Puller 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.
Puller Hot Springs sits in Madison County, Montana, fourteen miles or so from Virginia City, and at the source it runs a little above the range people soak in comfortably, so it is close to soaking temperature. A 1976 USGS sample found near-neutral water with iron. Who owns it and if you may visit are both unknown, and there is no photo.
A short walk of three hundred-odd feet from the road, and the road itself goes without a name in the listing. Elevation runs middling, snowfall moderate. The year runs dry. No land unit or designation is on record. Virginia City is the closest town on file.
The nearest camp listed is Vigilante Cabin, fourteen miles or so away. The winter months are what the record flags, and moderate snow makes that workable on paper. Check the temperature by hand before you sit; it is at the edge of what most skin tolerates. No access status exists, so ask before you walk in. No fee or bathhouse is recorded.
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 Puller Hot Springs.
- Setting
- Gentle slope
- The ground tilts gently up to the west.
- Highest ground nearby
- 101 ft above the spring
- Within a quarter mile, to the west
A slice through the ground from west to east, 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 74% 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 Puller Hot Springs is slightly alkaline (pH 7.3). It is notably rich in sodium (supports circulation and skin hydration) and sulfate (traditionally used for skin conditions and inflammation).
Overview The Vigilante Cabin, also known as the Vigilante Middle House, offers a comfortable place to stay deep in the mountains of southwestern Montana along the Ruby River between the Snowcrest and Gravelly Ranges. The house boasts two bedrooms, a kitchen, living room and has electricity and seasonal water. A bathroom, with a toilet and shower,is usually available from May - September. It is close to many outdoor recreation opportunities, including fishing, hiking and hunting, as well as...
Puller Hot Springs sits at 5,464 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 22% stronger than at sea level, so bring sunscreen and drink more water than you normally would.
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