Dakota Hot Springs

Fremont County, Colorado · Near Penrose
38.4184°N, 105.0566°W · 5,232 ft
66°F air · Good soaking weather 5,232 ft Roadside Camping nearby (16.7 mi)
Aerial view of the ground around Dakota Hot Springs

The orange dot marks the spring, in a frame about three quarters of a mile wide.

Dakota Hot Springs sits in Fremont County, Colorado, about three miles from Penrose, at a little over five thousand feet. OpenStreetMap lists it under the same name. no temperature is on record, so how hot the water is, and if it is soakable, cannot be said here, and No access and owner is on record too. No water chemistry is recorded, and there is no USGS site number.

Location

Malibu Boulevard passes roughly a hundred and fifty feet away, which makes this a roadside stop. Elevation is modest and the weather stays mild, with snow adding up to two and a half feet over a season and rain on the light side. Average across the year lands in the low fifties. No land unit was recorded, and no owner either.

Best months: none listed. Roadside. Sand Gulch Campground, about seventeen miles away, is the camping on record. Nothing is recorded for fee or temperature, and the same goes for chemistry and access, so before you drive out, find out who owns the ground and if the water is anything to soak in.

Terrain

USGS hasn't flown a detailed laser scan here yet, so this view comes from aerial photos and older elevation data.

Setting
Open ground
Flat, open ground all around.
Highest ground nearby
31 ft above the spring
Within a quarter mile, to the north
Cross-section through the spring

A slice through the ground from north to south, about 0.6 miles end to end.

Elevation data: USGS 3D Elevation Program. Aerial imagery: USGS The National Map. Public domain.

Heat Below
58 milliwatts per square meter of heat flow

That's close to the US average of 65. It's higher than at 0% of the springs on this site.

Heat flow measures the warmth working its way up through the ground from deep inside the earth. Where it runs high, rain and snowmelt that seep down through cracks in the rock come back up hot.

Heat flow estimate: Stanford Thermal Earth Model (Aljubran & Horne, 2024), CC BY 4.0.

Monthly Climate
30°
Jan
31°
Feb
43°
Mar
50°
Apr
59°
May
73°
Jun
76°
Jul
74°
Aug
67°
Sep
52°
Oct
40°
Nov
29°
Dec
Annual Precip: 13.4 in Annual Snow: 29.3 in
Current Conditions
66°F
Clear ESE 29.0 mph 37% Good soaking weather
Today 76° Low 53° Partly Sunny then Slight Chance Showers And Thunderstorms 17% precip
Wednesday 81° Low 58° Mostly Cloudy then Chance Showers And Thunderstorms 61% precip
Thursday 80° Low 56° Showers And Thunderstorms Likely 63% precip
Friday 83° Low 56° Partly Sunny then Slight Chance Showers And Thunderstorms 21% precip
Saturday 79° Low 53° Mostly Sunny then Chance Showers And Thunderstorms 44% precip
Where to Stay

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Nearby Camping
Sand Gulch Campground 16.7 mi away

Overview With easy walking access to sport rock climbing routes in the popular Shelf Road Recreation Area, Sand Gulch Campground is a 31-site camping facility, open year-round. The campground is located 14 miles north of Cañon City at an approximate elevation of 6,400 feet and features spectacular views of the surrounding limestone cliffs.  Recreation Sand Gulch Campground offers sport climbers easy walk-in access to tall monolithic cliffs. Climbers can access Contest and Freeform Walls with...

Reservable Yes
Reserve on Recreation.gov →
Temperature
No data recorded
Avg Air Temp 52°F
Access
Road Access Roadside
Nearest Road Malibu Boulevard
Distance to Road 162 ft
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Dakota Hot Springs located?
Dakota Hot Springs is located in Fremont County, Colorado at 5,232 feet elevation, near Penrose. Coordinates: 38.4184°N, 105.0566°W.
How do I get to Dakota Hot Springs?
Dakota Hot Springs has Roadside road access, with the nearest road being Malibu Boulevard (162 ft from the road).
Can I camp near Dakota Hot Springs?
Yes, Sand Gulch Campground is located nearby (16.7 miles away).
Sources: OpenStreetMap