Gillard Hot Springs and Water Wheel

In 2005, on our way back from Hannah Hot Springs, Neil and I decided to swing down and show him the Gillard Hot Springs on the banks of the Gila River southeast of Clifton Arizona. The weather was quite warm and if the water in the Gila was low enough, I wanted to wade across and check out the water wheel.

The Gillard Hot Springs come right out of the bank on the river. If the river is running high, they can be covered over. The water is rated at 180 degrees. When I was at the springs several years earlier, you could see steam rising off the water. In the early days of Arizona, there was a resort built at the springs. There is really not much left today of that facility. The road to the Gillard Hot Springs starts as a good dirt road and then deteriorates to a poor 2wd/4wd trail. If you drive to the end of the road, it is probably less than a mile walk down to the Springs.

Click on Photos to enlarge:

The water wheel is upstream and across the river from the springs. I don't believe that it is the one shown in the Delorme Atlas and Gazetteer. That one is shown much too far from the Hot Springs.