The Hot Spring:

  Austin Hot Springs consist of a bunch of hot water seeps along the Clackamas River that bubble up into rock lined sand and gravel pools in the river.  There are many seeps all along either side of the river engulfing the river in steam creating a very cool hazy look.  The water is extremely hot and mixes with the cold water of the river in a series of pools (always check temperature before getting in).  It is so hot that if the cold water does not mix it can be scalding hot and has given people burns who did not check the water before jumping in.  The temperature can be changed by altering the rock wall configuration.  Some of the pools also have carpets on the bottom to protect your butt from the extremely hot water.  There are also reported to be a couple soakable pools across the river but we could not make the river crossing when we visited the springs.

  Today the springs are privately owned and closed to the public because the owners were sewed in 2008.  A woman got 2nd degree burns on over half her body at Austin Hot Springs and is sewing for 2.8 million dollars because it was not adequately signed, even though she was trespassing. In the past Portland General Electric owned the springs and allowed access but vandalism and littering caused the company to eventually close the area to the public also.  Despite the closure, and danger the springs are still located directly off of a paved road and are therefore commonly used and abused.  The area appears to continue to be a party location where people do not respect the land leaving large amounts of garbage around the springs.  Please be careful at this site if you decide to visit and try to leave it cleaner than you found it.