being there

by beth kohn

Sierra soaks

WE HESITATED OVER climbing in naked. As we'd parked the truck to one side of the muddy road, two guys in a snug hot springs tub had waved us over with a little too much enthusiasm. But it was getting nippy, and precious soaking time was ticking away. Two women, we faced a classic dilemma in Sierra hot springs heaven: suits, or no suits?

Jen glanced at their SUV and wrinkled her nose. Then her face brightened and she gave an enthusiastic thumbs-up. "A Human Rights Campaign bumper sticker – they're queer!" Off came the clothes.

Most folks fantasize about having a solo hot springs experience. After following sketchy directions that require counting cattle guards and fathoming subtle turns off unsigned dirt tracks, who wants company in that superheated pot of gold? So while it's always polite to share, it's also good to know you can dip into three primitive eastern Sierra hot springs where you don't need a GPS or a four-wheel drive and can often, if not always, avoid playing footsie with strangers.

The Owens Valley region was a prominent casualty of the Los Angeles water wars, and noxious white dust clouds routinely blow up from the dry bed of Owens Lake. But I like to imagine that when the eternally thirsty city decided to suck the region dry, it forgot to drain Keough Hot Ditch. A Goldilocks-pleasing assortment of pools in the Sierra foothills just south of Bishop, the hot spring lingers as a discreet wet holdout.

Disregard the name – this is no trench of standing runoff. Large clear basins capture thermal creek flow, and temperatures vary based on how far you venture uphill from the source. The low, scrubby desert landscape provides some privacy, and we watched gauzy clouds cast long stripes over the White Mountains.

Offering a view of nearby Mammoth Mountain, the innocuously named Hot Creek might better be called "searing demonic cauldron." With steaming turquoise puddles, shoreside fumaroles, and shrill posted warnings, this body of water gives pause. If it wasn't for the developed parking lot and changing rooms, you might take the gloom-and-doom danger signs to mean you really shouldn't swim. Don't be dissuaded. Soaking isn't forbidden, but wandering off the trail could be a regrettable move.

Changing behind some rocks, we eased into the wide, chilly creek and cautiously crept toward the center. In scattered pockets, scorching water percolates up through the sandy bottom, occasionally putting your feet to the fire. The swirling current blends the two sources into roving comfort zones, and we sashayed between frigid spots and ominous bubbles breaking at the surface, to the daunting sound of simmering liquid.

As we rumbled to the end of the dirt road, a blissed-out and puckered-looking group was leaving Travertine Hot Springs. Barely outside of Bridgeport, on a hill with commanding views of the snow-streaked Sierras, a crazy travertine rock formation feeds a trio of heavenly mud-bottomed pools.

Perhaps because it's a relaxing place to watch the sun sizzle out for the night, or maybe because it's a handy detour to break up the drive between Yosemite and Lake Tahoe, this spot becomes popular on weekend evenings. But during off-peak times, there's generally plenty of room, and our bathing companions numbered just two.

We fingertip-tested each basin and hopped into the medium one. Then the hottest. And then to the coolest and back. Content, and with pools to spare, we settled in for a long and lazy soaking smorgasbord. Beth Kohn (fiercesf@igc.org) is a San Francisco freelance writer and hot springs junkie.

Trip planner: Eastern Sierra hot springs

Keough Hot Ditch From Bishop, go about 7 miles south on Hwy. 395 and turn right onto Keough Hot Springs Road. Drive about half a mile, then turn right onto a paved road near a power line. Go another quarter mile and park. Pools are on both sides of the road.

Hot Creek From Mammoth Lakes, go about 3 miles south on Hwy. 395 and turn left onto Hot Creek Hatchery Road/Airport. Drive just under a mile to a sign that says Hot Creek Geothermal Area, and turn right. The parking area is about 3 miles down a road that goes from pavement to dirt. There are two good bathing areas, one at the bottom of the trail from the parking lot and one down the trail a bit farther toward the mountains. The road gate is locked at dusk, and suits are required.

Travertine Hot Springs From Bridgeport, go half a mile south on Hwy. 395 and turn left (east) on Jack Sawyer Road. Go 0.3 miles to where the road curves right, then turn left onto the dirt road and drive 1.2 miles, staying to the right at the Y junction, until you see a concrete basin pool at the road's end. Park and walk left to the pools, following the ridge.

For more action in the eastern Sierra, also see last week's Being There (www.sfbg.com/39/48/x_being_there.html), on climbing Mt. Whitney.