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Lochsa River is a public river in Idaho County, Idaho, managed by Idaho Department of Fish and Game. You can fish it on an Idaho fishing licence (steelhead and salmon need separate permits). The Idaho stream-access law lets the public use the bed and banks of a navigable stream below the ordinary high-water mark regardless of who owns the adjacent land; on non-navigable water, check current signage or ask permission. Public access confirmed via IDFG public hydrography + access site.
A north-Idaho cutthroat river (the St. Joe, Coeur d'Alene, Selway, Lochsa, Kelly Creek) — native westslope cutthroat trout under catch-and-release / wild-trout management, plus bull trout, in some of the least-developed river country in the Lower 48.
It runs roughly 74 miles through the Clearwater region. Anglers here mostly fish for bull trout, chinook salmon, pacific lamprey, steelhead; westslope cutthroat trout are also on record. Live flow and gauge height come from the Lochsa River Nr Lowell Id USGS station shown below. The nearest other mapped waters on PiscaMaps are Holly Creek and Stanley Creek (Clearwater).
Species from PiscaMaps water-type profiles, Idaho Fish and Game trout-stocking records and hand research.
Night fishing: No statewide night-fishing closure in Idaho; many rivers and streams have a Memorial-Day-weekend-to-November 30 general season, and steelhead/salmon/sturgeon water is open only by annual rule — check the current IDFG fishing seasons and rules for this water.
Boats: Most Idaho trout streams are waded or floated by drift boat or raft; the big lakes and reservoirs (Pend Oreille, Coeur d'Alene, Cascade, Dworshak, American Falls) take a trailered boat via a state or Forest Service ramp; alpine lakes are hike-in float-tube water.
Bank & bivvy camping: Idaho is about 63% federal land — dispersed camping is allowed on most BLM and Forest Service ground along these waters. Idaho's stream-access law also lets the public use the bed and banks of a navigable stream below the ordinary high-water mark regardless of adjacent ownership.
Tackle: Idaho's general trout limit is 6, but a large number of waters are managed as wild-trout, quality, trophy or catch-and-release with reduced limits and gear restrictions; bull trout are catch-and-release statewide and steelhead/salmon need separate permits and annual seasons. Check the current IDFG rules for this water.
Boat ramps: 1 mapped — Boat ramp.
Camping: 20 sites mapped nearby — Apgar Campground, Glade Creek Campground, Knife Edge Campground and River Access, Campsite, Wilderness Gateway Campground, Campsite and others.
Source: OpenStreetMap contributors.
Loading live flow & gauge height…
Live from USGS gauge 13337000 — Lochsa River Nr Lowell Id. Full gauge data →
Anyone 14 or older needs an Idaho fishing licence — the resident annual is about $30.50, the non-resident annual about $98.25 (Idaho's non-resident fee is one of the highest in the country), with a non-resident 1-day (~$23.50) plus $6/consecutive-day option. Steelhead and salmon each need a separate permit. Idaho residents 65 and older buy a reduced-fee licence; under-14 fish free with a licensed adult. Buy from IDFG at idfg.idaho.gov. An Idaho fishing licence covers this water — it is on IDFG's public-waters hydrography (steelhead and salmon each need a separate permit).
Every water carries species, bank & boat access, current regulations and live water conditions — and members get Swim Mapper, Catch Logger and Trip Planner. It's the only US map with a dedicated carp-water layer.
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