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| Contact Us BANFF UPPER HOT SPRINGS P.O. Box 900 Banff, Alberta Canada T1L 1K2 Telephone: 403-762-1515 Toll-free: 1-800-767-1611 Fax: 403-760-1347 Reservations for Pleiades Massage and Spa: 403-760-2500 RADIUM HOT SPRINGS P.O. Box 40 Radium Hot Springs, B.C. Canada V0A 1M0 Telephone: 250-347-9485 Toll-free: 1-800-767-1611 Fax: 250-347-9244 Reservations for Pleiades Massage and Spa: 250-347-2100 MIETTE HOT SPRINGS P.O. Box 2579 Jasper, Alberta Canada T0E 1E0 Telephone: 780-866-3939 Toll-free: 1-800-767-1611 Fax: 780-866-2112 EMAIL: hot.springs@pc.gc.ca
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Canadian Rockies Hot Springs - A Parks Canada Entreprise Unit
Natural Wonders & Cultural Treasures
The Nature of Hot Springs
![family viewing the outlet of Miette Hot Springs](/web/20071121101603im_/http://www.pc.gc.ca/regional/sourcesthermales-hotsprings/images/MHS_SOURCE_H_FALVEY.JPG)
Family viewing the outlet of Miette
Hot Springs
© Parks Canada / Brenda Falvey, 2001 |
Where does the spring water come from?
Most of the rain and snow that falls on the slopes of a mountain
ends up in rivers and streams. Some of it, however, filters down
through the cracks and pores in the mountain rock, pulled by gravity
to a depth of three kilometres below the surface. It is this water
which later returns to the surface in our hot springs.
Why is it warm?
As it seeps into the ground, the water becomes hotter and hotter
— heated by radioactive decay in the earth's core. When
the water boils, pressure forces it upward, just like the water
in a coffee percolator. The speed at which the water rises, and
the degree to which it mixes with cold ground water, causes the
temperature to fluctuate.
Why does it smell?
As the water heats up, it dissolves minerals in the surrounding
rock. When these dissolved minerals break down, they release hydrogen
sulphide gas, which smells like rotten eggs. Pyrite and gypsum
are two common sulphur-bearing minerals dissolved in the Banff
and Miette hot springs. The water at Radium Hot Springs is odorless
because of the type of rock in that area.
What is tufa? (pronounced too-fa)
As the hot springs water bubbles from its underground channel,
it begins to drop the load of minerals it gained on its journey
through the earth. One of these minerals, calcium carbonate, hardens
into a porous grey/brown rock called tufa. The entire hillside
around each springs is composed of tufa.
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