Turkey Creek Hot Spring

If you're passing

Is it plungeworthy?

—temperature

A natural thermal spring.

Scale30/60

Documentation14/20

Character10/20

The details

Soak: Temperature unrecorded
Area: Clifton
Coordinates: 33.1296, -108.4777

Get directions →

About Turkey Creek Hot Spring

Turkey Creek Hot Spring is a natural hot spring in New Mexico.

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

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

What you'll find

The Gila Wilderness' hidden reward: thermal pools tucked in a boulder side-canyon, four-plus miles and three river fords from the trailhead. Public map pins for this spring are famously wrong — trust the trail description, not the dot, until our corrected pin.

Getting there

Trailhead: Gila River Trail #724 to Turkey Creek Trail #155, off Turkey Creek Road near Gila
Parking: Informal at the trailhead; high-clearance helps on the approach road
Road: Dirt approach
Hike: 8.3 mi round trip (hard)
Heads up: Three calf-to-knee fords; at the fork four miles in stay right along the creek — left climbs the wrong canyon.

When to go

Fall through spring; skip snowmelt and monsoon ford conditions. The Gila's fire closures come and go (one covered this trail in July 2026, since lifted) — check forest alerts.

Rules & fees

Fee / pass: None — designated wilderness
Camping: Dispersed wilderness camping
Warnings: Remote, no cell, mountain-lion country; clothing-optional tradition.

Researched from Hot Springers — Turkey Creek · Gila NF — alerts. Conditions change — verify before you drive. Been to Turkey Creek Hot Spring recently? Post a conditions report below.

Where it is

Planning a visit? We want your photo.

Turkey Creek Hot Spring 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.