View Full Version : the springs at Hotsprings
MedicineMan
09-29-2003, 23:54
Just curious about how many hikers actually soaked in the springs when going through Hot Springs.....when I did that section I did not, but La Aqua Na is to do that section and I said I would gladly repeat it again if I get to soak in the springs afterward....
so tell me if you did,if they were public access or you had to pay.
Jim Obermeyer
09-30-2003, 05:31
A friend of mine use them. I think he said it cost $15.00. They're pretty booked up and you have to make reservations. He said it was very hard to get a reservation in the afternoon. I perfer to get my therapy at the Paddler's Pub. I'll be there this Sunday. I'm starting my first solo hike this week. Sam's Gap to Hot Springs.
MedicineMan
09-30-2003, 05:55
Hey Him, your close to me, I live in Roan Mountain and work in Bristol....good luck with your section....we will be doing something around the Hotsprings area...its been a while since I did Davenport north so this time I want to soak in the springs if I get a chance to.
Jim Obermeyer
09-30-2003, 07:20
Yo Medicine Man,
My wife and I own a furniture refinishing shop here in Rogesville. I started hiking last spring. I'll be checking out the trail in your area in the months to come. I hear it really nice. But for now it's one step at a time. I'm leaving this Thursday and plan to be picked up in Hot Springs on Sunday. I checked out your posted pics...nice hammocks, I've been looking in to getting one.
I hate to be a party pooper but I was underwhelmed by the "Hot Springs". The springs have been totally cemented over and you pay big time to go sit in a bathtub of hot water. Also, the attendant was less than friendly. just my opinion...
manzana
Lone Wolf
09-30-2003, 08:24
The hot water is pumped out of the hot spring into a hot tub so you're not actually sitting in a hot spring. In the old days we would sneak into the abandonded spring house where locals kept one of the big marble lined tubs clean of debris. The hot spring actually flowed into it. We'd sit for hours in it by candle light.
mindlessmariachi
10-01-2003, 16:43
the hot springs in hot springs are generally pretty lame. like has been said, they just pump the water into a garden variety Sears hot tub. I guess it felt nice to sit in a hot tub, but the whole operation was just pretty cheesey; it was pretty expensive and they didn't even supply towels!
i agree that paddlers pub definitely the place to go ..
gravityman
10-01-2003, 17:58
It's still worth it. If I remember right, it was cheaper on a weekday morning. It was cool just to do it. There just aren't that many other things to do along the trail that is different. The hot springs are different. Plus you can do it nude. :)
Gravity Man
steve hiker
10-01-2003, 18:48
I've heard you can find real hot springs out West -- where you can actually sit in the springs as they come out the ground. Never heard of any genuine hotsprings in the Eastern U.S., at least not down South. Someone tell me if there are.
gravityman
10-01-2003, 18:59
There are real hot springs out here (colorado). Unfortunately, most people know where most of them are. And those people tend to be old men that go nude (think old hippies). yippie.
I haven't really looked hard for one that is a long hike. Maybe I'll do that sometime this winter.
But they are pretty cool. Just don't put your head under. Bad things can grow in warm water...
Hot springs is the only place that I have ever heard of "hot springs" on the east coast.
Gravity Man
there are an assortment of springs in the virginias, particularly in bath and rockbridge counties - some are warm, some are hot, some are sulphur or other mineral content...most are on private land and have been that way for generations - many were built into resorts, some of which now are in ruins or abandoned - the homestead at hot springs is 5 star big bucks, as is the greenbriar in white sulphur spgs, wva - there is also the town of warm springs, va, which had to be named for SOMETHING...but i haven't found any drive up or hike up rock rings in rivers like out west....