Hidden Gem near Camp Verde, Arizona
In the mountains near Camp Verde and Strawberry, Arizona is an abandoned Hot Springs. When you think of Arizona you think hot desert sand and prickly cactus, but tucked away in the forest is a hidden gem.
I heard about this place while I was with a few friends out to dinner. I wanted to go as soon as the words were uttered, "Abandoned Hot Springs". Sounds nice to me! It took a little pleading on my part to convince my husband but he was on board in the end for a little camping trip.
I did a little research but in the end the websites I found didn't piece the whole picture together. So let me break it down for you so you don't have trouble finding it like my husband and I did.
This is to help anyone not make the same mistake as us. We left a little late on Friday Evening since we were finishing our packing and Mikel got off work later than I did; we hit the road at about 7pm. We knew we had about a 3 hour drive ahead of us so we got going as soon as we could.
It all went wrong when we took the exit Orme Rd/Dugas Rd off of I-17 N (we didn't know better though!). We drove along and had a bumpy ride. Based on some of the sites I had previously found I expected a little bit of a bumpy ride. But this was a rougher ride than we would have liked. We did almost get stuck on some of the rocks that were on the road. This road seemed to be one used to go off roading in Jeeps and such. (I was doing this in a Toyota Highlander!) It was late, we were getting nervous and we didn't know exactly where we were going, we just trusted Google Maps to lead the way. After being on this bumpy dirt road for an hour and a half we finally pulled over and decided to sleep in the car and decide what to do in the morning. When we got up and packed the car again we decided to try again but a different route. We finally found the right road we should have been on through a bit more research. The website we found still had some errors about the roads and such so I wont post it here.
The Right Directions...
No matter where you are coming from you need to go to Fossil Creek Road just outside of Camp Verde. THIS IS THE ONLY WAY TO GET THERE! You could be stopped by a Forest Ranger asking for a permit. Some of the area you will be driving through you do need a permit to stay but for Verde Hot Springs you do not. You'll take Fossil Creek Rd for about 12 miles. Please take your time on this road!!!!! It is a windy dirt road I highly suggest using a high clearance vehicle. Eventually you'll come to a stop sign, there is usually another Ranger here to check for a Permit. Just inform them you are heading to Verde Hot Springs they will tell you to turn right. This road is Forest Service Road 502 you'll be on this road about 6 miles. The last 1/4 of a mile is where you'll want the High Clearance Vehicle. These directions will take you to Childs Dispersed Campground. The Verde Hot Springs is only a short hike from here.
From the Campground to the Hot Springs. About 1.5-2 Mile Hike
Coming straight from the road is a sign of just basic things about the area, you'll want to go right (it's about North East) you'll follow the camp ground dirt road to a fence. This is a trail along the river. (Going Upstream) You'll take that trail a bit you will see a electricity area fenced off. There is a trail by it so head up to that. You'll follow this road for about a mile and a half until you see some rocks that are spray painted green. There are a few of them one of the bigger ones is a green arrow. (If you miss the rocks you'll come across a sign about launching a boat and such, it means you went too far, but don't panic you are close just go back a bit.) You'll then go down to the river bed following a trail that is there. You will need to cross the river to continue following the trail.
When you cross it looks like you can go either left or right but go left because the other way is a dead end. Just follow that trail and it will lead you right to the Hot Springs.
You'll start to see some of the foundations that used to be part of the building which burned down a long time ago. Also if you are so inclined in certain areas you are aloud to paint on the walls and such (they have a post stating you can paint)
I loved our weekend getaway to this wonderful place. We had a lot of fun. Met some people and played a game of hammer and nails, which Mikel accidently put a small hole in our tent because of. xD Please use some sunscreen we were a little excited and forgot to put it on and now we are dealing with some burned shoulders.
Safe Travels! C'est la vie!
Awesome we will have to go when I visit next ��
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