Kootenay Rockies
The Kootenays are Canada’s hot springs heartland.
Hot springs in Kootenay Rockies
The Kootenays are Canada’s hot springs heartland. A single unhurried loop — Highway 93/95 up the Columbia Valley, Highway 31 along Kootenay Lake, Highway 23 up the Arrow Lakes — strings together five developed pools: Radium’s canyon, Fairmont’s vast mineral pools, Ainsworth’s steaming cave, village-owned Nakusp and lakeview Halcyon. Kootenay Rockies Tourism markets it as the Hot Springs Route, and it earns the name.
Off the pavement, the region hides the wild half of its collection: Halfway River’s rec-site pools, the hard-won springs at Dewar Creek, and Buhl Creek’s seasonal rock pools. Lussier — normally the region’s favourite free soak — is closed for now, and Ram Creek is an ecological reserve you visit with your boots on.
The full list
Lussier Hot Springs
Free riverside rock pools in Whiteswan Lake Park, reached by a short steep trail.
Radium Hot Springs
Parks Canada’s famous canyon pools in Kootenay National Park — open year-round.
Fairmont Hot Springs
Canada’s largest natural mineral hot pools, with 39°C soaking and mountain views.
Ainsworth Hot Springs
Wade through a 46-metre horseshoe cave of steaming water above Kootenay Lake.
Halcyon Hot Springs
Lithia-rich pools terraced above Upper Arrow Lake, north of Nakusp.
Nakusp Hot Springs
The Kootenays’ friendly village-owned pools in a cedar forest — a local institution.
Canyon Hot Springs
Seasonal family resort between Revelstoke and Glacier’s peaks, open May–September.
Halfway River Hot Springs
Upgraded wild pools and forest camping between Nakusp and Revelstoke.
Dewar Creek Hot Springs
A serious wilderness hike to scalding springs and exceptionally sensitive wildlife habitat.
Ram Creek Warm Springs
Warm (not hot) springs inside an ecological reserve — look, don’t soak.
Buhl Creek Hot Springs (Skookumchuck Creek)
Rustic creekside pools that only run hot in late summer and fall.