Granite Falls Hot Springs

Rather than waste the morning before going to work in the afternoon, we took a short trip to Granite Falls and Hot Springs. This is in an area where we have not explored at all, and is very close to the home of one of our co-workers - Donna. It is located about 30 miles from our location and was well worth the drive. The falls and hot springs are located about 10 miles off the main road through some typical, beautiful Wyoming countryside.

Here are some photos of our drive along the very well maintained dirt road:

We reached the Falls and walked a short distance from the road to view this unusual, but beautiful falls:

The hot springs were located a short drive from the falls where there was a swimming pool that was constructed in 1933. The sign below says it all about this special area:

Yes, that is 400" of snowfall each year. Unfortunately, we didn't bring our swim suits to enjoy the pool, but these photos give you a good idea of what it looks like:

The pool is located, seemingly, in the middle of nowhere. It is a mineral spring and no sulphur is present in the water. The pool is completely drained, cleaned and refilled every day and it drains into the creek that empties into the Hoback River that runs throughout the area. The Granite Falls and the river were used to film scenes in the movie "A River Runs Through It". Below is one of our shots of this creek, flowing alongside the pool:

The drive back out from the pool and hot springs was another look at this beautiful countryside from a different angle. We spotted a deer crossing the road but didn't get the camera ready in time to get a shot. We did get some shots on the way out that included these cattle that were grazing by the river and "spooked" by Josie when she tried to approach them:

and this thistle that was a first sighting for us:

When we reached the main road, we took a short drive to the town, Bondurant, where Donna lives to try and spot her home. We didn't know which home was hers, but the views were spectacular from the road as you can see below:

We will return to enjoy the pool someday soon, but the trip was a pleasant drive. We returned in plenty of time to start working at 3 PM.

Today is a bit of an unknown as we are awaiting final word on the truck decision from the Ford dealer in Afton. Our fingers are crossed and the rest of our time off this week depends on that decision. If Ford approves the replacement, we can schedule another hike for tomorrow. If Ford rejects covering the replacement, we will have to decide whether to bring it home or bite the bullet and have them repair it. At any rate, it's nice to be off for a couple days...