Wild Willy's Hot Springs
Wild Willy's Hot Springs
4.5
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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4.5
31 reviews
Excellent
19
Very good
5
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6
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Queen J
California2,516 contributions
Oct 2022 • Friends
We made a quick pit stop here in the late afternoon to walk out and take a few pics.
The hot springs are in the middle of a vast, flat plain surrounded by mountains, so the scenery is picturesque. It is free to visit and very popular. On a Saturday afternoon in October, the pools were full of people.
There are 3 shallow, small hot springs pools that are about 1 to 2 feet deep. A little stream trickles down about 30 feet from the first pool to the second.
The third pool is off to the side about 20 feet away. If you're thinking of a soak, you should know a few things first.
1. These are natural mineral springs. The temperature was warm, but not hot. The water stinks of sulfur and it may stain light colored clothing with a brownish tint. More importantly, you can never wash the smell completely away, so don't wear anything you don't mind tossing in the garbage afterwards.
2. We did not see any cows when we were there, but the first pool (which trickles down into the other pools) was BROWN and surrounded by reddish-brown dirt that may have been cow dung... we did not investigate. No one else seemed to mind.
If nothing else, it's worth a quick stop if you're in the area. I highly recommend a visit to Hot Creek Geologic Site, only a 25 min drive away.
Wild Willly's can be accessed from Highway 395 just 15 minutes south of Mammoth. The turn off is Benton-Crossing Rd, near the air field.
From this road, you'll take a gravel road on your right. Google Maps led us to a road that was closed, but you just back up and take the entrance just before it. The two entrances are a fork of the same road, possibly a separate entrance and exit during the crowded summer months.
The dirt and gravel road is level and easily driven in a car. In about 7 minutes, you arrive at a tiny parking lot, full of maneuvering cars and wandering people. A short 5 minute walk down a wooden boardwalk leads you to the springs. The ground on either side is sand, dotted with rocks and tufts of desert bushes. A large white mineral flat can be seen on the right.
Just before the small parking lot, a few campers, a van, and a truck were parked in a small turn out where a group of locals were busy unpacking and setting up to party by the bonfire pit.
The hot springs are in the middle of a vast, flat plain surrounded by mountains, so the scenery is picturesque. It is free to visit and very popular. On a Saturday afternoon in October, the pools were full of people.
There are 3 shallow, small hot springs pools that are about 1 to 2 feet deep. A little stream trickles down about 30 feet from the first pool to the second.
The third pool is off to the side about 20 feet away. If you're thinking of a soak, you should know a few things first.
1. These are natural mineral springs. The temperature was warm, but not hot. The water stinks of sulfur and it may stain light colored clothing with a brownish tint. More importantly, you can never wash the smell completely away, so don't wear anything you don't mind tossing in the garbage afterwards.
2. We did not see any cows when we were there, but the first pool (which trickles down into the other pools) was BROWN and surrounded by reddish-brown dirt that may have been cow dung... we did not investigate. No one else seemed to mind.
If nothing else, it's worth a quick stop if you're in the area. I highly recommend a visit to Hot Creek Geologic Site, only a 25 min drive away.
Wild Willly's can be accessed from Highway 395 just 15 minutes south of Mammoth. The turn off is Benton-Crossing Rd, near the air field.
From this road, you'll take a gravel road on your right. Google Maps led us to a road that was closed, but you just back up and take the entrance just before it. The two entrances are a fork of the same road, possibly a separate entrance and exit during the crowded summer months.
The dirt and gravel road is level and easily driven in a car. In about 7 minutes, you arrive at a tiny parking lot, full of maneuvering cars and wandering people. A short 5 minute walk down a wooden boardwalk leads you to the springs. The ground on either side is sand, dotted with rocks and tufts of desert bushes. A large white mineral flat can be seen on the right.
Just before the small parking lot, a few campers, a van, and a truck were parked in a small turn out where a group of locals were busy unpacking and setting up to party by the bonfire pit.
Written October 11, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
gypsymama3
224 contributions
Jul 2020 • Couples
This is by far one of the coolest things to do. It’s down a rocky road you’re passing cows along the side of the road. It’s a walk to get to, but the end result is a hot spring what feels like the middle of nowhere , it’s summer so we got there at 4 and it was already crowded so I suggest going early a.m the view of the mountains is awesome! Highlight of our trip 😍
Written July 19, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Stefanie Rouse
Los Angeles, CA20 contributions
Aug 2018 • Couples
One of our favorites spots of many to go in Mammoth is this natural hot spring. It seems like it’s in the middle of nowhere with a long dirt road to get there.
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You keep driving, thinking, “where in the world is this taking me?” Once you get there, it’s almost like you’re in a hot spring amphitheater, you’re in this calm, still, landscape of beauty.
