About
IdahoHotSprings.com
 Hot springs reviews found on this web site contain
trip reports (briefings), pictures, video clips, ratings and more about soakable, natural hot springs
located throughout Idaho.
Many of which are located on public
lands.
IdahoHotSprings.com also serves as an
outlet for public lands organizations. Both the Bureau of Land
Managment (BLM) and National Forest (NF) have contacts that actively
report hot springs condition and access updates to the webmaster.
Hot Springs
Etiquette & General Guidelines
Before heading out on
your next (or first) soaking excursion, please consider
reading the helpful guides in the
Education area.
Two Types Of Hot
Springs
 Public Natural Hot Springs - These
springs are typically on public land (National Forest or BLM) and are considered a somewhat
'rustic' or 'wilderness' style of soak, although sometimes
improvements made to the pools can yield to a commercial look and
feel.
Commercial Natural Hot Springs
- These springs are on private land, have on-site facilities of
some sort and usually require a fee to access.
About Idaho Hot
Springs
Idaho has the most usable hot springs in the Nation, with about 130
soakable out of 340. However, Nevada has the most hot springs
overall, but the majority of them are not soakable. Geothermal water is hot
because it is heated from within the Earth's crust, forcing it up to
the surface where pools are developed or form naturally near the
outflow.
 Ninety percent of
Idaho's 340 hot springs are the result of leftover energy heating
water near fault lines. This energy is essentially leftover from a 17 million
year old meteorite collision that occurred in present day southeast
Oregon. The collision dramatically altered the once lush, forested
environment into the high desert landscape that is familiar to us
today.
The impact of the
meteorite was deep, in fact so deep that it remains stationary while
the North American tectonic plate shifts above it. As the plate
slowly moves, the hot spot periodically erupts volcanic lava -
leaving a traceable path of volcanic activity behind.
This path of volcanic
activity is not only responsible for Yellowstone, but for almost all
of the hot springs activity in Idaho. Other evidence the hot spot
has left behind include Craters of the Moon and the basalt lava
flows visible throughout southeast Idaho, most notably off
Interstate 84.
As
the earth above the hot spot continues to shift, Yellowstone will eventually look
like Craters of the Moon does now. Which means Craters once looked
like present day Yellowstone.
 Also worth noting: The
meteorite that hit southeast Oregon 17 million years ago had an
impact so great that it wiped out all life in the Pacific Northwest;
lava blasted out of the impact crater for hundreds of miles and sent
a river of lava to the west coast, creating the Columbia Plateau in
its wake.
[Source: Roadside
Geology of Idaho, Mountain Press Publishing Company, 1995]
The
other 10 percent of Idaho's hot springs are from water being heated
by active volcanoes, typically at or around fault lines.
Where It All Comes From
The hot springs trip reports, pictures, video clips and ratings are all
from actual trips the webmaster has made to natural hot springs since August
1999 - unless otherwise documented. He started soaking in hot springs
in 1996, shortly after moving from north Idaho to Boise, Idaho.
Why? This website
was designed for the purposes of sharing information
and experiences related to hot springs, hiking and the great
outdoors with 'like' minded
individuals.
About the Webmaster
 The
IdahoHotSprings.com Webmaster
has been enjoying hot springs, hiking, backpacking and camping in
Idaho and the northwest for many years. He houses a firm belief that
the enjoyment of hot springs can be achieved through conservation,
education and preservation. More...
Ratings Explained
Hot springs are rated "A" through "F". A rating of
"X"
signifies that not enough data was available to compile an
accurate rating. It should be noted that ratings are based on
the condition of the hot spring at the time of the visit.
In Closing
Thank you for visiting IdahoHotSprings.com. Please feel free to
e-mail
the webmaster
with any comments, questions or suggestions. Guest pictures, trip reports
(text briefings) and
ratings on any hot springs are always welcome. Anything you send in that is posted
on this website will be credited with the proper source.
Please
remember to pick up your trash and don't bring glass!
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