Loftus Hot Springs

Loftus Hot Springs is a pair of user-built rock pools along the Middle Fork Boise River Road — famous, heavily used, and with a rough recent history: the pools were destroyed by vandals in 2011 and rebuilt by local soak seekers, in reduced form, later that year. The upper pool (102°F, mortar-reinforced) and lower pool (100°F) sit right off the washboard road between Boise and Atlanta, and usage here is extreme — this is a known party spot for hunters and ATVers, kegs and all. Two cautions from the listing itself: watch for broken glass in the pools, and poison ivy grows around them.

The Pools

Two sturdy rock pools with sandy bottoms; the top pool is reinforced with mortar and fed by a hot waterfall from above. Current condition is a shadow of the pre-2011 pools — the ledge above the upper pool was largely broken off during the destruction — so verify conditions before making the drive.

Seasonal Notes

Usable all year, but winter access uses the only route that stays open and it can be genuinely dangerous — check road conditions with the Forest Service before committing to a winter trip.

Camping

A handful of campsites sit near the springs, with plenty of National Forest campgrounds and primitive sites nearby. Expect company: this area draws wild partiers at times.

Loftus Hot Springs in Idaho