Silver Creek Plunge Hot Springs, Idaho: Pool & Cabins Guide

What Silver Creek Plunge is

The Plunge is a developed swimming pool fed by geothermal water, set in a forested campground on Silver Creek. It has operated since 1957, and the hot pool occupies what Silver Creek Plunge describes as the original mine shaft entrance, which is why the water arrives from the rocks rather than a drilled well. If you picture a natural rock soak, reset expectations: this is a pool with a store, cabins and campsites around it.

Treat the visit as a swim plus a camp stay rather than a quick roadside stop. The pool is the anchor, but the property also holds lodging, tent and RV spots and a store, and the neighboring national forest campground is a short walk away. That combination makes it a good base for a weekend of fishing and mountain driving. For a broader menu of soaks across the state, browse the guide to hot springs in Idaho.

Where it sits

The Plunge lies in Peace Valley on the north side of the Boise National Forest, roughly 25 miles north of Crouch and about two hours from Boise. The surrounding Silver Creek Campground sits at 4,490 feet and runs along the west side of the creek. That elevation explains the cool evenings even in midsummer, so pack a layer for after your swim.

Boise National Forest manages the adjacent campground, which has 53 sites and two group sites within walking distance of the pool. The Forest Service lists the Plunge as a privately developed hot springs resort a quarter mile from the campground. That short distance is the reason many visitors pair a national forest campsite with a pool session.

Getting there

The driving sequence matters on this one. From Boise, take Highway 55 north to Banks, turn east on the Banks-Lowman Road toward Garden Valley, then head north on Middle Fork Road through Crouch. Silver Creek Plunge notes that pavement ends about five miles past Crouch, leaving roughly 15 miles of dirt and gravel to the property.

About eight miles into the gravel stretch the road forks in a Y. Bear right toward Silver Creek Campground onto Forest Road 671 and continue roughly seven more miles, then turn right into the campground, cross the bridge and follow signs to the office and pool. Recreation.gov gives the same route, numbering Middle Fork Road as Forest Road 698 to the fork.

Silver Creek Plunge states that the road to Silver Creek Plunge is open to all vehicles. Even so, that last hour is washboard gravel, so plan your arrival in daylight and carry a spare and water. A high-clearance vehicle is not required, but low-profile tires will feel every mile.

The pool

The pool holds 186,000 gallons of geothermal water that enters from the rocks at 100 to 104 degrees and exits at 97 degrees, with an average of about 100. The flow rate of nearly 540 gallons per minute turns the entire volume over roughly every six hours, so you are always swimming in fresh water rather than a treated recirculating pool.

Temperature varies across the basin. Silver Creek Plunge puts the hottest section at about 100 degrees and the kiddie section at 97 to 98 degrees, which is comfortable for floating and long family swims rather than a scalding soak. The pool is a flow-through design, and the campground asks that you not drink the pool water. The name comes from the old mine entrance that now forms the hot pool.

Fees and hours

The pool is priced by the day for adults, children and seniors, with a lower evening rate in the two hours before closing and a three-day pass that cuts the per-day cost. Children 24 months and under swim without charge. Silver Creek Plunge posts the current rates and the fall schedule on its site, and no reservation is needed for pool entry.

Hours shift with the season and with a weekly cleaning closure. During the main season the pool closes every Wednesday until after 6 p.m., and the fall schedule shortens days further, with some weekdays closed entirely. Check the posted hours before you drive the gravel road, since a closed pool is a long way to go for nothing.

Rules to know before you go

This is a family campground, and the pool rules follow suit. Everyone must wear a swimsuit, and Silver Creek Plunge asks for modest swimwear that covers the chest and bottom. Pets are welcome in the campground but must be leashed and restrained at all times.

Campground rules carry real fines. Quiet hours run from 11 p.m. to 9 a.m., generators are not allowed during them, campfires must be fully extinguished, and there is no garbage service, so everything you bring in goes out with you. Leaving a hot fire or a bag of trash can cost you a fine. There are no showers on the property.

