Goldmyer Hot Springs

What to expect

Goldmyer is not a wild spring and not a resort in the usual sense. It is a private wilderness preserve in the upper Middle Fork Snoqualmie valley, owned since 1976 by Northwest Wilderness Programs, a Washington nonprofit. Live-in caretakers check every visitor in and out, keep the pools clean and enforce a short list of rules. The trade-off for the fees and the paperwork is that the place stays quiet. Only 20 people are allowed in per day, and once 20 have come, nobody else gets in that day, even after others leave.

The spring itself is unusual. Hot water comes out of an old horizontal mine shaft, a narrow cave about 4 feet wide and 25 feet long. Goldmyer gives the source at about 125°F52°C, with the water inside the cave sitting around 111°F44°C. From the cave it spills into two smaller rock pools, each a little cooler, and the lowest is about 104°F40°C. A few steps away is a cold pool fed from the creek. The water flows at about 5 gallons a minute, which refreshes the pools every two and a half hours. It has an earthy smell rather than a strong sulfur one, and a pH of about 8.5.

The setting is the reason most people make the trip. The property sits at roughly 1,800 to 2,000 feet in old-growth forest with trees Goldmyer says are over 900 years old. There is an open-sided cabana at the springs, picnic tables, stocked outhouses and a bike rack. There is no cell service, no drinking water, no showers, no lockers, no towels and no garbage service.

Getting there

Goldmyer is about 25 miles east of North Bend, but the drive and the walk take most of a morning.

• Drive: Take I-90 to Exit 34 and follow the Middle Fork Snoqualmie Road (Forest Road 56) up the valley. Goldmyer describes the approach as 12 miles of pavement and 6 miles of unpaved road. Goldmyer estimates about 45 minutes from Seattle to Exit 34, then 1 to 2 hours from the exit to the trailhead.
• The road: The unpaved section has soft shoulders, drop-offs, ruts, potholes, fallen trees and creek crossings. After heavy rain those crossings can carry 1 to 2 feet of fast water. Goldmyer says you need AWD or 4WD with 8 to 9 inches of clearance, and that recovering a stuck vehicle is your problem. The Forest Service also calls the road rough and recommends four-wheel drive. A Forest Service alert from June 30, 2026 listed a washout on FR 56 at milepost 17.3. Goldmyer’s October 21, 2026 access report says the road is open to high-clearance vehicles; read the latest report (updated at least every Wednesday evening) before you go.
• Parking: The road ends at a locked gate at the Dingford Creek Trailhead, at 1,400 feet, with space for about 30 vehicles, a vault toilet and no drinking water. Goldmyer says to display a Northwest Forest Pass or America the Beautiful pass (a Discover Pass is not valid). The Forest Service page for the trailhead says no fee is required, so carry a pass anyway to be safe.
• The walk: Go past the gate on the Dutch Miller Gap Trail, which follows the old road bed and crosses a footbridge over the Middle Fork. It is about 5 miles each way with about 200 feet of gain, and it is open to mountain bikes all year. Plan 2 to 3 hours on foot, or 1 to 3 hours on a bike. The Middle Fork Trail on the far side of the river is not recommended. It is not maintained and has no bridge over Burnt Boot Creek.

When to go

Goldmyer is open every day of the year, rain or snow, and does not refund for bad weather. Summer and early fall are the easiest months, and weekends fill first in the lottery. Weekdays give you a better chance of getting a permit at all.

Inside a day, the pools are busiest from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Arriving at the 9 a.m. opening or later in the afternoon gives you more room, and campers can soak after 9 p.m. when day visitors have gone.

In winter the paved first 10 miles of road might be plowed, but the final miles to the trailhead never are. Expect chains, fallen trees and snow on the trail. Goldmyer says microspikes are usually enough for the walk, and snowshoes give more options in deep snow.

Prices and booking

All 2026 prices are from Goldmyer’s own pages.

• Shared-use days (Wednesday to Monday): $30 per adult (18 to 64), $25 per senior (65 and over), children under 18 free. Groups are capped at 8 people, children included.
• Camping: an extra $10 per adult or senior per night. Primitive tent sites only, no campfires and no hookups. No camping on Mondays because of the cleaning schedule.
• Tuesdays: private 4-hour slots for one group of up to 8 at $240 per slot. From April to October the slots run 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.; from November to March there are only morning and evening slots. Camping (an extra $50) is possible only with the evening slot.
• Lottery: an online form takes requests two months ahead. Entries made in January, for example, are for March dates, and the office calls March winners during February. You can pick up to three dates. Winners are contacted by email and then book by phone.
• Phone permits: for open dates in the current month, leave a voicemail at the Seattle office at least 2 business days ahead. Payment is by credit card only.
• Walk-ins: first come, first served on site, exact cash only, and only if the day is not full.

Every visitor signs a liability waiver at check-in. Check-in runs from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Day visitors must have left the property by 9 p.m. Campers leave by noon on their departure day.

Rules and etiquette

• Clothing: swimsuits are optional at the pools, the cabana and the upper outhouse, and many people soak nude. Clothing is required elsewhere on the property.
• No phones or cameras at the pools. Photos elsewhere need everyone’s consent, and content for commercial use, including blogs and social media, is banned.
• No food at the pools, and no soap or scrubs. Eat at the picnic tables or your campsite.
• Alcohol only in moderation at the picnic table nearest the cabin and at campsites, never on the trail to the springs or in the pools.
• No glass, dogs, smoking, drugs, weapons, fires, radios, speakers or drones. Backpacking stoves are allowed at campsites and picnic tables only.
• Children must stay with a parent or guardian at all times.
• Quiet hours are 10 p.m. to 8 a.m.
• Pack out everything, including food scraps, diapers and menstrual products. Caretakers hand out food canisters, and campers hang them on lines at each site.

Where to stay nearby

Camping on the property is the simplest option if you book it with your permit. Bring your own tent, food and water.

Back on the road, the Forest Service bans dispersed camping in a corridor along FR 56 and FR 5640 next to the Middle Fork Snoqualmie River, under order 06-05-24-04, which runs to December 31, 2026. Outside closed areas, Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest limits dispersed camping to 14 days in a row at one spot and 28 days a year. North Bend has motels, food and fuel, and is the last real town on the way in.

Safety notes

• Heat: the cave is the hottest spot. Drink water, eat before you soak and get out if your heart races or you feel dizzy.
• Wildlife: black bears and mountain lions live in the valley. Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest has a forest-wide food storage order (06-05-25-01, to April 15, 2027), and Goldmyer supplies canisters on the property.
• Water crossings and the road: turn around rather than drive through a crossing you cannot see the bottom of.
• Remoteness: there is no signal from well before the trailhead. Carry the ten essentials, a headlamp, and tell someone your plan.
• Footing: the rocks around the pools are wet and slick.