Patua Hot Springs (Fernley)
Patua Hot Springs sits on BLM land near Fernley in Lyon County, five miles or so from town, and its water is hot enough to cook with. Public access is open. It is roadside. The Sierra Front Field Office manages the ground. A 1988 sample showed heavily mineralized water, over two thousand parts per million of dissolved solids, with iron among the minerals.
The closest road runs under 150 feet away and goes unnamed on the record. Mid-elevation basin near Fernley, dry, with seven inches of precipitation and under a foot of snow in most years. Public BLM land with no special designation. Summers are warm and the yearly average lands in the high fifties.
The source will burn you. Test downstream water carefully before you go anywhere near it. Winter months are listed as best. No campground or fee on file. The chemistry reading is from the late 1980s, and the heavy mineral content it showed is worth knowing if you have any thought of contact with 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 Patua Hot Springs (Fernley).
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
- Gentle slope
- The ground tilts gently up to the northwest.
- Highest ground nearby
- 25 ft above the spring
- Within a quarter mile, to the northwest
A slice through the ground from north to south, 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 30% 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 Patua Hot Springs (Fernley) is neutral (pH 6.9) with 2170 mg/L total dissolved solids. It is notably rich in sodium (supports circulation and skin hydration), sulfate (traditionally used for skin conditions and inflammation), and chloride (natural antiseptic with skin health benefits).
Some links are affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Patua Hot Springs (Fernley) is road-accessible, so you can bring more gear. The water is dangerously hot, so bring water shoes and test pools carefully.
As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
Springs Near Patua Hot Springs (Fernley)
More Springs Around 187°F
Neutral Springs (pH ~6.9)
Hike 2 waterfalls near Patua Hot Springs (Fernley)
Looking for more outdoor adventures? Explore waterfall hikes near Patua Hot Springs (Fernley), Nevada.