Stinking Hot Springs (Stinky Springs)

What to expect

Stinking Hot Springs is about as far from a spa as a hot spring gets. Three open concrete tubs sit side by side inside the shell of an old cement-block bathhouse on the edge of State Route 83, west of Corinne in Box Elder County. The roof is long gone. The walls are covered in graffiti. From the road the low wall can look like a pile of junk, and plenty of people drive straight past it.

The water rises on the north side of the highway at the base of Little Mountain, comes out of limestone along a buried fault, and runs under the road through a culvert to the tubs. At the source it has been measured at 113-124°F45-51°C. In the tubs it is a few degrees cooler, and recent visitors describe a gradient of roughly 103-113°F39-45°C from one tub to the next. The tubs are known locally as the “Three Sisters.”

The name is honest. The water carries hydrogen sulfide, and the rotten-egg smell hits you as soon as you open the car door. It is also very salty and heavily mineralized, with sodium chloride, lithium and bromide, partly because the spring sits on the margin of the old Great Salt Lake mudflats. Expect the smell to stay in your swimsuit and hair after you leave.

There are no toilets, trash cans, changing areas or drinking water. What you get is hot water, a view of the Bear River marshes and a lot of character.

The U.S. Geological Survey lists the spring as Stinking Hot Springs. You will also see it called Stinky Springs, Old Indian Hot Springs, Golden Youth Mineral Springs and Sulphur Springs. They are all the same place.

Getting there

• From Brigham City or I-15: Take I-15 exit 365 and head west on UT-13 toward Corinne, about 4 miles. At the 4800 West junction the road becomes SR-83. Keep going about 5.6 miles. The tubs are on the left (south) side, behind a low wall. The site has been given as 9200 West Highway 83.
• From Salt Lake City: Drive north on I-15 to exit 365, then follow the directions above. Allow a little over an hour.

There is a large dirt pull-off next to the wall, so you can park within a few steps of the tubs. SR-83 carries fast traffic and trucks, so pull well off the pavement and watch for cars when you get out. The source is on the other side of the highway; there is no reason to cross to it.

When to go

The tubs are in use all year. Cool, dry months from October through April are the most comfortable time to sit in water this hot. In July and August the open, shadeless site on the valley floor gets very hot, and the tubs can feel like too much.

Go in daylight. The site has no lighting and sits on a dark stretch of highway, and the uneven concrete is easier to read when you can see it. Weekday afternoons are usually quiet. You may have the tubs to yourself, or you may find a few locals already in them.

Temperatures have changed over the past few years, and one visitor account links that to earthquake activity in the region. Do not rely on old reports. Test each tub with your hand first.

Rules and etiquette

There are no posted rules, no fee and no staff. The land is privately owned, and BLM land-status data shows it as private. One local account says the House family, who first claimed the spring after it was “discovered” by settlers in 1868, gave it to Box Elder County on the condition that anyone could use it free of charge. Whatever the legal history, the public has soaked here for decades. That is a custom, not a right, so obey any sign that goes up.

There is no posted clothing rule. Most visitors wear swimsuits, and the tubs are in plain view of the highway.

Good manners here are simple:

• Pack out everything. Litter has been a problem at this site since at least the 1990s.
• No glass. Broken glass in an unlit concrete tub is a real hazard.
• No soap or shampoo in the tubs.
• Do not add to the graffiti or damage the inflow pipes.
• Share. Three tubs is not many on a busy evening.

Where to stay nearby

There is no camping at the springs, and it is not a place to spend the night.

• Brigham City, about 20 to 25 minutes east by road, has motels, restaurants and fuel. It is the practical base.
• Willard Bay State Park, south of Brigham City off I-15, has developed campgrounds on the reservoir.
• Ogden and Logan have the widest choice of hotels in northern Utah, each about an hour’s drive or less.

Safety notes

• Gases: The spring gives off hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide. Inside the walled tub area on a still day, those gases can collect at water level. If you feel dizzy, headachy or short of breath, get out and get fresh air.
• Deaths at the site: In 2000 the springs were closed for several months for tests after a man died here. The death was ruled a drowning, and the tubs reopened on a use-at-your-own-risk basis. In May 2025, the body of a 69-year-old Brigham City man was found in the water at Stinking Springs; the cause had not been reported. Never soak alone and never soak after drinking.
• Water quality: These are untreated, unmaintained tubs. Keep your head out of the water and do not soak with open cuts.
• Heat: The hottest tub can reach the low 110s°F. Keep soaks short and drink water.
• Radium: Studies of the spring found relatively high radium levels, though a 1977 local report said it was not considered a hazard under normal bathing.
• Traffic: The bigger everyday risk is SR-83. Park off the road and keep kids and dogs close.

History

The Northwestern Shoshone used these springs long before settlers arrived. After 1868, Corinne pioneer Hiram House took over the site, and his son W. F. House boiled the water down and sold the mineral residue as a tonic called “Golden Youth.” A 1945 state guide described a series of pools at the base of Little Mountain. The block bathhouse came later, and over the years it was vandalized, stripped of its roof and patched with tarps. Through all of it, the soak has stayed free.

Nearby stops worth adding

The Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, west of Brigham City, has a driving loop through marshes that fill with migrating waterbirds in spring and fall. Golden Spike National Historical Park at Promontory Summit, where the first transcontinental railroad was joined in 1869, is farther west along SR-83 and makes a natural pairing with a short soak on the way out or back.