Cottonwood Hot Springs
- Location
- Buena Vista, Colorado, United States
- Water type
- sulfurous
- Temperature
- 40 °C
- pH
- 7.2
Water profile
Relaxing — deep, immediate muscle release.
Rich in active gases or metals — a strong mineral character.
Soft water — natural, classic buoyancy.
Cottonwood Hot Springs occupies a quiet bend of Cottonwood Creek in the Arkansas River Valley near Buena Vista, Colorado — a corner of the Southern Rockies renowned for its dramatic fourteen-thousand-foot peaks, clear mountain light, and a landscape that draws those in search of genuine alpine solitude. The resort, small and deliberately unhurried in character, sits at an elevation where the temperature contrast between cool mountain air and warm pool water produces one of the most pleasurable bathing sensations the region offers.
The sulfurous water rises at 40 °C, filling a series of simple outdoor pools that invite extended soaking under open Rocky Mountain sky. A pH of 7.2 keeps the water balanced and gentle, while the mineral content carries that faint but unmistakable sulfurous note typical of Colorado's volcanic hydrology. The atmosphere at Cottonwood is refreshingly unmanicured — worn timber, mossy stone edges, and the sound of the creek nearby — making it a favourite retreat for those who value character and quiet over polished amenities.