To float the river in a boat or raft is overdoing it. The upper section is best waded by fly fishers. Near Clinton, just downstreat from the mouth of Rock Creek, the river winds through narrow canyons with densely timbered slopes, when it is not slicing through the modest valley bottom. Cottonwoods and willows follow the banks. Mule deer and elk frequent the steep, rocky slopes above the river.
Whitetails claim the valley bottom.
The river rates about 20 to 30 yards wide in most places, although it can narrow to almost nothing in places. Braids and side channels abound. A drift boat or raft allows anglers to cover lots of water during spring and early summer when flows are up, but by late summer and during fall, the river is best waded. A small to medium size stream above Milltown Dam, the Clark Fork changes its face by broadening out considerably, just as it enters the Missoula Valley. From there, it banks up against the Bitterroot Mountains to the south and follows their line downstream to the west.