Change of Plans

The Monday after Christmas we were going to go sledding. The only problem was the fact that all the snow around Boise melted, so we were kind of out of luck. There wasn't much to be done, except change plans. So we did.

We decided instead to take a trip up to some hot springs that Wifey's sister had been to on Memorial Day. They charged a bit more than I wanted to pay ($8.00 per person), but we decided to make the hour and a half drive anyway since the rest of the family was going.

On the way, we stopped for one of Munchkin's cousins to take a quick potty break. We learned that the name of the place we were going was Gold Fork Hot Springs, so we started looking for signs. We thought originally that it was on the south side of Cascade, but after driving for two hours, I realized that it was a lot closer to McCall than it was to Cascade.

And I was pleasantly surprised when we arrived. I was expecting some rinky-dink stone pools patched together with poorly-mixed cement. Instead, I found a steaming, three tiered pool occupied by some Japanese tourists. Then, I learned that there were two other pools, both equally appealing.

After changing in the confines of about 1/6 of a yurt (the most unpleasant part of the experience) and securing our things in a locker, we slid into the main pool. And the water was very nice. In fact, it was pretty much like a warm bath. I generally get cold in the water while swimming, but I was plenty satisfied to spend my time in basking in the warmth of the water. I didn't even get cold.

We spent a few hours moving from pool to pool and making sure that we had something to eat for lunch on the patio furniture that was sitting on the decks around the pools. After spending some time in the pools, I found that I was fine spending the $8.00 entry fee. The hot springs were just the right temperature, the drive up was quite scenic, and the facilities (except for the changing rooms) were excellent. I later found out that the springs are closed every Tuesday because they empty out all the pools and clean it out. I felt much better about my $8.00 after learning that.

We had a bunch of people (including a youth camp) show up while we were there, and while I fearedt it was going to get crowded, I found that I still had ample room to spread out and frolic in the warm water. I felt soothed, relaxed, and found that I would probably be returning in the future.