Goddard Hot Springs

What to expect

Goddard Hot Springs sits on a small bay on the outer coast of Baranof Island, about 16 miles south of Sitka. There is no road. You arrive by boat or floatplane, step onto a rocky shore, and walk a boardwalk to two cedar bathhouses that the City and Borough of Sitka owns and looks after.

Each bathhouse is an open-sided shelter over a wooden tub. Hot water is piped from the springs and comes out at about 153°F67°C, so every tub has a cold-water valve. You fill it, mix it, and test it until it feels right. The open sides mean you soak looking out at the water, islands and rainforest rather than at a wall. On a clear day you can see out toward Sitka Sound. On a typical day it rains.

Facilities are simple: the tubs, outhouses, the boardwalk and space to camp. There is no drinking water you should rely on, no store and no staff on site. Bring food, water and dry clothes.

History

The Sheey At’iká Tlingit used these springs long before outsiders arrived. Russian settlers likely set up a small outpost around 1800 and called it something close to “sheltered curative hot springs.” In 1841 a Hudson’s Bay Company visitor described three cottages here serving as a hospital for invalids from Sitka. By 1917 the site was Sitka Hot Springs, a small health resort with a hotel and cottages.

In 1924 Dr. Fred L. Goddard bought the property and built a three-story sanitarium heated by spring water, and the place took his name. The territorial legislature bought the buildings in 1939 as an overflow home for the Sitka Pioneers Home. After 1946 they fell out of use and were torn down. Four springs are named on old records: Main, Magnesia, Sulphur and Old Russian.

Getting there

Most people go with a Sitka water taxi or charter. Several operators hold City of Sitka commercial recreational land use permits that cover city sites beyond the road system. Ask the operator about crossing time and sea conditions, and agree on a pickup time before you leave the dock. Some visitors fly in by floatplane instead.

If you are running your own boat, take a chart. The route from Sitka winds through protected channels and coves, but the bay around the springs is full of rocks and shoals, especially near the bathhouses. Boaters anchor out and row or motor in by skiff. Plan your landing and departure around the tide so you are not dragging a skiff over exposed rock.

The city-owned Tom Young Memorial Cabin sits across Hot Springs Bay, roughly 1,500 feet from the tubs. Sitka residents who rent it often paddle across to soak. In May 2022 a group did exactly that by kayak; the wind came up, they could not get both boats back, and the Sitka Fire Department had to ferry seven people back to the cabin for the night. Short crossings here are still open water.

When to go

The springs never close, but the weather decides whether you get there. May to September is the practical window. Water-taxi permit holders report running from mid-March to mid-November, with most trips between early May and mid-September. Long daylight helps, and seas are calmer on average.

Expect rain in any month. Summer brings biting black flies, so pack repellent and a head net if you plan to camp. Winter trips are possible on a good weather window but leave you little margin if a storm builds.

Expect company on sunny summer weekends, when Sitka boaters and tour groups head out. A weekday trip gives you better odds of a tub to yourself.

Rules and etiquette

• Share the tubs. There are only two bathhouses. If others are waiting, keep your soak short.
• No soap or shampoo in the tubs.
• Close the hot valve when you finish so the next person does not get a scalding surprise, and follow any notices posted in the bathhouses.
• Swimsuits: Plan to wear one. The tubs are shared and open-sided, and tour groups and families visit.
• Stay on the boardwalk around the shore and bathhouses to protect the vegetation.
• Pack out everything, including food waste. There is no trash service.

No official source we found lists a fee for the tubs. Commercial operators must hold a city permit under Sitka General Code Chapter 14.10.

Where to stay nearby

• Camping at the springs: There are campsites in a grassy meadow near the bathhouses and on higher ground behind them. Pick the higher ground if the forecast is wet.
• Tom Young Memorial Cabin: $60 a night plus tax, Sitka residents only, up to 3 nights, booked up to 90 days ahead through Sitka Parks and Recreation (sitka.recdesk.com or 907-747-4031).
• Sitka: Hotels, lodges, groceries and fuel are all in town, about 16 miles north by water. Most visitors do Goddard as a day trip from Sitka.

Safety notes

• Scalding water: At 153°F67°C the source water can burn. Always mix with cold water and test with your hand before you get in. Keep an eye on children around the valves.
• Weather and sea state: Conditions on the outer coast change quickly. Agree on a pickup time with your water taxi, have a backup plan if it cannot get in, and carry extra warm layers.
• Communication: Do not rely on a phone signal. A VHF radio, satellite messenger or PLB is sensible for private boaters.
• Bears: Baranof Island has brown bears. Store food carefully if you camp and keep the camp clean.
• Footing: Wet boardwalk and rock are slick. Wear shoes with grip between the shore and the tubs.

Nearby stops worth adding

Sitka itself is worth a day or two, with its Tlingit and Russian history and harbors full of fishing boats. On the east side of the same island, Baranof Warm Springs has a community bathhouse and river-side pools, but it is a separate trip of about 20 miles from Sitka by floatplane or a long boat ride around the island.