Dewar Hot Springs

BOU AVENUE
Dewar Hot Springs

After a couple of days of uncertainty about where to hike near St. Mary's Alpine Provincial Park in the Purcell Mountains of British Columbia, there was no doubt about where Eva B., John Bence, Parry Loeffler, Rob Maybury, Eva Nagyova, Zosia Zgolak and I were going on 5 September 2016. Eva B. and John had suggested the long hike to Dewar Hot Springs as detailed in Hot Springs of Western Canada: A Complete Guide by Glenn Woodsworth and David Woodsworth, and after our meandering trip up Mount Manson, it was nice to not worry about route-finding for a change. Although the hike to the hot springs is generally easy, the trail is quite wet and mucky in a lot of places, and it is a fairly long walk to boot. Occasional views are limited to the surrounding nondescript ridges, but the real attraction of this hike remains the hot springs themselves. Although park rangers reportedly dismantled several of the pools at the hot springs, there is at least one pool left which is large enough to accommodate a large group such as ours. We considered ourselves fortunate to have the pool mostly to ourselves (a couple with a baby and dog arrived just before us but did not stay long), and we thoroughly enjoyed soaking in the warm waters. Some of us even enjoyed soaking, albeit briefly, in the icy waters of Dewar Creek! After drying ourselves off, we briefly visited the nearby backcountry campground before making the long march back to the trailhead. That was followed by an even longer drive home to cap off the long weekend.

	The group crosses a girder bridge over a tributary of Dewar Creek.
	Stopping to enjoy the warmth of the morning sun are (L to R) Parry, Rob, Zosia, Eva N., Eva B. and John.
	The group comes across some other hikers as well as some private cabins not far from Dewar Hot Springs.
	Steam rises from Dewar Hot Springs. Note the tent which is pitched in an illegal location.
	Sonny picks up a boreal toad near the pool area.
	Zosia, Eva B. and John are the first ones in the pool.

Best ever Labour Day long weekend of 2016!

Enjoying a well-deserved soak in the pool are (L to R) Parry, Eva N., Zosia, Rob, John, Eva B. and Sonny.

	Eva B. watches as Zosia and Eva N. submerge themselves in icy Dewar Creek.
	Sonny looks quite comfortable sitting in Dewar Creek.
	The smaller upper pool is in need of some improvements before it can be used.
	After soaking in the hot pool, the group relaxes at the nearby backcountry campground.
	Zosia looks refreshed for the long hike back to the trailhead.
	Total Distance: 22.3 kilometres Round-Trip Time: 8 hours 14 minutes Net Elevation Gain: 211 metres GPX Data