Hot Springs Valley
Hot Springs Valley is a thermal point inside Lassen Volcanic National Park, Plumas County, about fourteen miles from Chester. The water is warm, below body temperature, and very low in dissolved minerals by the USGS sample. Access is listed as open. National Park Service rules apply to anything you do at the water.
From Chester-Warner Valley Road it is close to a mile on foot. Warner Valley Campground lies barely more than a mile from the spring. At nearly six thousand feet inside the park, winter snow is very deep and the year is wet. This is Park Service land with a National Park designation.
Warner Valley Campground is the obvious base, a short distance off. the best months on record says winter, which conflicts with the snowfall; check the park's road status before trusting the month figure. The water is warm and cannot burn anyone. Park rules govern bathing; ask before getting in. The water sample is from 1981.
The spring lies within Lassen Volcanic National Park. A USGS sample from September 1981 found almost nothing dissolved in the water.
Aircraft with laser scanners measured this ground to within inches. The scan strips out trees and buildings, leaving the bare shape of the land around Hot Springs Valley.
Drag the handle to compare the two views. The orange dot marks the spring, in a frame about three quarters of a mile wide.
- Setting
- Valley floor
- Gentle slopes rise on both sides.
- Highest ground nearby
- 192 ft above the spring
- Within a quarter mile, to the south
A slice through the ground from southwest to northeast, about 0.6 miles end to end.
Elevation data: USGS 3D Elevation Program. Aerial imagery: USGS The National Map. Public domain.
That's about 1½ times the US average of 65. It's higher than at 58% of the springs on this site.
Heat flow measures the warmth working its way up through the ground from deep inside the earth. Where it runs high, rain and snowmelt that seep down through cracks in the rock come back up hot.
See every spring on the geothermal heat map →
Heat flow estimate: Stanford Thermal Earth Model (Aljubran & Horne, 2024), CC BY 4.0.
The water at Hot Springs Valley is slightly acidic (pH 6.7) with 49 mg/L total dissolved solids.
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Overview Warner Valley campground is a limited development facility in the south eastern area of the park. It has vault toilets and potable water spigots. Numerous trails can be accessed from the campground. Recreation Hiking trails accessible from the campground Facilities Vault toilets - seasonal Natural Features Lassen Volcanic national park is known for its volcanic history, as well as its diversity of plants and animals. It contains 300 active volcanic domes, as well as many hydrotherma...
Hot Springs Valley sits at 5,816 feet above sea level, way above the mile-high mark. You may not feel the altitude strongly, but hot water still dehydrates you faster at elevation. UV is about 23% stronger than at sea level, so bring sunscreen and drink more water than you normally would.
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Hot Springs Valley is road-accessible, so you can bring more gear.
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