We're so lucky to live in an amazing state where you don't have to drive far to enjoy relaxing Oregon Hot Springs. It feels so good to soak in these mineral hot springs. After my recent trip to Bagby Hot Springs I wanted to share all of the known Oregon hot springs that are available to soak in with you, including some of my personal favorites.
Our Favorite Hot Springs In Oregon
Let's start of this list with our personal favorite hot springs in Oregon for you to soak and relax in.
Our Eastern Oregon Hot Springs
If you're in Eastern Oregon, definitely check out Crystal Crane Hot Springs near Burns Oregon. This hot springs resort has teepees with private soaking tubs, as well as bunk houses, and gorgeous views of Oregon's high desert.
You should also check out the Hart Mountain Hot Springs. This hot spring is a hidden treasure waiting for you to discover. Not too many people venture from the crowded I-5 corridor and Willamette Valley into Eastern Oregon, so this area of the state is a peaceful place to get away from big city crowds.
Both of the pools at Hart Mountain Hot Springs are clothing optional, and feel so nice to soak in.
Another spot to soak in Eastern Oregon is the Alvord Desert Hot Springs. The area around the Alvord Desert is geologically active and there are a lot of hot springs in the area.
Most of the hot springs here are too hot to touch, but the Alvord Hot Spring near the base of Steens Mountain is privately owned, and the 170 degree water is mixed with cool water to bring it down to a safe temperature to soak in.
Finally, if you're looking for a hot spring with a lot of history, try Hot Lake Hotel And Hot Springs, which is said to be haunted due to it's previous life as a sanitorium.
Here's a hot springs Oregon map for our four favorite spots in Eastern Oregon:
Our Favorite Hot Springs Oregon Has To Offer In Western Oregon
Belknap Hot Springs Resort is open year round, and features two amazing mineral hot spring pools, along with acres of pretty gardens to walk through. This hot spring in Oregon is definitely worth checking out, though it should be noted it's not as remote as many hot springs are, and many people visit it.
Breitenbush Hot Springs has been a favorite for scores of Oregonians over the years and has a long and interesting history. The entire area burned recently and had to be rebuilt but has been opened to the public again at the time of this article.
Baby Hot Springs is close enough to Portland that it gets a lot of visitors daily. The area is gorgeous and worth the visit if you can go when there aren't a lot of people around.
McCredie Hot Springs are just off of Highway 58 near a campground. These hot springs are not improved and there are no structures. People have dug holes in the riverbank along Salt Creek and those holes fill up with water. It's a short hike of about 5 minutes from the small parking lot to these hot springs.
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Be aware that if you have children with you, McCredie hot springs are clothing optional and people may be bathing naked. Some of the holes in the bank will be full of water that is too hot to touch. When we went, a group soaking in one of the larger holes warned us not to touch the water in a few of the smaller holes in the river bank.
Check out the hot springs Oregon map below for our favorite spots in Western Oregon:
Other Hot Springs In Oregon To Soak In
Austin Hot Springs - Very hot water that is too hot to touch. This water needs to be mixed with cool river water before being used.
Bigelow (Deer Creek) Hot Springs - This hot spring is on the banks of the McKenzie River not far from Belknap Hot Springs. The water is too cold for use in winter, so visit in the summer or fall.
Summer Lake Hot Springs - In order to use this hot spring, you'll have to make reservations to stay the night in one of the cabins. It's a beautiful area that's well worth the visit.
Cougar (Terwilliger) Hot Springs - These hot springs near Eugene draw a lot of people on a daily basis. Clothing is optional for these rustic hot spring pools in the hillside.
East Lake And Paulina Hot Springs Near Bend Oregon - East Lake and Paulina Lake sit right next to each other. Both have several hot springs that come up from under the lake beds. To use these hot springs the lake levels have to be low enough for the hot water to pool up in holes in the bank.
For East Lake check the southern end of the lake in a grassy tuff headland area. The best chance to use the East Lake springs is in summer or fall when lake levels are lower.
To find the Paulina Lake hot springs check the north east corner of the lake next to the shoreline. You'll need to find or create a pool where the hot water can mix with cool lake water before using the spring.
Echo Rock Hot Springs - This hot spring is found on the bank of the Owyhee Reservoir where there is a man made pool and shower.
Hunter's Hot Springs And Hunter's Hotel Near Lakeview - This is a good spot to stay the night if you're in the area. Contact the hotel for pricing to use the hot spring. This hot spring also features a regular geyser.
Umpqua Hot Springs - This is one of Oregon's prettiest hot springs. People often bathe naked here in the banks above the Umpqua river. Be aware that many people come here just to take photos on Instagram, so if you are bathing naked, you may end up in a photo.
Juntura Hot Springs - This hot water will need to be mixed with cold river water before soaking. It's reported as a good place to soak in winter. The hot spring is on an island in the Malheur River. Wear sandals or shoes as there are goat heads everywhere. The roads to the area are rough and you will need four wheel drive and a high clearance vehicle.
Wall Creek Warm Springs - This spring is not as hot as others on our list and should be used in warmer months. This is a very pretty forested spot to visit.
Map Of Oregon Hot Springs
We've got you covered with this map of Oregon hot springs you should visit to soak in. Check out this Hot Springs Oregon Map to find the locations of all of the hot springs listed in this article:
Benefits of Sulfur in Hot Springs Water
The benefits to soaking in hot springs is actually quite amazing. Here are just some of the very interesting benefits from soaking, courtesy of middleearthcr.com, "Sulfur is a naturally occurring mineral that is found primarily near hot springs and volcanic craters. Sulfur has a distinct smell which is caused by sulfur dioxide gas escaping into the air. Sulfur is part of the chemical structure of three different amino acids (the building blocks that make up protein) -- namely, cystine, cysteine, and methionine. Sulfur works with vitamins B1 (thiamine), B5 (pantothenicacid), and H (biotin) to promote metabolism and communication between nerve cells."