Camping at the Plunge

The Plunge offers three kinds of rental units plus tent and RV spots. Six A-frames built in the late 1950s sleep four with two full beds or a full bed and futon, a gas stove, cold running water and a shared outhouse. Six family cabins sleep six with a private outhouse, and three deluxe units sleep up to eight with indoor plumbing and hot water. Cabin costs rise with those comforts; nightly rates and the spring opening windows are posted on the Silver Creek Plunge booking page.

Tent and RV spots at the Plunge are first-come, first-served and unmarked; look for the fire pit and picnic table combination, stake your spot and check in at the office. Check-in is 3 p.m. and check-out is 11 a.m. Cabins come with covered mattresses but no linens, so bring bedding or a sleeping bag, along with your own cooking gear.

Silver Creek Campground next door

The national forest campground across the creek is the other way to stay. It has paved roads and spurs, drinking water, accessible vault toilets, and sites with tent pads, fire rings and picnic tables. Two group sites, Lodgepole Springs and Cabin Creek, hold 100 and 80 people respectively, which makes them workable for reunions.

Single sites allow one vehicle and double sites two, with an extra-vehicle charge collected at the Plunge store. The campground is first-come, first-served, and you register and pay at the store. It is pack-in, pack-out, with quiet hours from 11 p.m. to 9 a.m. and generators off by 11.

Because the forest campground sits within a quarter mile of the pool, you can walk to a swim and leave the car parked. On a busy summer weekend that matters, since parking near the office fills. Bring a flashlight for the walk back after an evening swim.

Fishing and trails nearby

Peace Valley gives you reasons to stay beyond the pool. Silver Creek, Peace Creek and the nearby Middle Fork Payette River fish well for much of the year, with anglers casting for rainbow trout and whitefish. The Peace Creek Trail, Silver Creek Summit Trail and Bull Creek Trail all start near the campground, and the valley has routes for hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding and OHV riding.

In-season big game hunting for deer, elk and bear is popular in the surrounding mountains, so wear bright colors in fall. Wildlife in the valley includes deer, elk, bald eagles and red-tailed hawks. Keep the camera handy on the drive in.

Best time to go

Summer weekends are the busiest stretch, when cabin guests, campers and day swimmers converge and Saturday evenings fill the pool. A weekday visit, or an evening swim in the two hours before closing, gives you more room in the water. Fall brings shorter hours and some weekday closures, so build your trip around the posted schedule.

Spring opening weekends vary by lodging type, with deluxe and family cabins opening before the rest of the property. If you want a cabin rather than a tent site, book early and confirm the opening window for your dates. Late-season travelers should call ahead before committing to the gravel drive.

What to bring

Pack as if you were camping, because you are. Bring all bedding and linens, cooking utensils, a swimsuit that meets the modest-swimwear rule, bug spray, a flashlight and a light jacket for cool mountain evenings. Power is limited to a small solar field, so leave electric skillets, hair dryers and curling irons at home.

For the USFS campground and the Plunge tent sites, plan to carry out every scrap of trash and to leave the site as you found it. That means bringing bags for garbage and keeping food stored away from wildlife. It is a small habit that keeps the valley clean for the next camper.

Nearby springs for a road trip

The Plunge works well as one stop on a longer soak tour. Bear River Hot Springs, Idaho, near the Riverdale Valley, is a developed soaking stop in the southeast part of the state, on a different route from the Boise mountains. Frenchman's Bend Hot Springs and Rocky Canyon Hot Springs sit in the forest country closer to this drive, and Burgdorf Hot Springs in the Payette National Forest makes a rustic overnight.

Plan the loop around drive times, since the gravel section to the Plunge takes about an hour and the forest springs sit off their own dirt roads. Two nights gives you one developed pool and one hike-in soak without rushing. Pair a pool day with a Saturday morning at a forest spring for a good balance. If you want to widen the loop beyond Idaho, the hot springs in Nevada make a natural next leg on a longer soak tour.

Plan Your Soak

Silver Creek Plunge rewards travelers who want a warm swim, a cabin or campsite and a forest setting without a hike. Lock in your lodging early, plan around the Wednesday cleaning closure and fall hours, and allow daylight for the gravel road. Confirm current conditions with the Boise National Forest or the Plunge office before a late-season drive.