On a recent trip to Chico Hot Springs, my husband and I put on our bathing suits in the chilly concrete dressing rooms and walked barefoot and exposed across the icy walkways that many had walked before. The temperature was a frigid -5°. We gripped the ice-covered railings of the large pool and submerged ourselves in the warm, welcome embrace of the 110° mineral-rich water. The cold air over the hot pools was thick with fog. Before the warm water lulled us into a floating slumber, we jumped out into the ice-cold air, our bodies steaming, to freeze a little before returning to the comfort of the pool. …

This Field Note was written by Briana Wentworth. Would you be interested in writing one? Contact Allison De Jong, Field Notes editor, at adejong [at] montananaturalist [dot] org or 406.327.0405. Please visit the Field Notes website at the Montana Natural History Center for more information.