Staying Home Sucks, home
Great Falls, MT, USA - panoramio (13)
Missouri River. Photo: Eric Friedebach, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Missouri River

Kayak spot · United States

Flat water: a lake, canal or slow river

Is it worth the trip?

87Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

2 days tie for best

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 91 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
13kn
Air
16°C
Rain
0 mm

Wed 4 · 84 out of 100

Wind
1 kn
Gusts
9kn
Air
11°C
Rain
0 mm

Thu 5 · 82 out of 100

Wind
11 kn
Gusts
21kn
Air
13°C
Rain
0 mm

Fri 6 · 76 out of 100

Wind
13 kn
Gusts
28kn
Air
11°C
Rain
0 mm

Sat 7 · 88 out of 100

Wind
9 kn
Gusts
25kn
Air
14°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 91 out of 100

Wind
10 kn
Gusts
28kn
Air
16°C
Rain
0 mm

Mon 9 · 85 out of 100

Wind
1 kn
Gusts
12kn
Air
10°C
Rain
0 mm

Tap a day for wind, gusts, air and rain. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Tue 391, good
  2. Wed 484, good
  3. Thu 582, good
  4. Fri 676, good
  5. Sat 788, good
  6. Sun 891, good
  7. Mon 985, good
  8. Tue 1088, good
  9. Wed 1181, good
  10. Thu 120, poor

The spot in one fact

  • Flat waterthe water

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know the river level, weirs or your skill.

Wind and weather forecast and score for each day at Missouri River
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Tue 3Nov91, good5 kn13kn16°C0 mm
Wed 4Nov84, good1 kn9kn11°C0 mm
Thu 5Nov82, good11 kn21kn13°C0 mm
Fri 6Nov76, good13 kn28kn11°C0 mm
Sat 7Nov88, good9 kn25kn14°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov91, good10 kn28kn16°C0 mm
Mon 9Nov85, good1 kn12kn10°C0 mm
Tue 10Nov88, good11 kn20kn14°C0 mm
Wed 11Nov81, good11 kn27kn15°C0 mm
Thu 12Nov0, poor17 kn34kntoo gusty11°C0 mm

Wind and gusts are in knots, rain in mm. River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go. More

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Best time to go

No month stands out

Good kayaking days in a typical week, each month, for expert paddlers, from 2016 on (ERA5 history scored the same way).

  1. Jan6of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
  2. Feb6of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
  3. Mar7of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
  4. Apr7of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
  5. May7of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
  6. Jun7of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
  7. Jul7of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
  8. Aug7of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
  9. Sep7of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
  10. Oct7of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
  11. Nov6of 7: a trip from Wed 4 Nov
  12. Dec6of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec

Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.

Typical weather, not a forecast, and not the river's level: a month that is often good to be outside may still be low water.

Map

the spot and its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Photos of Missouri River

Hooten hallers in great falls june 2019
Near Missouri River. Photo: Dirtbag Venture, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Missouri River

A launch on the Missouri River. No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle. OpenStreetMap marks the water open to canoes and kayaks. No paddling school, club or hire within 50 km on the map. The town to stay in is Great Falls.

  • River Missouri River
  • Grade No grade is stated.
  • Who it suits No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle.
  • Access OpenStreetMap marks the water open to canoes and kayaks.
  • Schools, hire No paddling school, club or hire within 50 km on the map.

Spots and rivers: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Whitewater sections © Rivermap (rivermap.org), Riverzone and Jonathan Riddell, ODbL.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,110–US$2,050 each

about US$1,110–US$2,050 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, stay, food, kayak hire.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to GTF, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$201–US$416
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$20–US$34
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$349–US$584
Food7 days eating outabout US$342–US$637
Kayak hire5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$201–US$376
Totalabout US$1,110–US$2,050

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Great Falls

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

Great Falls

about 5 min by car · 30 places to stay

about US$134/nightcountry average

See 30 places to stay in Great Falls · Booking.com

About Great Falls its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$134 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 5h 35m

About 5h 35m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → GTF, direct, then 25 min by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.

On the water

Paddling schools, clubs and hire nearby

No paddling school, club or hire mapped within 50 km.

Schools, clubs and hire: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits

Saved: this link opens the same trip

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The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.