___
The majesty of it all is almost shocking as the focus is so much on, where are we, are we going the right way? To end up in this beautiful oasis.
___
We met people who came to visit from all over the world and loved hearing their tales and adventures they’d been on to get to this place.
___
Caleb and I had such a sweet time sharing laughs and adventures there and came back to visit several other times.
___
You keep driving, thinking, “where in the world is this taking me?” Once you get there, it’s almost like you’re in a hot spring amphitheater, you’re in this calm, still, landscape of beauty.
___
The majesty of it all is almost shocking as the focus is so much on, where are we, are we going the right way? To end up in this beautiful oasis.
___
We met people who came to visit from all over the world and loved hearing their tales and adventures they’d been on to get to this place.
___
Caleb and I had such a sweet time sharing laughs and adventures there and came back to visit several other times.
Written November 13, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Pioneer736675
Los Angeles, CA20 contributions
Oct 2018
Easy to find and get to a must when driving by . The pools can be I bit shallow .
If I wanted to see large unatractive naked women I would have married one , I did not !
If I wanted to see large unatractive naked women I would have married one , I did not !
Written March 11, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ido D
Tel Aviv, Israel204 contributions
Sep 2017 • Couples
Your GPS app., like Waze, will take you via an easy passable dirt road to the spring. There are two pools of warm-to-hot spring water. Soaking oneself in the water, while breathing the cool air and watching the magnificent Sierra mountains, is sublime.
Written September 29, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tad Beckman
Claremont, CA38 contributions
Jul 2019
Turn right off of the Green Church Road (you know the place!) at the third cattle crossing. It is a longish drive in (to the south) and you usually have to walk a short distance from the parking area. Wild Willy's is one of the most "developed" of the Long Valley hot springs. There is a largish deck on the south side of it. Water is usually very nice and warm. There is another undeveloped spring just to the north of it.
Please do not camp at any of the hot springs!
Please do not camp at any of the hot springs!
Written October 30, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
sparkleworks
US6 contributions
Aug 2019
We went to the pools in the middle of the week on a hot summer day, and we pretty much had both pools to ourselves which was nice. While walking to the pools from parking, we saw a bunch of cows freely roaming around. So when we got in the pools, we noticed a lot of small pieces of cow patties floating in water. The mountain views from the pools are great, water is very warm, especially in the upper pool, but for the rest of the way home I couldn't get rid of cow pies smell. Still, it was a nice part of a road trip.
Written September 24, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Robert S
Paso Robles, CA59 contributions
Oct 2018 • Couples
Small pools, shallow, and too many people there mid-week and off-season. Road access was do-able but not fun.
Written October 21, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SlowDownSeeMore
Durham, NC216 contributions
May 2018 • Couples
Big pools, nice rocky bottoms, plenty of space for lots of people. And lots of people there WILL be. This spring is really really hot, but there are several pools to fit your temperature fancy. We camped overnight close to here and the views of the mountains are 360. We loved this spring and the area.
Written May 26, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Cchen280
LA36 contributions
Oct 2018
too many people there. But it's a amazing to have wild hot spring among the big mountains. Here you can see snow mountains all around you.
Written September 30, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Is the dirt road leading to the parking lot accessible in a sedan car (Toyota Prius) during the month of June? (Understood that we would drive cautiously but wanted to know if it's doable). Thanks
Written June 11, 2022
Chrystalina
Seaside, California
Hello!
Has anyone been here recently in November of 2020 and is it open?
Written November 15, 2020
Has anyone been here recently and is it open during covid? 🙏🏻
Written July 15, 2020
We went today and it’s open, no restrictions
Written September 26, 2020
Hello! Thinking of heading to Wild Willy's Hot Springs from Yosemite Natl Park or Fresno either on a Saturday (Oct 19) or a Sunday (Oct 20).
Have you been here during this time frame in October?
Any other helpful ideas or insights?
OR.......any other NATURAL hot springs that you would recommend anywhere near Fresno, Yosemite or Travertine ?
Thanks for your help!
Free32697
Written October 5, 2019
Yeah, my bad~
you can try to go north through highway 395 and then go to the high sierra part of Yosemite and then come back. Doing the opposite is fine as long as highway 120 is not closed.
google 'californiafallcolor'
check this website for the yellow leaves information. June lake is about to peak now. You can see yellow leaves there
Written October 7, 2019
can anyone comment on access to these or other nearby hot springs in the winter? are the roads passable with snow or would it require 4 wheel drive and/or a hike in the winter?
Written January 19, 2018
I believe it won't have much snow before November because the day time is still warmer than the freezing point. Otherwise, it's better to check the weather before going. The snow chain is recommended.
Written October 5, 2019
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