British Columbia · Natural setting
Halfway River Hot Springs
A river-valley spring system near the Arrow Lakes, distinct from the separately recorded Upper Halfway source. The historical compilation labels this record “Halfway (Kootenay Lake)”; its coordinates place it in the Arrow Lakes area.
Historical source coordinate; not a trailhead. Accuracy and datum have not been independently verified. Historical water readings describe source samples, not safe soaking temperatures.
Free, and now properly managed
Halfway is a free natural hot spring north of Nakusp that has moved from being a loosely managed destination to a designated BC Recreation Site overseen by Recreation Sites and Trails BC. That transition is visible on the ground: defined pools, a laid-out campground and actual maintenance.
There are three main pools near the base of the main trail — the largest and by far the busiest — with further smaller options in the vicinity for anyone willing to look.
The road decides your season
The site lies roughly 25.6 km north of Nakusp on Highway 23, followed by about 11 km of forest service road. That last stretch is the constraint: it is almost never passable from late November until as late as April.
So Halfway is effectively a May-to-October spring. Attempting the forest road outside that window is how people end up stuck a long way from help.
Camping on site
There are around 20 vehicle-accessible campsites plus more than 20 hike-in sites, with additional overflow spots scattered through the area. A camping fee of about $15 per day applies from 1 May to 31 October.
Combined with Nakusp and Halcyon nearby, Halfway rounds out what is probably the best concentrated hot-spring touring region in the province.
Opening hours & season
No verified visitor timetable
Access depends on land-manager permission, closures and local conditions. No published timetable should be interpreted as 24-hour access.
All times are local to the spring. Checked 2026-10-01; this is not a live opening-status display. Closure notices override regular hours.
Our take
A promising natural-setting option to research further, but verify the recreation-site directions and conditions before planning a visit.
Editorial assessment based on published information. No firsthand visit or customer score is implied.
Before you go
Sources & record notes
Geoscience BC’s 2016 compilation · 5 historical sampling records · Source name: Halfway (Kootenay Lake). References recorded in the dataset: Souther 1976; Grasby 2000; Geoscience BC 2016-07.
Source notes: 30a. Coordinates from Woodsworth (2014); 30b; (HS1 2007 sample) Polaris Infrastructure kind permission; (HS2 2007 sample) Polaris Infrastructure kind permission
Sources used for this guide
- Halfway Hot Springs — frequently asked questions
- Camping RV BC — Halfway River Hotsprings
- Hot Springs of BC — Halfway River Hot Springs
Written from the published sources above. Operator hours, access rules and closures change; the official link is authoritative.