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Wildlife Sighted: Deer
and elk
Seasonal Notes
The waterfall pools from the 1st (of 3) source
are best during late summer... they are submerged during spring
runoff. Nighttime closure is currently in effect
due to overuse and abuse problems stemming from nearby MT colleges that
made JJ a party destination. Open from 6am to 8pm.
Camping Notes
Official campground near the
trailhead along with many other nearby official campgrounds and
primitive sites nearby. No camping at the hot springs - nighttime
closure in effect. Briefings
07.29.06
Three years later I returned to JJ in hopes of qualifying the
waterfall pools... well... almost! I was able to withstand a few
minutes with my back to the hot waterfall before heading on to
qualify pools from the remaining two sources. My friend and I broke
camp at 4am and were at the hot springs no later than 5am. Within 10
minutes of our arrival the crowds started to trickle in. Even though
JJ is only a 1 mile flat hike, nudity is the norm here. I was
surprised that there was no signs warning would be soakers of
oncoming nudity - as most roadside or near roadside hot soaks do.
There was a blend of
locals from Missoula, MT and travelers at JJ. The new JJ official
campground is now open, and is the only campground along highway 12
without shade. This time of the year shade is most definitely a
requirement. I had a great time enjoying the pools and some light
banter with fellow soakers... three years has been too long.
Rating
A
05.16.03
We got up early, determined to beat everyone out to Jerry Johnson Hot
Springs... and it
worked! We had all of those beautiful pools to ourselves from 6am to 9am
(when we left and still no visitors). Sadly, the waterfall pools were
submerged due to spring runoff. The scenic old growth forest, Elk and other 2 sources
with accompanying pools more than made up for it.
The weather was hot and humid
during the day followed by powerful 20 minute thunder and lightning storms at
night. They were awesome! There were plenty of large flying
(carpenter) ants, and bug juice didn't have much effect.
After it finally cooled off at night it wasn't long before they
disappeared. Although, I seemed to keep finding them inside my truck
days after leaving the area.
This is the 2nd most frequented HS I have ever
visited (see the Traffic Update about the afternoon before below),
Scenic HS in Washington being the 1st.
Heavy usage and amounts of trash almost always walk hand in hand.
However, JJ HS had a little less garbage than I had expected. Any trash is too
much, especially when found floating in the pools.
The nighttime closure (open
from 6am to 8pm) is primarily due to Missoula, MT college students using
the springs as a regular party grounds; which left the area severely
trashed as a result. I enjoyed my visit here; it's hard to go wrong with 3 sources
feeding multiple pools. Please also note that
May is the primary float season in this area (expect heavy traffic).
Rating
B+
Average Rating:
A-
Traffic Updates
05.15.03
A huge load of cars and trucks (enough to fill up the large parking area)
were parked at the trailhead to Warm Springs Creek Trail around 4pm.
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