By WAHEEDA HARRIS
Lussier Hot Springs (Photo: Tourism BC/Dave Heath)
With cool nights year-round in the Canadian Rockies and on Canada’s the west coast, a soak in a warm pool is a welcome end to a hard day on the trail or a bonus for surviving another work week. The lack of options in eastern Canada isn’t an oversight: the subterranean thermal activity that feeds the springs only exists out west.
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- <small>MOOSE JAW, SASKATCHEWAN</small><br /> <br /> Right in downtown Moose Jaw, the mineral-rich geothermal springs at <a href="http://www.templegardens.sk.ca/index.html">Temple Gardens Mineral Spa Resort</a> contain 14 different compounds including potassium, magnesium and Epsom salts. Admission $8–$15.50.
- Photo: Tourism Saskatchewan/Greg Huszar Photography
- Temple Gardens Mineral Spa Resort
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- Photo: Tourism Saskatchewan/Greg Huszar Photography
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- <small>BANFF, ALBERTA</small><br /> <br /> Discovered in 1884, the <a href="http://www.hotsprings.ca/">Banff Upper Hot Springs</a> are part of Banff National Park, the first national park in Canada. The water is kept between 37°C and 40°C and is naturally infused with sulfates, calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate and sodium. Admission $7.
- Photo: Travel Alberta
- Banff Upper Hot Springs
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- Photo: Travel Alberta
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- <small>JASPER NATIONAL PARK, ALBERTA</small><br /> <br /> The hottest springs in the Canadian Rockies, <a href="http://www.hotsprings.ca/">Miette Hot Springs</a> in Jasper National Park, flows at 53.9°C, and is cooled to a relaxing 39°C. As early as the mid-1800s, it was used by employees of the Hudson’s Bay Company and the Northwest Companies, who were introduced to the springs by their Aboriginal guides. The springs are about a 45-minute drive from the townsite of Jasper. Admission $6–$9.
- Photo: Alberta Tourism
- Miette Hot Springs
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- Photo: Alberta Tourism
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- <small>NAKUSP, BRITISH COLUMBIA</small><br /> <br /> At the community-owned <a href="http://www.nakusphotsprings.com/">Nakusp Hot Springs</a>, the water comes out of the ground at 54°C but flows through a pipe to two pools, which are regulated between 32°C and 40°C depending on the season. More than 11 minerals make this water unique, including calcium, silica, sulphates and sodium. Admission $9.50–$15.
- Photo: Kootenay Rockies Tourism/Tourism BC
- Nakusp Hot Springs
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- Photo: Kootenay Rockies Tourism/Tourism BC
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- <small>BETWEEN INVERMERE AND KIMBERLEY, BRITISH COLUMBIA</small><br /> <br /> In the Kootenays' <a href="http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/parkpgs/whtswan/">Whiteswan Lake Provincial Park</a>, these hot springs are adjacent to the Lussier River, with the cooler pool at 34°C and the main hot pool a steamy 43°C. It's a popular rest spot for hikers and campers who made the trek through the Lussier Gorge. Admission: free.
- Photo: Tourism BC/Dave Heath
- Lussier Hot Springs
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- Photo: Tourism BC/Dave Heath
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- <small>INVERMERE, BRITISH COLUMBIA</small><br /> <br /> At <a href="http://www.fairmonthotsprings.com/hot-springs">Fairmont Hot Springs</a>, 1.5 million gallons per day of mineral-rich hot water from the Columbia Valley flow into three pools: a 30°C dive pool, a 32°C swimming pool and a 39°C hot pool. Admission: $10–$14.
- Photo: Tourism BC
- Fairmont Hot Springs
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- Photo: Tourism BC
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- <small>NEAR REVELSTOKE, BRITISH COLUMBIA</small><br /> <br /> An accidental discovery during the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway line, the <a href="http://www.canyonhotsprings.com/">Canyon Hot Springs</a>, in Albert Canyon, were transformed from hot tubs built by CPR employees to two luxe pools. Between Glacier and Mount Revelstoke National Parks, they’re used year-round by skiers, hikers and campers. Admission: $8.50–$12.50.
- Photo: Tourism BC
- Canyon Hot Springs
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- Photo: Tourism BC
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- <small>NEAR REVELSTOKE, BRITISH COLUMBIA</small><br /> <br /> On the shores of Arrow Lake, <a href="http://www.halcyon-hotsprings.com/">Halcyon Hot Springs Village & Resort</a> has four pools to maximize health benefits: a 40°C hot pool, 30°C mineral pool and a 13°C plunge pool. Or if you prefer, take to the cool waters of Arrow Lake for a summer swim or for kayaking or canoeing. Admission: $11–$18.
- Photo: Kootenay Rockies Tourism
- Halcyon Hot Springs
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- Photo: Kootenay Rockies Tourism
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- <small>HARRISON HOT SPRINGS, BRITISH COLUMBIA</small><br /> <br /> The Fraser Valley town of <a href="http://www.harrisonhotsprings.ca/">Harrison Hot Springs</a>, less than two hours from Vancouver, is a favourite of the Coast Salish peoples for its two natural hot springs, Potash Springs (40°C) and Sulpher Springs (62°C), which are cooled and mixed into the public mineral hot springs pool to a welcoming 38°C. Admission: $8.50–$12.50
- Photo: Tourism BC
- Harrison Hot Springs
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- Photo: Tourism BC
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- <small>RADIUM HOT SPRINGS, BRITISH COLUMBIA</small><br /> <br /> Just outside Kootenay National Park in Sinclair Canyon, the geothermal <a href="http://www.hotsprings.ca/">Radium Hot Springs</a> are divided into two pools: the relaxing 25-metre pool is kept at 27°C and the larger swimming pool is a steamy 39°C. An odourless hot spring, Radium Hot Springs is officially designated as one of Canada’s Historic Places. Admission: $6–$9.
- Photo: Robert D. Hahn/Tourism BC
- Radium Hot Springs
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- Photo: Robert D. Hahn/Tourism BC
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- <small>NEAR TOFINO, BRITISH COLUMBIA</small><br /> <br /> For those who head to Vancouver Island's remote Clayquot Sound by air or sea to visit Maquinna Marine Provincial Park, <a href="http://www.britishcolumbia.com/hotsprings/?id=16">Hot Springs Cove</a> is the reward. You have to work for it, though: access is via a 2-km hike, at the end of which is a series of 47°C natural hot pools that are naturally cooled by the Pacific Ocean. Admission: free.
- Photo: Maquinna Marine Provincial Park
- Hot Springs Cove
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- Photo: Maquinna Marine Provincial Park
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- <small>NEAR NELSON, BRITISH COLUMBIA</small><br /> <br /> The <a href="http://www.hotnaturally.com/">Ainsworth Hot Springs Resort</a> has three pools: a main lounging pool, a cold plunge pool and a 150-foot horseshoe cave pool, where the water is a toasty 42°C. Open year round, these West Kootenay hot springs were initially popularized by prospectors. Admission $11–$16.
- Photo: Kootenay Rockies Tourism
- Ainsworth Hot Springs
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- Photo: Kootenay Rockies Tourism
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