Liard Hot Springs, British Columbia, Canada
July 08, 2019
Not far North of Muncho Lake lies the small place called Liard Hot Springs. We have been wanting to check out some hot springs while in Canada and despite having the opportunity at several places in the Southern end of the Canadian Rockies we didn’t take those chances as it was simply far too hot when we were there. The last thing you want to do when the sun is blazing down at 30+ °C is to go for a dip in a steamy bowl of natural hot water. Thankfully at Liard the temperature was a little cooler and we decided now was the perfect time to enjoy a relaxing day at the hot springs. The springs at Liard are the largest natural hot springs in Canada and are located just a stones throw from the side of the Alaska highway. There are no wild camp spots you can access nearby but BC parks have a paid recreation site which includes your entry to the springs. So for the princely sum of about 12 quid we decided to stay for the night and make use of the facilities.
The boardwalk and pool facilities were built in 1942 by the US army and have been a popular destination ever since. Volcanic hot water cascades down the nearby rock face where several species of plant including 14 species of Orchid thrive in the warmer temperatures. The area was originally known as “The tropical valley” and it’s easy to see why.
Further down from the rock face is a large natural rock pool of steamy water which is where they built the facilities to allow people to enjoy the springs. As you would expect the temperature of the springs varies depending on how far away from the source you are. the temperature range here is anywhere between 42 °C and 52 °C. As we tried to enter at the top of the pool, closer to the source we couldn’t handle the heat. I felt like a boil in the bag human. There is a ledge at the closest point to the source in the pool and there are piles of rocks on top of the ledge. People see if they can stand being that far up the pool and place rocks on the ledge to prove they made it. There was no way we could take such heat so we moved further down the pool. We spotted a guy who spent the entire time we were there sat casually at the very top of the pool near the ledge. How he didn’t cook his internal organs is beyond me!
Once at the more manageable middle of the pool it was amazingly refreshing. There are a lot of minerals in the pool that are supposed to be good for you and we both certainly felt invigorated after an hour of dipping in and out. There is a second pool further down which disappears off into the forest and every so often we would go for a swim along there to refresh ourselves in the much cooler water. It was a really pleasant and relaxing way to spend a day especially given how long we have been living out of the van and how often we have the chance to really freshen ourselves up.
Later that day after the springs we relaxed with a few beers and a camp fire, sat out under the stars still hoping for a glimpse of the Northern lights. I really don’t think it’s going to happen but while we are this far North we have to keep trying every night just on the off chance they are visible. We would hate to miss out and sleep through them if they ever do show themselves.
Since we visited Liard hot springs it has came out in the news about the two Canadian lads who have committed 3 murders. The first of these murders was at Liard just two days after we were there. It was a young innocent couple just starting out on their travels through Canada in a camper van just like ourselves. It’s very sad news indeed. We have checked in the news since and we don’t recognize either of them or their camper van from when we were there. How people can do this to one another is beyond me and I feel for both them and their families.
