Pend-d'Oreille River

River
24.6 km
Mapped channels
Pend-d'Oreille River is a river flowing into columbia river. Recorded fish: Brook Trout, Brown Trout, Bull Trout, Burbot, Cutthroat Trout, Dolly Varden, Kokanee, Lake Trout, Lake Whitefish, Largemouth Bass, Mountain Whitefish, Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Westslope (Yellowstone) Cutthroat Trout, White Sturgeon, Yellow Perch.
No live gauge
No gauge readings are available for this water.
Season
Driving directions

At a glance

Fact
Details
Type
River
Watershed
Lower Arrow Lake
Size
stream order 8, ~25 km
Fish
Brook Trout, Brown Trout and Bull Trout
Water
Driftable With Caution

Species

•
Brown Trout
•
Cutthroat Trout
•
Dolly Varden
•
Lake Trout
•
Lake Whitefish
•
Smallmouth Bass

Region 4 Regulations — guide reviewed 2026-07-31

Confirm the current BC freshwater fishing regulations (Region 4 – Kootenay) before you fish; this water is part of the Columbia River system.

Measurements

Measurement
Reported value
Median channel width
182.8 m
Median channel gradient
0 %
Mean annual discharge estimate
31.071 m³/s

The water

It flows into columbia river within the Lower Arrow Lake watershed (Lower Arrow Lake → Columbia River). It runs stream order 8 (well down the network, toward river scale; the scale runs from 1 for a headwater trickle to 6+ for a river) and roughly 25 km. brook trout, Brown Trout, bull trout, burbot, Cutthroat Trout, Dolly Varden, kokanee, Lake Trout, Lake Whitefish, largemouth bass, mountain whitefish, northern pike, rainbow trout, Smallmouth Bass, walleye, Westslope (Yellowstone) Cutthroat Trout, white sturgeon, yellow perch, recorded here in provincial fish-inventory data (334 records). Named tributaries: erie creek, south salmo river, hidden creek, monk creek, Clearwater Creek, Swift Creek, waldie creek, tillicum creek, apex creek, curtis creek, wren creek, oscar creek, stewart creek, active creek, boulder mill creek, Halfway Creek, Hellroaring Creek, nugget creek, Huckleberry Creek, church creek, charbonneau creek, panther creek, creggan creek, nun creek, woodchuck creek, bennett creek, harcourt creek, noman creek, annie rooney creek, mccormick creek, elise creek, billings creek, gamble creek, fraser creek, seven mile creek, muskrat creek, hedgehog creek, bearskin creek, lime creek, pete creek, quartz creek, russian creek, slate creek, red bird creek, avalanche creek, rumbling creek, twilight creek, keno creek, marion brook, grouse creek, hayward creek.

The fishing

As moving water, a tributary of Columbia River, Pend-d'Oreille River fishes the way rivers of its size do: read the runs and seams, fish a dry-dropper through the warm months, and swing streamers or nymph the deeper slots as flows drop. Match the fly box to the season and confirm against a current local report.
Fact
Details
River
Lower Arrow Lake watershed
Stream order 8
~25 km
Brook Trout and Brown Trout
334 records
Driftable With Caution

Conditions

•
Navigability: driftable with caution: wide, low-gradient sections suit a float/raft, but rated rapids or canyon-confined reaches interrupt them; check the drift map (median channel width ~182.8 m, broad; median gradient ~0%, very gentle; peak mean-annual discharge ~31.071 m³/s, strong flow; canyon-confined sections with ~120 m walls (DEM)).

Access & the rules

Access for Pend-d'Oreille River, meaning the roads in, put-ins and any walk-in or seasonal limits, is worth confirming locally before you commit a day. The drainage map shows how the water sits in its valley.

Before you fish

Confirm the current BC freshwater fishing regulations (Region 4 – Kootenay) before you go This water is part of the Columbia River system.. Official synopsis: gov.bc.ca fishing regulations.
Page reviewed 2026-07-31