Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Austin Hot Springs

UPDATE - June 11, 2017:
Made a new post on these springs here http://rubble.blogspot.com/2017/06/austin-hot-springs.html

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Always been curious about this rather mysterious spot on the Clackamas River. I'd tried Googling it, but never knew the name until today when I stumbled on a picture on Google Earth...

Austin Hot Springs | SoakOregon.com:

"Approximately 60 miles outside of Portland along Highway 224 lies Austin Hot Springs. This natural hot spring, heated by volcanic activity, sits in and along the Clackamas River, among the pristine trees of the Mt. Hood National Forest. There could be several rock pools along the river suitable for qualification depending on the season. Please be aware of Austin’s 200+ degree bursts of hot water and use extreme caution when soaking in this spring. There are suitable spots to soak, just be very careful to not scald yourself. A waterproof digital thermometer can help locate burst zones." 
"If YOU were paying attention... you’d know that J. Frank Schmidt now owns the land. PGE had it in the 60’s and 70’s, where it once had a campground. But PGE closed the campground in the late 70’s because Russian immigrants were living there full time and threatening others who attempted to camp there. PGE turned it into a day use only park for a few years. After a few lawsuits in the early 80’s for people being scalded, PGE closed the park and tore out the footbridge. They then sold the property. Schmidt bought it hoping to develop it into another Brightbush Resort type location… but failed to gain the permits and codes to do such. After being sued twice, he took measures to make access to the area difficult. It has been up for sale for at least 3 years now, but he is wanting too much for it. [Posted 4/19/2012]"

I might be out that way today and I'll grab some pictures if I am (wasn't poking around there on Google Earth for no reason!), but plans aren't set in stone yet.  If not, I'll dig and see if I can find some old pictures from here and update this post.

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