GO NEW MEXICO
A walk to San Antonio Hot Springs is one to remember
2.7 mile hike from the Valles Caldera property line is surrounded by eye-popping scenery
San Antonio Hot Springs is one of the most scenic natural hot springs in the nation.
It鈥檚 perched on a very steep slope on the backside of the Valles Caldera on national forest land. Hot water (around 125掳) flows out of three large pipes coming right out of the side of the mountain into a rock-lined pool.
The water then cascades from the top pool into other rock-lined pools further down the slope. The lower pools have cooler water.
From the spring, you鈥檙e looking out at the tree-filled valley of San Antonio Creek. Looking up, the wooded mountain slope is capped with hard volcanic rock and Bandelier tuff.
Everything around you 鈥� the hot water, steep slopes and volcanic rock 鈥� is a product of the catastrophic events that created the Valles Caldera and the surrounding Jemez Mountains.
If you want to hike, you can follow the old road all the way to the backdoor entrance to Valles Caldera. (Please note that the backcountry of Valles Caldera has fees and does not allow dogs.)
You鈥檒l be walking through a volcanic valley with meadows, running water and eye-popping scenery. You鈥檒l also see how the Forest Service has installed fencing along the creek to protect it from being trampled by cattle or elk.
It鈥檚 about 2.7 miles from the Hot Spring to the Valles Caldera property line. With an elevation differential of only 200 feet or so, the walk is quite easy. To reach the Valles Caldera property line, take the middle route when you reach a junction.
The drive to San Antonio Hot Springs, too, is gorgeous. Going north on New Mexico Highway 4 from San Ysidro, you鈥檒l pass Jemez Pueblo, fantastic scenery, the Jemez Springs Bath House, Soda Dam and Battleship Rock. When you reach La Cueva at the junction of N.M. 4 and N.M. Highway 126, turn left onto N.M. 126. In 3.8 miles, just after mile marker 35, make a sharp right turn onto Forest Road 376.
In 4.5 miles, you鈥檒l reach a gate and parking area. F.R. 376 is unpaved but suitable for a two-wheel drive vehicle. It then takes around 15 minutes to reach the parking area. After parking, follow the road beyond the gate for around a half-mile. From there, you can continue toward Valles Caldera, or cross the creek and climb up a very steep trail to the hot springs. (The hot springs are less than a mile from the parking area.)
The Forest Service closes F.R. 376 when snow makes the road impassible, usually in December, and reopens it on July 1. The delayed opening is for species protection.
You can hike, bike or cross-country ski to the hot springs when the road is closed.
Whether you soak or just hike, San Antonio Hot Springs is an amazing place for an excursion.
