Friday, May 7, 2010

Remington & Miracle Hots Springs, Sequoia National Park (4.0 Stars ****)

Located in the southern Sierra Nevada, a few hours from Bakersfield, Remington Hot Springs is an outstanding hot spring and place to visit. This was the first natural hot spring we were able to visit this year and we were not disappointed! The grounds and surroundings were beautiful being so close to the Kern River. It gave the feeling of having your own floating bath tub directly in the river. Remington and Miracle hot springs are easy to reach since they are just off of paved roads and are an excellent alternative for visiting early in the year or during the spring when the high sierras still have snow. This is evidently a fairly well known and visited hot spring. For this reason, it is recommended that you visit on a weekday or during early mornings. Summers get more activity than the spring or fall. There is not much to see at Miracle Hot Springs except for the remains of the resort. Miracle hot spring was converted to a beautiful campground (Hobo Campground) and is about 1.5 miles before you reach Remington Hot Springs. Miracle hot spring tubs were removed due to the low flow of water and high bacteria count in the water. The ruins of the buildings and tubs can still be visited at the campground. The campground also provides excellent viewing of the kayaking runs with gates that have been established on this stretch of the Kern river. The water at Remington hot springs was outstanding. The water was extremely clean and fresh with a moderate to low sulfur content/level. There is not charge to get into this portion of the Sequoia National Forest. The two tubs are at the perfect temperature of around 102-104 F and are continuously fed by the active spring. Note: there is a third tub which we show in the pictures which is along the path before you reach the river. This tub is less used and the water flow is much lower. At times the Kern river can get fairly high, but this does not create a problem for flooding these tubs (their design prevents this). There are two heated baths and a cold plunge next to the heated baths. There was some talk at one time about the Forest Service removing the tubs. This is total nonsense. We called the Forest Service and there are no plans to remove or destroy the tubs. Make sure to remove any valuables from your car since the walk down to the river is about 0.25 miles. Also, you might consider bringing some bug repellent for use along the trail. Try Badger Bug Balm with Citronella & Rosemary (all organic, no DEET, and USDA approved). You can purchase it at REI. Note there is no diving at this site. However, there is a great rope swing if you would like to try your luck! Also, there are bathrooms just down the road at the Hobo campground. In summary, Remington is an outstanding hot spring with a lot to offer. However, pick your times carefully, because in most cases privacy is unlikely. By the way, don't forget to check-out our HD video below. This is new to our site!!