2016 Family Backpacking Trip to Some Hot Springs

We have some friends who have three children and enjoy camping and backpacking like we do. Early in the summer we set a date to take a little trip with our two families. The date finally came in late August and we set out: two couples and eight children to do a ~2 mile backpacking trip and camp out.

The place we selected was north of Crouch, ID. The Middle Fork of the Payette River flows down a ravine into Crouch, and there are several springs in the area. We were headed to some Hot Springs that were about two miles up a trail in a nice area where a creek flows into the Middle Fork.

We were a bit delayed getting out of town on a Friday afternoon, but after navigating traffic and driving about 23 miles on the road (mostly gravel) north of Crouch, we arrived at our destination.

Ready to get started at the trailhead
Ready to get started at the trail head; missing one adult

The trail we ended up taking was the Middlefork Trail.

Middlefork Trail Hot Springs Backpacking - Sign

The trail was pretty flat and followed the beautiful, meandering Middle Fork of the Payette River. There were some spots that were a bit difficult for the kids to navigate, but we got through them.

The trail was a little tricky at parts
The trail was a little tricky at parts

Fortunately our friends’ children are a bit older and helped out with our little ones. This made the hike go by much more quickly and with minimal complaining from the kids.

The older kids helped the younger kids out
The older kids helped the younger kids out

Even the baby was happy in her carrier.

Mom and baby on the trail
Mom and baby on the trail

We arrived fairly late and immediately set up tents and made dinner. It was 9pm or so when we actually ate. The kids were troopers and fortunately we had raisins and fruit leather that helped hold them over.

Since we have a 15 month old, our family took two tents. I slept in the little tent with the baby so that she didn’t wake up everyone else as easily. She also tends to cry more if she sees her mom (as have all our children), so it was good to separate them. She ended up sleeping really well, all things considered. She awoke briefly at about 1am. Then she woke up at 5am, at which point I just put her in my sleeping bag with me and she slept until I got out of the tent at 7:30am or so. She then took some naps later on.

The other kids also slept really well.

Time to leave the warm tent in the morning
Time to leave the warm tent in the morning

In the morning we ate oatmeal for breakfast and then put our swimsuits on and headed for the main attraction.

Testing out the hot springs
Testing out the hot springs

The hot springs tub was pretty awesome. It had some cement to make a quality tub. There was a pipe with super hot water coming in from the spring, and another with cold water coming in from the creek. The water flow was adjustable on both of the pipes. Then there was a big drainage pipe that could be unplugged to flush out all the water.

Crowded hot springs tub
A crowd in the hot springs tub

We spent a couple hours soaking in the tub and daring each other to jump in the creek.

The creek fed by multiple springs
The creek fed by multiple springs

We headed out before noon and took a parallel trail which required a couple river crossings, which were pretty fun.

Part of our crew crossing the Middle Fork of the Payette River
Part of our crew crossing the Middle Fork of the Payette River

We got back to the car and made it home in time to catch a 4:30pm barbecue.

The fear with a trip like this is mainly the kids. Will they be able to hike without complaining too much? Will they sleep? Will they be safe? Kids almost always love camping, so we’ve found that as long as the parents are prepared, the kids will be just fine. That’s how it turned out this time. Our kids get regular outdoor play time and exercise so they were fine on the hike. We had sleeping arrangements that made for a fairly comfortable night for everyone. Just get them outdoors and things usually work out.

What a great trip!

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