Kirkham Hot Springs

If you're passing

Is it plungeworthy?

—temperature

A natural thermal spring.

Scale30/60

Documentation14/20

Character10/20

The details

Soak: Temperature unrecorded
Area: Challis
Coordinates: 44.072, -115.543

Get directions →

About Kirkham Hot Springs

Kirkham Hot Springs is a natural hot spring in Idaho.

At that temperature it's temperature unrecorded — check current conditions and always test the water before getting in.

Plungeworthy rates Kirkham Hot Springs 5.4/10 — if you're passing. The score weighs its scale, how confidently it's mapped, and its character.

What you'll find

Idaho's roadside classic: a hot waterfall spilling over a bluff into rock-rimmed pools along the South Fork Payette, with soaks from bath-warm to 110°F depending on where you sit. Developed enough to be easy — changing rooms, vault toilets, a campground next door — and visible from Highway 21, which is both its charm and its crowd problem.

Getting there

Trailhead: Kirkham Campground day-use area, Highway 21, five miles east of Lowman
Parking: Day-use lot plus highway shoulder; full by mid-morning on summer weekends
Road: Paved
Hike: 0.2 mi round trip, 20 ft of climb (easy)
Heads up: Swimsuits are the norm here — it's a family site in full view of the highway.

When to go

Fall through early spring is the connoisseur's window: steam over the river, snow on the banks, and pools the spring runoff hasn't drowned. May–June high water can submerge the lower pools entirely.

Rules & fees

Fee / pass: $5/vehicle day-use, or America the Beautiful / Boise NF annual pass
Dogs: Picnic area only, leashed — not at the pools
Hours: 7am–9pm, gated
Camping: Kirkham Campground adjacent (33 sites)
Warnings: Slick rock everywhere; no potable water on site.

Researched from USFS Boise NF — Kirkham Hot Springs. Conditions change — verify before you drive. Been to Kirkham Hot Springs recently? Post a conditions report below.

Where it is

Planning a visit? We want your photo.

Kirkham Hot Springs doesn't have a photo yet. If you make the trip, send one to hello@plungeworthy.com and we'll publish it here with credit to you.

Before you go

The pin marks the feature, not a trailhead or a legal route in. Some sit on private land or need a real hike, and conditions change with season and rain. Check local access, don't trespass, and never enter water — hot or cold — where it isn't safe.