Exploring the Tastes of Saratoga Springs

While staying at the Thousand Trails Encore Park Alpine Lake Resort (blog linked here and on travel map), we ventured into Saratoga Springs, New York. Not only is it well known for it’s golf course, performing arts, and horse races, but its spring water has been a draw for revitalization and health since the 1800’s. People would come and stay for weeks to improve their overall health or treat a variety of conditions.

This spring water is carbonated because of the path it travels to the surface, and it comes from varying depths, so springs in close proximity will have varying tastes. For many years, the water was captured and the carbonic acid stripped from it to sell to bottling companies. As some of the wells were overworked, they stopped producing and production was shut down. There have been efforts to revitalize the areas and many have started flowing again.

BJ found a link to exploring the springs on their tourism website (linked here) and we used that as our guide. With the time we had, we explored Congress Park and the Spa State Park areas and were able to see 9 different springs. All of these places were free to access when we went, and they had water filling stations, if you bring your own bottles, and that was also free!

We first visited Geyser Spring, and saw many people bottling, in spite of signs saying it was being cleaned and not potable. This is a popular spot so there is a loop for parking near the fountain if you are getting water, so watch the signs.

Charlie Spring, located next to the performing arts center, was a bit more sulfuric, like the well water we are used to back in Florida. There is a large parking lot nearby and trails, and we saw many people out for a bike ride or walk.

Next we went to Spa State park and visited 7 springs in walking distance. There’s a hiking trail that makes its way around to them all, and its a beautiful park for picnicking, fishing, and a playground for the littles. Take your time walking through and read the information signs to learn about each spring, the history and flavor. Each was marked with what ailments it would cure. It truly surprised us that they were all so different in taste, yet close by. Some weren’t running when we stopped, and some were off and on. The spouter island was fascinating since you could see a picture of it from a century ago and see how the mineral deposits have built the island up. Keep your eyes peeled and you may find a BarnesOnMove painted rock in this area, too!

Congress Park was a beautiful area with a spring, benches, picnic areas and paths. Unfortunately, it had started raining and we couldn’t find parking for the big truck, so we only drove through.

BJ sampled all the spring waters that were flowing (except the spouter island since it wasn’t accessible). The bubbles were interesting and the smell and taste of them all varied.

If you are in the Saratoga Springs area, even just a little time to explore would be worthwhile, especially with kids! There is so much beauty, nature and wildlife to see and experience. Then when you see the water bottles in the store, you will know where they came from!

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