Its water has many uses. In Wyoming, the Snake turns from a gentle stream to a boiling river when it flows through a rock-filled canyon. Every summer, about 180,000 tourists float its white-water rapids in canoes or kayaks. With that many visitors, the Snake Canyon is one of the most popular rafting spots in the West, along with the Deschutes River in Oregon, the South Fork of the American River in California, and the Arkansas in Colorado. Its water also is used by farmers to grow famous Idaho potatoes.
Idaho farmers grow more spuds than farmers in any other state.
Potatoes can't grow without water, and it doesn't rain very much in Idaho. In Twin Falls, for example, it rains less than 10 inches a year, similar to the Tri-Cities. More than 100 years ago, Idaho settlers realized they could take water from the Snake River and pump it across their land to grow crops. Before long, the federal government started building dams that slowed down the river enough to store water for irrigators in giant lakes. Congress even created a government agency to help pioneers settle the desert West and gave it lots of money.