Forge Creek Hot Springs
Drag the handle to compare the two views. The orange dot marks the spring, in a frame about three quarters of a mile wide.
Forge Creek Hot Springs is backcountry water in the Salmon National Forest, Custer County, over thirty miles from Challis and three and a half miles of walking past the last road. The survey calls it hot and gives no temperature. Access is open. That is a thin record for a place this far in, and it should shape how you think about going.
Nearly six thousand feet. The hike is three and a half miles or so from an unnamed road, and the winter snow is about eight and a half feet, with a fairly dry year otherwise. Yellowjacket Guard Station is the closest lodging in the record, eight miles off. The file has nothing on the route.
Nothing is rated as a best season. The temperature is unknown; the only reading is an August 1979 chemistry sample that calls the water alkaline. Do not plan on soaking from this page alone. Yellowjacket Guard Station for lodging, hiking in required.
Aircraft with laser scanners measured this ground to within inches. The scan strips out trees and buildings, leaving the bare shape of the land around Forge Creek Hot Springs.
- Setting
- Canyon floor
- Steep ground climbs away on both sides of the spring.
- Highest ground nearby
- 712 ft above the spring
- Within a quarter mile, to the east
A slice through the ground from northwest to southeast, about 0.6 miles end to end.
Elevation data: USGS 3D Elevation Program. Aerial imagery: USGS The National Map. Public domain.
That's about 1½ times the US average of 65. It's higher than at 44% 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.
See every spring on the geothermal heat map →
Heat flow estimate: Stanford Thermal Earth Model (Aljubran & Horne, 2024), CC BY 4.0.
The water at Forge Creek Hot Springs is alkaline (pH 8.7).
Overview Yellowjacket Guard Station is a historic Forest Service Ranger Station and Work Center. Originally constructed in 1925 and remodeled in 1934 by the Civilian Conservation Corps, the structure is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. Recreation Hikers, horseback riders, mountain bikers and off-road enthusiasts will find many trails in the surrounding area. Hunting is also a popular activity. Click here for an Idaho OHV safety messageFacilities The spacious...
Forge Creek Hot Springs sits at 5,920 feet above sea level, way above the mile-high mark. You may not feel the altitude strongly, but hot water still dehydrates you faster at elevation. UV is about 24% stronger than at sea level, so bring sunscreen and drink more water than you normally would.
As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
Springs Near Forge Creek Hot Springs
Alkaline Springs (pH ~8.7)
Hike 6 waterfalls near Forge Creek Hot Springs
Looking for more outdoor adventures? Explore waterfall hikes near Forge Creek Hot Springs, Idaho.