Unnamed Thermal Spring

Harney County, Oregon · Near Hines
43.3380°N, 119.4280°W · 4,130 ft
68°F 4,130 ft Short Walk
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.

An unnamed thermal point in Harney County, about 23 miles from Hines, with water that is barely warm. It is a USGS site and little else. The owner is blank in the record. So is the access status. The record gives it no second name from OpenStreetMap and no water chemistry.

Location

Getting there means a couple tenths of a mile on foot from the closest road, and nobody recorded a name for that road. The spring sits at about forty-one hundred feet in the high desert. Winter snow is a little over two feet and the precipitation total is around a foot a year.

Midwinter is the period on file. The water is cooler than skin and will not soak anybody. No camping is listed near it. Because nobody has recorded ownership, confirm the land is open before you walk in from the road.

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.

Setting
Open ground
Flat, open ground all around.
Highest ground nearby
3 ft above the spring
Within a quarter mile, to the south
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
99 milliwatts per square meter of heat flow

That's about 1½ times the US average of 65. It's higher than at 46% 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
29°
Jan
33°
Feb
40°
Mar
46°
Apr
55°
May
64°
Jun
75°
Jul
74°
Aug
63°
Sep
49°
Oct
37°
Nov
29°
Dec
Annual Precip: 12.0 in Annual Snow: 25.9 in
Best Time to Visit
January Air 29°F · Water 68°F · +39° contrast
December Air 29°F · Water 68°F · +39° contrast
February Air 33°F · Water 68°F · +35° contrast
January offers 46°F more contrast than July
Current Conditions
WNW 11.2 mph
Tuesday 73° Low 36° Mostly Sunny 3% precip
Wednesday 71° Low 40° Sunny 10% precip
Thursday 70° Low 39° Chance Rain Showers 41% precip
Friday 75° Low 39° Sunny 3% precip
Saturday 77° Low 40° Sunny
Temperature
68°F
Warm Hot Boiling
Water Temp 68°F (20°C)
Avg Air Temp 50°F
Above Ambient +18°F
Mild soaking conditions September
Access
Road Access Short Walk
Distance to Road 0.2 mi
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the water temperature at ?
has a water temperature of 68°F (20°C). This is a warm thermal spring.
Where is located?
is located in Harney County, Oregon at 4,130 feet elevation, near Hines. Coordinates: 43.3380°N, 119.4280°W.
How do I get to ?
has Short Walk road access (0.2 mi from the road).
Sources: USGS NWIS