Boiling River - Yellowstone National Park

Soaking in geothermal water in Boiling River, some call it Gardner River, was a high point of my Yellowstone National Park vacation. It’s a little tricky since there are not signs but well worth the trouble. About 2.3 miles from the north entrance of the park, near the 45 parallel sign, you’ll see a make-shift parking lot. Throw on a bathing suit, grab your towel and water shoes, and make your way to the path that leads to the river.

After about a ½ mile walk, you’ll come to an obvious entrance point to the river. A wooden rail has been constructed to help guide you to the water. This is where the hot water from the geysers joins the river. And when I say hot, I mean scalding. Stand two feet too close and you’ll burn, stand two feet too far and you’ll freeze, but that spot inbetween, AHHH!

Not only do you need to negotiate the temperature, but you need to haggle with the currents. Because it is so “AHHH”some, the swimming hole can get very crowded. I helped a father and his two year old make their way back upstream because the current was too much for them. To stop myself from being carried away by the current, I hung onto a man. We talked and made a few jokes about my grabbing him. I giggled as my sister-in-law and I were swept away by the water and the experience.