Magic Hot Springs
The Magic Hot Springs in Blaine County, Idaho, about twelve miles from Bellevue, is a scalding source with no soaking to be had straight from the ground. The reading on file is far past safe. Neither a land owner nor a public access status shows up on file, so it is unclear who controls the site or what is allowed there. A photo is attached.
The source is practically on the road, a couple dozen feet from the shoulder, though the record does not give the road a name. No land unit and no designation are attached, so the surroundings are a blank beyond the county and the nearest town. The climate is moderate for Idaho, dry, with snow that comes to something under four feet most winters.
Winter, says the record, is the best time. No campground appears anywhere close. The main thing to know is that the water will scald; at that heat it is dangerous to touch, and nothing on file says the outflow cools anywhere. Find out who owns the ground and if visitors are allowed before going.
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 Magic 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.
- Setting
- Valley floor
- Gentle slopes rise on both sides.
- Highest ground nearby
- 208 ft above the spring
- Within a quarter mile, to the northwest
A slice through the ground from southwest to northeast, about 0.6 miles end to end.
Elevation data: USGS 3D Elevation Program. Aerial imagery: USGS The National Map. Public domain.
That's about twice the US average of 65. It's higher than at 82% 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 Magic Hot Springs is slightly alkaline (pH 7.3).
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Magic Hot Springs is road-accessible, so you can bring more gear. The water is dangerously hot, so bring water shoes and test pools carefully.
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