Pine Flats Hot Springs

What to expect

Pine Flats is one of the string of hot springs along the Banks-Lowman Highway (State Highway 17, signed as the Wildlife Canyon Scenic Byway) in the Boise National Forest. The water comes out high on a rock face above the South Fork Payette River and trickles down the cliff. Over the years soakers have stacked rocks and laid tarps to catch it in a series of pools on the way down to the river.

The best known pool sits under a hot waterfall that pours off the rock above. Sitting in it feels like a warm shower that never runs out, and some people bring an umbrella to keep the spray off their heads. Other pools step down the slope below it, and one sits around a bend at river level. They range from a two-person tub to a soaker roughly 12 by 6 feet and about 2 feet deep. Bottoms are gravel or tarp. The water is clear and has no noticeable smell.

Temperatures are moderate. Reported readings run from about 96 to 105°F36 to 41°C, and many visitors find most pools in the upper 90s, especially in cold weather or when the river is high and splashes in. If you want a really hot soak, this is not the spring for it. If you want to sit in warm water and watch the river for an hour, it works well.

Because the pools are user-built, their size and number change from year to year. High water rebuilds the lower ones every spring.

There are no facilities at the pools. Pine Flats Campground, where the trail starts, has vault toilets and, in season, drinking water and trash collection.

Getting there

The springs are about 4.8 miles west of Lowman, inside the Lowman Ranger District of the Boise National Forest. Elevation is about 3,700 feet.

• From Boise: Take State Highway 55 north about 38 miles to Banks. Turn right (east) onto Highway 17, the Banks-Lowman Road, and drive 28 miles. Pine Flats Campground is on the right. Garden Valley is about 17.8 miles before the campground.
• From Lowman: Head west on Highway 17 for 4.8 miles. The campground is on the left.

The highway is paved. In winter, snow and ice can make the drive slow, and the campground road is sometimes closed by snow. The campground roads and parking spurs are paved too.

The trail leaves from the campground’s day use area. The Forest Service calls it a quarter-mile nature trail to the first riverside pool. To reach the waterfall pool and the pools below it, keep going and then drop down a steep, loose slope to the river. A walking stick or trekking poles help on the descent. The round-the-bend pool can also be reached by a steeper route with a short cliff drop, which is not a good idea in the wet.

When to go

Late summer and early fall are the easiest months. The river has dropped, the trail is dry and all the pools are above water. The campground is open, which also means it can be busy. Pine Flats fills on big summer weekends.

Spring runoff is the hardest time. The South Fork Payette rises fast in April, May and June, and it has flooded the lower path and cut off the round-the-bend pool in several years. In some springs the only way to that pool was to ford the river, which you should not try in high water.

Winter is quieter. The springs stay usable, and the campground loop is gated once snow sticks. Park at the entrance without blocking the gate and walk in. Wear traction devices if there is ice on the trail.

In spring 2026 the campground was closed for a time while hazard trees were removed. By October 2026 the Forest Service listed it as open with no fees, the water pump locked and no toilet servicing, with the gate set to close at the first snow. Check the campground page or call the Lowman Ranger District at 208-259-3361 before you go.

Rules and etiquette

• Swimsuits required. The Boise National Forest order on public nudity runs from August 27, 2025 to August 27, 2030 and covers the whole forest, including this spring.
• No fee to soak. In season you pay only if you camp: $15 for a single site and $30 for a double. Reservations go through Recreation.gov.
• No soap or shampoo in the pools. They are small and drain slowly.
• Leave the rock walls as you find them. Small repairs are fine. Do not tear down a pool to build a bigger one.
• Pack it out. There are no trash cans at the springs, and in the off season there may be no trash service at the campground either.
• Keep dogs leashed in the campground and away from the pools.

Where to stay nearby

• Pine Flats Campground is right at the trailhead. The Forest Service lists 24 sites, single and double, with picnic tables, fire rings with grills, vault toilets, and paved spurs under partial ponderosa pine shade. It usually runs from late May to late September. There is no electricity, no firewood for sale, and no cell signal.
• Lowman, about 5 miles east, has the ranger station and a few seasonal services. More Forest Service campgrounds line Highway 21 east of town.
• Garden Valley, about 18 miles west, is the nearest larger community to the west, with groceries and fuel. Boise has the full range of hotels.

The nearest RV dump station is at Horseshoe Bend on Highway 55.

Safety notes

• The river: The pools sit right at the edge of a fast, cold river. Do not try to cross it to reach a pool in high water, and watch children and dogs near the bank.
• Footing: The descent to the waterfall pool is steep and loose, and wet rock around the pools is slippery. Good shoes matter more here than at most springs.
• Water quality: As with any wild hot spring, keep your head above the water and do not drink it.
• Wildlife: Black bears live in this part of the forest. Store food in your vehicle at the campground. Deer and elk wander through the sites.
• No signal: There is no cell or landline service at Pine Flats. Tell someone your plans.

Nearby stops worth adding

Highway 17 and Highway 21 have several more soaks within a short drive. Kirkham Hot Springs is east of Lowman on Highway 21, and Bonneville Hot Springs is farther along the same highway, a short walk from its own campground. Both are on Boise National Forest land, so the swimsuit rule applies there too. Boaters can put in upstream near Deadwood Campground, and the Danskin River Access, 5 miles west of Pine Flats, is a popular spot on the South Fork.