"Approximately 0.25 percent of your total body weight is sulfur one of the most plentiful minerals in the body. It is most concentrated in keratin, which gives you strong hair, nails, and skin. It is known as “nature’s beauty mineral” because your body needs it to manufacture collagen, which keeps your skin elastic, beautiful, and young looking."
Oregon Hot Springs Important Info
There are many websites which list all hot springs in Oregon, even if those hot springs are on private land, or are hot enough to kill you. We've done our best to list here the hot springs that are available to use. Be aware that using hot springs is an at-your-own-risk activity.
- Some of the hot springs listed here have a fee, or require that you book a stay at the hotel or resort at that location in order to use them.
- Many of the primitive hot springs on this list are clothing optional, meaning they may not be an appropriate place to bring children.
- Many of the hot springs on this list are too hot to touch as is and must be mixed with cold river water in a pool before soaking.
- Please thoroughly research your destination before going to ensure that the destination is not closed due to wildfire or other circumstances.
PLEASE NOTE: In order to keep our hot springs in Oregon pristine and open to the public, please follow the 7 Principles of Leave No Trace. In the past some hot springs in Oregon have been closed for good due to people leaving garbage and feces behind, as well as doing drugs at the site or damaging the environment.
We hope this guide to Oregon hot springs was helpful for you. Which of these hot springs is your favorite? Let us know and tag the friends you want to go with!
This article is yet another example of irresponsible journalism. This article will likely cause others to travel long distances to trespass on private land , some of which could be dangerous. I suggest the author of this article do some very basic research BEFORE listing closed or privately owned springs as soakable to unsuspecting readers. There are several on the list that should NOT be there. Get any one of the recent hot springs guide books for a responsible source of information, as this list is FAR from accurate.
Eric, would you mind stating which ones should be removed?
Karin, I can appreciate your enthusiasm about how felt after a hot springs soak as many of us share it, but we have also taken the time and money to be responsible stewards of our embattled hot springs in America. That said I suggest you read one of the recent guides, they have taken the time to relay important details relevant to anyone thinking of visiting a hot spring. Important facts that all should know well before visiting any hot spring as many hide dangerous features that have caused fatalities.
In order to accurately answer your question I would need to rewrite your article, and that I will not do. Please take a moment to understand why your article is so offensive to those of us regularly donating our time helping save hot springs. Advising others of winter soaking possibilities that can’t safely access or are private could have tragic results. Take some personal effort to at least read a current hot springs guide at your local library or buy a used copy. Here are 2 while the 2017
Touring Hot Springs 2nd ed. by Jeff Birkby and Hiking Hot Springs in the NW
Articles like this continue to send people to Blue Mountain HS, Crump, Foley HS, Kitson HS, Lehman HS, Medical HS, Mount Vernon, and Weberg HS (among others) which ARE ALL ON PRIVATE LAND. NONE offer soaking and the owners are constantly harassed by trespassing people from articles like yours. Some of them are litigious which I understand in cases like this. Preserving these hot springs starts with responsible journalism, please correct after reading what I recommended.
Hot springs need all the help they can get so please be part of the solution ….not part of the problem.
You jumped to conclusions… I am not the author of this article, rather a random reader who saw your comment and thought you might be able to share some details that might be useful to people. Most hot spring fans would rather avoid ones that are closed, unsafe, etc. Wind River near Carson Hot Springs is an example of this; a trek there would be fruitless (or worse, as the owner is litigious).
Thanks for taking the time to write some details and list some that should be removed, and to recommend a resource that is trustworthy.
No hard feelings about you lecturing me about how irresponsible this article is 🙂 but I hope this experience inspires a bit more caution next time. Cheers.
Karin, When asked “which ones should be removed” , It would seem to imply that you’re wanting to remove them. My mistake thinking you are the author. That said your question would receive nearly the same answer (minus your/ ad the)…would it not?Given the number of springs it is impossible to give a list as each has a set of variables that determine access or soaking is possible safely or not. No hard feelings , my above post is for the author and those that may think the article as credible.
I think what Karin was trying to say was instead of blasting the article for being inaccurate, how about expanding on your comment to tell people which ones to NOT try to go to. I can tell by reading your comments that you are highly educated so look at the reponse you left and if you were a person who wanted to find some of those hot springs, which ones would you NOT recommend (closed, privately owned, etc.)? I believe that is what she was asking you……I would look at the article as credible, how would I not believe what the author wrote unless someone spoke up and stated which ones were not accessible to the public?
Lanie Dibley Just want to point out even after adding a shortlist to represent some of the many hot springs that have no soaking possibilities you are still asking for additional information. Sorry I don’t have the time, I posted credible reference materials for you to find your answer, and remember to search any hot spring on the internet. If it has soaking possibilities there will be plenty of material you can review. I find the article as uncredible even moreso presently because the author has yet to respond or fix anything that THEY posted. Which is what most would expect for an irresponsible post.
Karin’s post was replied & responded to our mutual satisfaction.
Yet another example how much time it takes to speak out to preserve hot springs. Months later ,years later Bad information can cause multiple problems to multiple people until the author deletes or corrects. Please email the author to complain about accuracies, as I have too many health issues to continually answer this irresponsible post.
To whomever wrote the article: Apparently you added some Trumpian lies to your positing — ‘I think it’s true so it is. Period.’ Shame on you!
You also added some ‘sponsored content.’ Buh, humbug. Your blog address is forever banned from my Inbox.
I really love Bagby hot springs!