118 35 57 41°41′42″N 113°00′26″W 42°21′40″N 112°35′41″W[49] 42 Union Flat Creek Palouse River 72 115 5 7 46°49′38″N 117°59′55″W 46°31′20″N 116°57′35″W[50] 43 Succor Creek Snake River 71 114 30 48 43°37′55″N 116°56′47″W 43°05′45″N 116°50′18″W[51] 44 Lochsa River Middle Fork Clearwater River 69 111 69 111 46°08′25″N 115°35′58″W 46°30′30″N 114°40′54″W[52] 45 Priest River Pend Oreille River 68 110[d] 68 110[d] 48°10′37″N 116°53′34″W 48°45′58″N 116°51′52″W[53] 46 Battle Creek Owyhee River 67 108 67 108 42°14′14″N 116°31′29″W 42°44′32″N 116°24′16″W[54] 47 Bannock Creek Snake River 67 107 67 107 42°53′14″N 112°41′02″W 42°22′56″N 112°38′36″W[55] 48 Indian Creek Boise River 66 107 66 107 43°40′39″N 116°42′19″W 43°25′53″N 115°46′49″W[56] 49 Sailor Creek Snake River 64 104 64 104 42°55′43″N 115°28′48″W 42°22′52″N 115°12′59″W[57] 50 Fall River Henrys Fork 64 103 33 53 44°01′07″N 111°34′52″W 44°14′51″N 110°45′43″W[58] 51 Camas Creek Big Wood River 64 103 64 103 43°19′36″N 114°24′06″W 43°15′28″N 115°20′57″W[59] 52 Camas Creek Mud Lake 63 102 63 102 43°53′24″N 112°21′32″W 44°21′52″N 111°53′36″W[60] 53 South Fork Clearwater River Clearwater River 63 101 63 101 46°08′45″N 115°58′57″W 45°48′30″N 115°28′29″W[61] 54 Sheep Creek Bruneau River 63 101 61 97 42°29′55″N 115°35′50″W 41°58′18″N 115°55′07″W[62] 55 Chief Eagle Eye Creek Payette River 61 98 61 98 43°56′16″N 116°22′01″W 44°26′10″N 116°09′09″W[63] 56 Little Owyhee River South Fork Owyhee River 61 97 16 26 42°10′03″N 116°52′19″W 41°48′30″N 117°17′03″W[64] 57 Lemhi River Salmon River 60 97 60 97 45°11′17″N 113°54′23″W 44°40′56″N 113°21′17″W[65] 58 Pahsimeroi River Salmon River 59 95 59 95 44°41′31″N 114°02′55″W 44°09′25″N 113°42′15″W[66] 59 Beaver Creek Camas Creek 58 94 58 94 43°59′21″N 112°14′19″W 44°30′23″N 112°21′26″W[67] 60 Big Jacks Creek Jacks Creek 58 93 58 93 42°47′12″N 115°58′41″W 42°22′56″N 116°06′29″W[68] 61 Potlatch River Clearwater River 57 92 57 92 46°28′31″N 116°46′02″W 46°55′43″N 116°20′55″W[69] 62 Marsh Creek Portneuf River 56 90 56 90 42°47′40″N 112°15′28″W 42°24′12″N 112°01′37″W[70] 63 Clover Creek Bruneau River 55 89 55 89 42°34′35″N 115°38′07″W 42°09′28″N 115°12′43″W[71] 64 Logan River Little Bear River 54 86 3 5 41°44′29″N 111°57′17″W 42°02′07″N 111°35′58″W[72] 65 Blue Creek Owyhee River 53 85 53 85 42°01′48″N 116°12′37″W 42°32′05″N 116°16′04″W[73] 66 Middle Fork Boise River Boise River 52 84 52 84 43°42′48″N 115°38′08″W 43°56′47″N 115°01′56″W[74] 67 Little Salmon River Salmon River 52 84 52 84 45°25′00″N 116°18′53″W 44°50′28″N 116°15′46″W[75] 68 Jarbidge River Bruneau River 52 83 34 54 42°19′45″N 115°39′09″W 41°46′47″N 115°22′37″W[76] 69 Cow Creek Jordan Creek 51 82 13 20 42°56′51″N 117°20′38″W 43°04′23″N 116°50′23″W[77] 70 North Fork Boise River Boise River 50 81 50 81 43°42′49″N 115°38′08″W 44°05′41″N 115°13′37″W[78]

Snake River (longest) cutting through the Snake River Plain near Twin Falls Bear River (2nd longest) in Bear River State Park, Wyoming Kootenai River (3rd longest) south of Libby Dam, Montana Salmon River (4th longest) below the Sawtooth Mountains Owyhee River (5th longest) south of Mountain City, Nevada Clark Fork (6th longest) in Missoula, Montana Palouse River (7th longest) flowing over Palouse Falls, Washington Bruneau River (8th longest) in southwestern Idaho Saint Joe River (9th longest) in the Saint Joe National Forest North Fork Clearwater River (13th longest) below Dworshak Dam Portneuf River (17th longest) west of Soda Springs Salmon Falls Creek (19th longest) below Salmon Falls Dam Pend Oreille River (20th longest) at Albeni Falls Dam Spokane River (21st longest) in downtown Spokane, Washington North Fork Payette River (24th longest) near Smiths Ferry Weiser River (25th longest) near Weiser Boise River (26th longest) near Boise Clearwater River (40th longest) near Orofino Succor Creek (43rd longest) in Malheur County, Oregon

Map

Image map of all Idaho streams more than 50 miles (80 kilometers) long. Each label is wikilinked to an article. Click on the small rectangles to the right of the caption for a larger map.

See also

• Rivers portal
• Idaho portal

• List of rivers of Idaho
• List of longest rivers in the United States by state
• List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem)

Notes

1. Approximation; Goose Creek's course is largely obliterated by agriculture past Lower Goose Creek Reservoir.
2. Approximation; Willow Creek's course is largely obliterated by agriculture past Ririe.
3. All of the Salt River's length within Idaho is submerged by Palisades Reservoir.
4. Length includes Priest Lake. The Priest River is 47 mi (76 km) long not including Priest Lake.