| Sespe Hot Springs | |
|---|---|
| Sespe hot river | |
 Sespe Wilderness | |
 | |
| Location | near the Sespe Condor Sanctuary in California |
| Coordinates | 34°25′40″N118°59′52″W / 34.42778°N 118.99778°W |
| Elevation | 2,700 feet |
| Type | geothermal |
| Temperature | 194°F / 90°C |
Sespe Hot Springs (Chumash: S'eqp'e') are a system of thermal springs and seeps that form a hot spring creek in the mountains near the Sespe Condor Sanctuary near Ojai, California. [1]
The hot springs were used for centuries by local indigenous people for their warmth and healing properties. [2] The hot springs and hot creek are located in a remote desert mountainous area in Los Padres National Forest. [3] The hot mineral water emerges from the ground at 194 °F / 90 °C [4] through a series of seeps that flows down a hillside, cooling as it enters several primitive, rock and boulder-lined soaking pools. [3] The temperature of the water cools as it mixes with cool water from a creek. Several seeps along the creekside emerge at cooler temperatures than the main springs. At the site, there is also a primitive rock sauna, and a hot waterfall. [1] [5]
The hot springs are located 20 miles northeast of Sespe Creek canyon, approximately 20 miles from Matilija Canyon and 15 miles south of the San Andreas Fault. [6] The hot springs are accessible on foot or by horseback only. There are three rugged trails leading to the springs. The springs can be reached via the Sespe River Trail (16.8 miles each way); the Johnson Ridge Trail (9.5 miles each way); and the Alder Creek Trail (7.5 miles each way). [5] Willett Hot Springs are also located in the Sespe Wilderness area. [7]
The hot mineral water flows from at least four spring clusters on a bank above Sespe Creek, a source on the steep slope, and from seeps in the stream bed gravel. In 1915 the water temperature was measured at 191 °F (88 °C) from one of the springs on the high slope above the creek. The springs on the bank emerge from crushed shale and decomposed granite. [6] In 2008 the spring water was measured at 194 °F (90 °C). [3]
Los Padres National Forest is a United States national forest in southern and central California. Administered by the United States Forest Service, Los Padres includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast from Ventura to Monterey, extending inland. Elevations range from sea level to 8,847 feet (2,697 m).
The Topatopa Mountains are a mountain range in Ventura County, California, north of Ojai, Santa Paula, and Fillmore. They are part of the Transverse Ranges of Southern California.
Sespe Creek is a stream, some 61 miles (98 km) long, in Ventura County, southern California, in the Western United States. The creek starts at Potrero Seco in the eastern Sierra Madre Mountains, and is formed by more than thirty tributary streams of the Sierra Madre and Topatopa Mountains, before it empties into the Santa Clara River in Fillmore.
The Dick Smith Wilderness is a wilderness area in the mountains of eastern Santa Barbara County, California, United States, with a portion in Ventura County. It is completely contained within the Los Padres National Forest, and is northeast of the city of Santa Barbara and north of the city of Ojai. It is most easily accessible from two trailheads off State Route 33, which runs north from Ojai. It is adjacent to the large San Rafael Wilderness on the west and the Matilija Wilderness on the south. Across Highway 33 to the east, and also in the Los Padres National Forest, is the large Sespe Wilderness.
Olympic Hot Springs is located in Olympic National Park, Washington, United States. The springs contain 21 seeps near Boulder Creek, a tributary of the Elwha River. The temperature varies from lukewarm to 138 °F (59 °C).
The Silver Peak Wilderness is located in the southwestern corner of Monterey County in the Santa Lucia Mountains along the Central Coast of California. It southern boundary largely follows the Monterey County/San Luis Obispo County line. Its eastern boundary is defined by Ft. Hunter Liggett, while on the west it follows closely along Highway 1 and the Big Sur coastline. It is one of ten wilderness areas within the Los Padres National Forest and managed by the US Forest Service.
Matilija Creek is a major stream in Ventura County in the U.S. state of California. It joins with North Fork Matilija Creek to form the Ventura River. Many tributaries feed the mostly free flowing, 17.3-mile (27.8 km) creek, which is largely contained in the Matilija Wilderness. Matilija was one of the Chumash rancherias under the jurisdiction of Mission San Buenaventura. The meaning of the Chumash name is unknown.
Willett Hot Springs is located in the Sespe Wilderness, North of Ojai, California. This natural hot spring has been augmented by a man made collection basin. The most popular approach to the hot spring is by an approximate 11 miles (18 km) hike from the Piedra Blanca trailhead in Los Padres National Forest. Nearby Sespe Hot Springs has a reputation as one of the hottest springs in California.
The Sespe Wilderness is a 219,700-acre (88,900 ha) wilderness area in the eastern Topatopa Mountains and southern Sierra Pelona Mountains, within the Los Padres National Forest (LPNF), in Ventura County, Southern California. The wilderness area is primarily located within the Ojai and Mt. Pinos ranger districts of the LPNF.
Wheeler Springs is an unincorporated community that grew around a set of sulphurated hot springs in Ventura County, California. It is located 6 miles north of the Ojai Valley, within Los Padres National Forest. It is named for Wheeler Blumberg, who founded the town in 1891, and the many natural hot springs.
The Los Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act of 1992 is a Federal law that established five new designated Wilderness Areas and three new designated Wild and Scenic Rivers in the Los Padres National Forest and Angeles National Forest in California. The law was sponsored by California Republican and Ventura County native Robert J. Lagomarsino while he represented California's 19th District in the United States House of Representatives. The legislation was cosponsored by Democratic and Republican representatives from districts representing the entirety of the Los Padres National Forest.
The Matilija Wilderness is a 29,207-acre (11,820 ha) wilderness area in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties, Southern California. It is managed by the U.S. Forest Service, being situated within the Ojai Ranger District of the Los Padres National Forest. It is located adjacent to the Dick Smith Wilderness to the northwest and the Sespe Wilderness to the northeast, although it is much smaller than either one. The Matilija Wilderness was established in 1992 in part to protect California condor habitat.
Travertine Hot Springs are a group of geothermal mineral springs located near the town of Bridgeport, California.
Gold Strike Hot Springs, also known as Goldstrike Hot Springs, Nevada Hot Springs and Gold Strike Canyon Hot Springs are a group of hot springs near Hoover Dam on the Arizona/Nevada border near historic Boulder City. They are in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.
Russian Valley Hot Springs, also known as Valle de Guadalupe Hot Springs is a group of hot mineral springs near a historic Russian settlement in the Guadalupe Valley of Baja California, Mexico.
Conundrum Hot Springs is a geothermal spring in a remote section of the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness area of the White River National Forest in Colorado Rocky Mountains.
McCauley Hot Springs, also known as McCauley Warm Springs is a thermal spring in the Santa Fe National Forest, near the Jemez Springs area of Northern New Mexico.
Jordan Hot Springs is series of thermal mineral springs located in the Golden Trout Wilderness, Inyo National Forest, California.
Big Caliente Hot Springs are a grouping of thermal mineral springs located in the Los Padres National Forest of California.
Saline Valley Hot Springs are a series of three thermal springs located in the remote Saline Valley area of Death Valley National Park.