Everyone wants to visit the Aspen valley in Colorado and for good reason. Maroon Bell, Independence Pass, Glenwood Hot Springs, the Grottos Ice Caves, Snowmass Village, Buttermilk Ski Area, and the list goes on and on. Everything you do and see just makes your soul sing and your jaw drop! It is so beautiful! People from all over the world visit this valley!
People come from all over to go to these really big, well known places; but they miss the gems of this valley. Hayes Creek Falls, Doc Holliday Gravesite, Devils Punch Bowl, Crystal River Hatchery, and John Denver Sanctuary to name a few of these lesser known gems. One of our favorite gems in this Aspen Valley is Penny Hot Springs.
This gorgeous hot springs is located on the riverside and surrounded by gorgeous mountains. I mean this place is so beautiful! Unlike the more popular hot springs of the valley this one is built into the river just using the rocks on the riverside. It is not located at any resort and actually there is no structure at all located a the property. It is a natural hot springs right in the middle of nature!
Where Is Penny Hot Springs?
The hot springs in located just in Redstone which is on the western side of Carbondale about 15 minutes. Redstone is pretty much a valley of its own located in the Aspen valley. It is a very beautiful drive through the mountains and a very curvy drive. So if you get car sick be sure to pack some barf bags!
Best way to find Penny Hot Springs is to plug it into your Google Maps and follow that. It is a pretty difficult place to find even though it is literally right off the side of the road. It is located right at a curve so you won’t see it until you go around a curvy road and even then you don’t actually see the springs. There is no giant marker, no building; only a couple small parking spots at the side of the road.
My point is, if you are trying to just look for it while driving down the road it is easy to miss. Even knowing where it was at I have missed turning into the parking lot a couple times. It is just such a small parking area that you wouldn’t notice it was there unless you were looking for it.
Parking
Yes, there are parking spots, but maybe 10 spots at most. What I am hinting at is that this hot springs can get pretty busy so prepare for parking to go fast. If you can’t park in the parking spaces then you will have quite the distance to walk to get to the springs cause there isn’t really anywhere to even pull off close by. So if the parking lot is full maybe try again another day or time cause that means the pools are full too.
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Things You Should Know Before You Go:
Unlike Glenwood Hot Springs which is a giant pool, Penny Hot Springs is about 8 small pools. By small I mean you can fit maybe 2 people in some of them. 2 of those pools are bigger to where you could probably fit about 10 people in them. The 2 bigger pools are harder to heat up though because it involves a lot more water.
You control the temperature. You read that right, you are in control of the temperature of your pool that you are in. Now let me explain, the pools are rocks stacked to make separate sections on the side of the river. The river water is cold and the springs water coming out of the mountainside is very hot. So if you are only letting river water in it will be cold, and vice versa. So if your pool is too cold, then move rocks to let in more of the hot spring water. You create your own pool temperature.
You will get muddy. These pools are on the riverside and they are natural. Glenwood Hot Springs is pretty much a manmade concrete pool filled with hot spring water. Penny Hot Springs is pretty much playing in the dirty river with hot water coming in, so you are sitting in mud or on muddy rocks.
It is hard to get to the pools. The pools are located at the base of the cliff. Yep a super steep cliff! There is a pathway of sorts, but it is still super steep and very rocky. Last time I went I slipped on my way down and lets just say this wasn’t the only time one of us slipped on the path. My point is that this is not handicap friendly or for anyone that can’t handle steep trails.
These are primitive handmade pools. Unlike the springs in the Glenwood area, these hot springs are not made of concrete. These pools are just rocks stacked along the riverside in circles to make smaller pools.
Connected to a fast flowing river. Do not go swim in the pools after a heavy rainstorm! These pools are built into the side of the river. People use this river to raft down and the rapids can be pretty strong in some areas. So when it rains outside these pools get more of the rapids in them and can get a pretty strong current. Also this is why spring is not a good season to visit the snow run off can make the water too high for the hot springs.
No dogs are allowed.
FREE!! There is no admission or payment to swim at the hot springs.
This is not a place to swim, but to wade and relax. I mean feel free to swim in the freezing cold, snow fed river, but other than that you won’t be swimming, it is too shallow.
There is a porta pod, but no trash cans.
No life guard on duty. This is a swim at your own risk location. I highly recommend bringing a friend just for general safety in the buddy system.
It stinks like sulfur. Just like all hot springs, this one smells like sulfur. Yep it stinks.
Tips For Visiting Penny Hot Springs:
- Wear WATERSHOES!! Water shoes or Keens or some sort of waterproof will make a world of a difference in your experience. My feet got so cut up on the sharp rocks and I kept slipping on the mud. The whole time we were here all I wanted to do was put on water shoes.
- Bring as little as possible. The trail up and down the hot springs is very, very steep and rocky. The first time I visited I hauled a cooler picnic down the trail and that was a disaster. I got it down, but it wasn’t easy; then getting it back up was even harder. Just remember that everything you bring to the river you will have to bring back up.
- Wear sunscreen. You are at a higher elevation here and so being closer to the sun means it is easier to get burned. The hot springs are not shaded at all so you are completely in the sun.
- Stay out of the puddles! Some hot springs don’t get very hot, but this hot springs can be scalding hot! The water that pools from the mountainside is very hot. If you step in one of the puddles of this hot water without combing it with the cold river water, it will burn you.
- Adjust the rocks to control your temperature. If the water is too hot, move some rocks to let in the cold river water. If it is too cold move rocks from the mountain to let in the hot spring water. You control how hot the water will be.
- Go on a weekday. This hot springs can accommodate up to around 10-20 people in total, and it being a free, gorgeous hot springs; you can imagine how busy and crowded it gets. Weekends are the worst, and so are the evenings of weekdays. I suggest going on a week day, during the day.
- Keep an eye out for wildlife. After all you are in the mountains and there is not much more than cabins nearby. I have seen coyotes, moose, elk, deer, and snakes near this location. We were just hanging in the pools and snake slithers by, so just be aware and respectful of nature.
- If you bring little kids, keep them close. I brought my little toddlers to the hot springs, but I was a worried mess the whole time. The river that the hot springs are built into are really deep with a strong current. If you have little ones, invest in a life jacket; for their safety and your peace of mind.
Penny Hot Springs With Kids:
If your kids are anything like mine, then they will have fun anywhere, especially somewhere with water and mud. They loved splashing in the water and making mud castles. They were super bummed though that they couldn’t go swimming, because the water is too low. Also we did not bring water shoes for them so they were pretty miserable walking on those sharp rocks with bare feet.
To sum it up. This isn’t really that fun of a place to take kids or at least little kids. These hot springs are mostly for just sitting and relaxing which are 2 things almost every young child dislikes.
My Thoughts On Penny Hot Springs:
If you are looking for the perfect, budget friendly date night than sure the hot springs are a great place to visit. Of course you will leave covered in mud and smelling like sulfur, but hey it’s like natures spa night. Haha! The view surrounding the pools though are gorgeous so it’s a really easy and relaxing way to be in nature. I loved visiting the hot springs just for the views.
It wasn’t as fun to do with kids and I probably never would go again with kids, but I would go with my husband or friends just to enjoy the hot water and gorgeous mountains on the riverside. Hope you enjoy your time here as well.
Other Fun Things To Do Near Penny Hot Springs:
Redstone Coke Ovens
Mushroom Rock
Crystal River State Fish Hatchery
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