Wish I had the guts to do it.  Class III water in 2 spots just N of the Park...after that the biggest issue is the diversion damns....been reading about it for 2 years but haven't pulled the trigger.  There's a yearly group/community weekend trip from Livingston to Columbus.

Just finished a non-fiction read of a couple that 'yaked it in chunks (Park border to ND border) piecemeal over two years.  He had a life-threatening spill in the III water, just N of Gardiner.

Thanks for the feedback.  I should have mentioned I'm interested in the "moving water" part of the river that's north and east of the park, not the Class III stuff near Gardiner.

I also realize that I-90 runs parallel to the river for the most part.  That is the unappealing part of my thoughts.  However, such an expansive valley and neat moving water sounds so cool, not to mention it's the Yellowstone.

The Upper Missouri sounds interesting, too.  I'll have to look into that.

I have floated it from below Yankee Jim Canyon (the big white water stuff) to the town of Big Timber in Drift Boats, Rafts and a canoe. Once you get past Yankee Jim, the first 35 miles are fairly easily. As you get closer to Livingston, it gets a bit rockier. The next 20 miles or so will have some faster water and some big standing waves. Then the next 25 miles to Big Timber are again fairly easy going with some occasional fast corners. After that you are heading to North Dakota. Diversion dams and put ins/take outs few a far between. If you float it during spring and early summer run off, most of it can be nasty at times, with entire trees floating in it and a big volume of water. This year it didn’t start coming down until August.

In the mountains, all of our rivers are next to the highway with a train track running right next to it.  A river valley is the only place to squeeze that stuff in.

Jackfish,
Yeah I live in Helena, Montana.

Yes and no on being a good paddle, depending on what you consider a good paddle.

Around Livingston, through the Paradise Valley to the Park is a very popular tourist area and is heavily used. Lots of guided drift boat traffic. It is however very pretty and called the ’Paradise Valley’ for good reason. My favorite time to be on this section is at the crack of dawn. The tourists are not early risers. This section is not on the interstate, but there are roads on both sides and a fair amount of houses. Never the less, I think it’s a nice paddle with some great scenery.

Below Livingston is on the interstate but feels more remote due to less guide traffic and houses. The river meanders more in this bigger valley and is more varied in structure. You get a lot of gravel/rock being pushed around. The scenery here is more immediate rather then the spectacular distance views in the Paradise Valley. This would be the more challenging section of the two for about 20 miles below Livingston. After that it gradually flattens out.

I always enjoy paddling the Yellowstone. I don’t think that it is a destination float where you would travel thousands of miles just to do it (unless you were fishing), but if you were in the neighborhood, it would be worth the effort.