Unnamed Thermal Spring

Lake County, California · Near Clearlake
39.0220°N, 122.5920°W · 1,428 ft
81°F 63°F air · Good soaking weather 1,428 ft Roadside Camping nearby (18.3 mi)

Off Old Long Valley Road about five miles from Clearlake, an unnamed spring the record puts at 81 degrees. Lukewarm, in other words. It sits in Lake County at low elevation, and the record has nothing on ownership or on public access. No photograph or chemistry is on file, and OpenStreetMap has nothing to add.

Location
13 miles from Clearlake Oaks, CA

The spring is a few hundred feet from Old Long Valley Road, which makes it roadside by the record's classes. Elevation is about fourteen hundred feet. Around twenty-three inches of precipitation falls in a year, with snow a few inches at most. The average temperature on file is in the low sixties.

Winter is the time on file. Little Stony campground is eighteen miles or so away. With ownership unrecorded, check before you visit. No fee noted. An 81 degree reading means a cold day will feel cold in the water, so pick your weather. Clearlake is close enough that asking around there is the sensible first step.

Terrain

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 this spring.

Aerial view of the ground around the spring LiDAR bare-earth view of the same ground around the spring
Aerial LiDAR bare earth

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
Hillside
The spring sits on a steep slope that climbs to the northwest.
Highest ground nearby
403 ft above the spring
Within a quarter mile, to the northwest
Cross-section through the spring

A slice through the ground from west to east, about 0.6 miles end to end.

Elevation data: USGS 3D Elevation Program. Aerial imagery: USGS The National Map. Public domain.

Heat Below
181 milliwatts per square meter of heat flow

That's about 3 times the US average of 65. It's higher than at 98% 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.

Heat flow estimate: Stanford Thermal Earth Model (Aljubran & Horne, 2024), CC BY 4.0.

Monthly Climate
47°
Jan
49°
Feb
51°
Mar
57°
Apr
64°
May
73°
Jun
79°
Jul
79°
Aug
73°
Sep
64°
Oct
53°
Nov
46°
Dec
Annual Precip: 22.6 in Annual Snow: 4.6 in
Best Time to Visit
December Air 46°F · Water 81°F · +35° contrast
January Air 47°F · Water 81°F · +34° contrast
February Air 49°F · Water 81°F · +33° contrast
December offers 33°F more contrast than August
Current Conditions
63°F
SW 3.6 mph 51% Good soaking weather
Tuesday 90° Low 57° Sunny
Wednesday 82° Low 55° Sunny 6% precip
Thursday 82° Low 53° Sunny
Friday 90° Low 56° Sunny
Saturday 91° Low 58° Sunny
Where to Stay

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Nearby Camping
Little Stony 18.3 mi away

Overview This location is available on a first-come, first-served basis only. Visitors are required to physically arrive at the campground to purchase and claim a site.Once on-site, you are able to pay for your campsite(s) by scanning a QR code using the Recreation.gov mobile app, and the Scan and Pay feature.In order to utilize Scan & Pay on site, you will need to first download the free Recreation.gov mobile app https://www.recreation.gov/mobile-app prior to your arrival as some remote area...

Reservable Yes
Reserve on Recreation.gov →
Temperature
81°F
Warm Hot Boiling
Water Temp 81°F (27°C)
Avg Air Temp 61°F
Above Ambient +20°F
Mild soaking conditions September
Access
Road Access Roadside
Nearest Road Old Long Valley Road
Distance to Road 274 ft
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the water temperature at ?
has a water temperature of 81°F (27°C). This is a warm thermal spring.
Where is located?
is located in Lake County, California at 1,428 feet elevation, near Clearlake. Coordinates: 39.0220°N, 122.5920°W.
How do I get to ?
has Roadside road access, with the nearest road being Old Long Valley Road (274 ft from the road).
Can I camp near ?
Yes, Little Stony is located nearby (18.3 miles away).