Deer Creek (Bronco Billy) Hot Springs - Hot Springs in Idaho

It would be difficult to notice the existence of this hot spring even though it is located right next to the highway.

It can be described as a hot spring in the sky, located in the middle of a steep slope.

For a single person only

State Route 55 extends north from Boise, the capital of Idaho.

Turn right onto Banks Roman Road, and you'll find Deer Creek Hot Springs right under your nose.

The bottom of the valley where there is nothing but the Payette River and the highway.

It is marked by a slightly wider area on the side of the road.

This parking space was set aside to visit Skinny Dipper Hot Springs, a popular wild hot spring that once existed.

That hot spring has been destroyed and closed by the Bureau of Land Management in 2016 due to excessive misbehavior of soakers, and there is no prospect of reopening it.

Since there is only a notice at the parking lot that Skinny Dipper is closed, many people may give up after coming this far, but there is actually another place to soak.

Trailhead is the same, on the other side of the road.

At the first sharp curve after starting to climb up the slope covered with undergrowth, deviate to the right onto the trail.

Alpaca

I don't notice this.

Sharpen your senses.

Capybara

I continued up the steep slope and arrived in less than two minutes.

It can be rare to find an undeveloped hot spring that is so easy to access, if you know where to look.

A single-person tub made of concrete appeared.

Two close friends may just barely get in.

Although it was very small, it looked like it was carefully made with tiles on the inside.

The water outlet was a faucet that was easy to operate.

When I twisted this, tasteless and odorless water popped out.

The water temp was 145 degrees F, so just pouring it as was would make it too hot.

On the other hand, it was nice that the temperature could be lowered relatively easily by stirring the water since the tub was so small.

Hot spring in the sky

The hot water was drawn from further up the slope.

I followed the pipe and soon found the source of the spring.

The boiling water was flowing down from a small waterfall.

A hot water pipe extended from the bucket that catched it.

What a simple and highly effective mechanism.

A good looking pool was formed in front of the waterfall.

However, the extremely hot water was constantly spilling out, so soaking was not possible.

It was even more open than where the tub was located, so the view was outstanding.

The scenery was uplifting, as if I was gazing down at the world below from a hot spring in the sky.

Summary