This is not a river for open canoes, short rafts or unskilled paddlers. Hells Canyon itself and the Oregon side of the Wilderness is managed by Oregon's Wallowa-Whitman National Forest. Cut by the Snake River to a depth greater than any other canyon in North America, Hells Canyon is over 8,000 feet at its deepest. On the Oregon side, the higher elevations are thinly treed with occasional dense stands of Douglas fir and Ponderosa pine. The lower elevations are dominated by grassy benches.
Clear creeks dissect the more isolated and less visited Oregon side.
The Nee Me Poo Trail, 3.7 miles of the old Nez Perce Trail, climbs in the northern section of the area to a wonderful view from Lone Pine Saddle before descending to Dug Bar on the river. Three miles of the Snake River Trail from Dug Bar follows the Oregon side of the Snake River south and gives access to several other trails. Over 1,500 prehistoric sites have been identified here, such as petroglyphs and depressions where pit houses were built, and federal law requires they be left alone. I was deceived looking over the edge of Hells Canyon. It just does not seem that deep.