Belknap Hot Springs, is a great weekend get away, or a place you could easily spend a week checking out what in my mind what I thought Oregon would look like before I moved to Portland.  Very lush, green, forested, simply beautiful.  Belknap, an hour east of Eugene is a developed hot springs resort that is accessible to any budget.  Belknap offers many lodging options ranging from hotel rooms in their main lodge to secluded camping spots by the McKenzie River and all points in between including RV spaces, and cabins ranging from single room to large enough to sleep 10-12.

First time I visited Belknap was in 1999, at the time I had just got engaged to my husband and we were undecided where to have our wedding, after touring the beautiful grounds of Belknap we knew this would be our spot.

Belknap features two hot pools, one is directly behind the main lodge adjacent to the McKenzie River, the other is the “upper” pool which is closer to the majority of the cabin sites and the upper gardens.  The lower pool is definitely more scenic and worth the short walk if you are not staying in main lodge.

Lower pool pictured to the left, upper to the right.

There is a bridge that takes you across the McKenzie River to extensive gardens (this is where we got married).  There is a Japanese garden, a Secret Garden with an amazing gravity fed fountain and a huge meadow area with an abundance of plantings.  The story I heard is that the owner (ex-logger) loved Butchart Gardens in Victoria and that inspiration guided the development of the grounds and wanted to emulate the Butchart Gardens feel in Oregon.  Across the clearing from the Japanese Tea House we planted a Hemlock Tree at our wedding (it should be about 10 feet tall by now).  To check it out from the Tea House follow the path into the woods that cuts through the center of the grassy area, our tree is just to the right before the path takes you into the woods.

There is lots to do at Belknap, outside of vegging out by the hot springs.  Outside of exploring the beautiful gardens, the McKenzie River Trail runs through Belknap.  This trail is absolutely amazing.  When you start on the trail you go along side road 126 for a little while, but you quickly tuck into the woods along side the amazing McKenzie.  When the sun shines on the river you see the most amazing hues of green and blue. 

Belknap is right around the corner from probably the most amazing scenic drive in America mile for mile the McKenzie Pass which starts off in the most lush of lush Oregon dominated by Douglass Fir, peaks out at the pass at a volcanic lava field where you can see 5-6 mountain peaks on a clear day and virtually no trees then slowly transitions to the drier climate of Central Oregon and Pines and drops you into Sisters a quaint Western feeling town.

Also make sure to check out Clear Lake where you can rent boats…..

And Sahalie Falls right up the road for an amazing double water fall hike.

Enjoy your trip and be sure to rub our tree for good luck!

Bagby Hot Springs is the closest outdoor, forested, hot spring to Portland, approximately an hour and a half drive from the big city. This is a bathing suit optional hot spring.

I typically consider hot springs in two general categories, primitive and developed. Both have their place and time and both styles have degrees of success in their execution. In order for a hot spring pool to be formed there is typically some human intervention involved ranging from diversion of cold stream water with hot spring water contained by rocks and sand to form a pool to digging out a swimming pool sized hole, lining that hole with concrete.

Bagby is the most developed, primitive hot spring I have visited and it is executed beautifully. It is as if the professor from Gilligan’s Island wanted to install a spa for the Howell’s this is what it might look like.

The setting is quintessential West of the Cascades Oregon, located in the Mount Hood National Forest. The hike to the hot springs is a moderate mile and half through old growth forest. The hike is mostly level, once you get close to the end of the hike there is a decent uphill grade, so you will know you are getting close once you start climbing up hill.

Friends of Bagby accepts donations from visitors at a collection box at the entrance, it is unbelievable that there is not a fee to visit Bagby, please suck it up and donate what you can afford to help support Friends of Bagby who maintain the site as volunteers.

Driving Directions: From Estacada, drive south on Highway 224 for about forty miles. Watch for a sign indicating Bagby. The sign leads to Forest Service Road 63. Then watch for Forest Service Road 70. Turn onto Road 70 and go about ten miles to the parking area and trail-head. The last three miles are the hardest as the road turns to gravel and becomes very narrow. From the parking area, signs point to the 1.5 mile trail. The trail can be slippery in the spring, so wear shoes or boots with good traction. One additional word of guidance: Near the end of the trail you will come to an unmarked split in the trail. Go left over the bridge. The hot springs is directly ahead.