Liard River Hot Springs

Liard River Hot Springs is a provincial park at the northern tip of BC. It was one of the first things that got Mr. Kate thinking about going all the way to the north of the province, about two years ago, when he read about them in a motorcycling magazine article. So we knew it would be worked into the trip itinerary, as we would be driving right by it! You can camp there, but as we were stopping at Muncho Lake Provincial Park just south, we made it an afternoon stop rather than an overnight destination.

To get to the hot spring pools you walk along a boardwalk that has been built into a bog and forested area. The bog has fish, and apparently is a good place to spot moose, although it wasn’t where we saw our moose. It was very warm the day we were there, I can imagine how it would look walking through there on a misty fall day.

There are two pools, one with benches and one left more natural. The more natural pool is the cooler of the two, as there is a small stream at the back of it that brings in cold water. You can move around and find spots where the cold water is down low around your feet – quite refreshing.  The bottom of the pools is fine grit and sand, very soft and easy to walk on. The upper pool, were the spring is located, is hotter than most hot tubs. I lasted about 10 seconds before needing to get out!

My two water babies (aka Bushboy and Mr. Kate) loved the hot springs and stayed quite a while in the lower pool. I had to get out sooner, as I don’t tolerate being submersed in hot water all that well, but had a lovely time watching people come and go as well as looking at all the lovely scenery. If you ever get to the northernmost part of BC – be sure to go soak in Canada’s second largest natural hot springs!