EDITORIAL GUIDES

Hot Springs Guides

Researched, source-cited guides to the hot springs people actually ask about — what's closed and why, what's open and worth the drive, and how to soak safely without getting the next spring shut down.

Travertine terraces at Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone — Mammoth Hot Springs terraces — photo: Rhododendrites, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Closure & Status Guides

Trackers and explainers for springs that are closed, restricted, privatized, or too dangerous to soak — each verified against agency orders and updated as status changes.

Closed Hot Springs in the U.S. — Status Tracker The national tracker — which hot springs are closed, dangerous, or off-limits, why, and when they could reopen.

Bagby Hot Springs Status Is Bagby open? Austin Fire closure orders through Dec 31, 2026, and what reopening actually requires.

Olympic Hot Springs Open but a ~21-mile round trip — the road closure, the bathe-at-own-risk rule, and easier in-park alternatives.

Sykes Hot Springs Closed under a Monterey Ranger District fire order — the Pine Ridge Trail saga and the spring 2027 outlook.

Big Sur Hot Springs Which Big Sur hot springs are actually open — Esalen, Tassajara, and the truth about Sykes.

Austin Hot Springs (Closed) Permanently closed — tribal ownership, the decommissioned site, and why trespassing gets cited.

Skinny Dipper Hot Springs (Closed) BLM-closed through Feb 14, 2027 — the Boise-area party spring, the rockslide, and what happens next.

Stewart Mineral Springs (Closed) Closed to the public after 147 years — now the Pneuma Retreat Center, with no public mineral baths.

Wall Creek / Meditation Pool Meditation Pool survived the Cedar Creek Fire — but the trailhead stays closed through 2026.

Diana's Punchbowl Nevada's most dangerous-looking hot spring — a travertine bowl you can view but never soak in.

Yellowstone Hot Springs — Can You Soak? No legal soaking inside the park (Boiling River closed since 2022) — plus the real springs within an hour of the gates.