Hot Spring National Park

Hot Summers: 

105 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s the typical high temperature in Hot Springs, Arkansas in the summer. I’ve been visiting Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs in July for as long as I can remember, as it is the host city to my annual family reunion. Hence, it is no surprise that my lifetime of memories here take place indoors with air conditioning. The weather has never seemed conducive to exploring the national park down the road. A hot bath, historic or not, is unappealing this time of year. Sweating profusely while walking down Grand Promenade…also unappealing. Even betting on horses at Oaklawn didn’t come close to playing Space Invaders in Big Daddy’s chilly condo with a glass of Aunt Pat’s iced tea.

This summer, however, the weather was spectacular. The high of only 85 degrees allowed for a full day of hiking, bathing, drinking, and touring. It was a jackpot day in Hot Springs National Park.

Hot Water:

Hot water is the modern-day luxury for which I am most grateful.  In Hot Springs, Arkansas, however, the hot water isn’t all that modern. In fact, the 142-degree water coming from the ground is 400 years old! 

The Ouachita mountains surround Hot Springs National Park and were formed when two tectonic plates collided over 300 million years ago. The process left thousands of layers of cracked, broken rock. Rain falls into these cracks and descends 8,000 feet below the earth’s surface, where the rocks are extremely hot. Through conduction, the hot rocks slowly heat the rainwater. The water travels down for 4,000 years and ascends quickly back to the surface. And by quickly, I mean 400 years. Not very modern at all!

Because the water is heated by this geothermal process and not by volcanic magma like other hot water (i.e. Yellowstone), it is colorless and tasteless. Water from Hot Springs National Park is ideal not only for bathing, but also for drinking. After learning about this phenomenon, I understand why a national park exists here – to protect, celebrate, and enjoy this special water.

Hot Baths:

Hot Springs has had many nicknames over the centuries. One of my favorites, the “American Spa,” was given to the city in the early 1800’s. The spa culture started with log cabin bath houses built in the 1830’s, and eventually evolved into the eight, still standing, bathhouses built by the 1920’s. 

The peak time for these bath houses was the late 1940’s. Over the next 40 years, there was a decline in tourism and all but one shut down. The Fordyce Bathhouse is now the national park Visitor Center and offers both self-guided and complimentary ranger-led tours to give you an idea of what the bathhouses were like in their prime. We did a version of the self-guided tour, but I will be sure to join a ranger-led tour on my next trip.

If you are curious about the bathhouses, the Fordyce exhibit is a great place to start, but I highly recommend getting in the water. My cousin, Hillis, and I opted to bathe at the Quapaw Bathhouse – one of the two remaining functioning bathhouses. We spent about an hour and a half enjoying the public thermal pools at Quapaw, although they also offer private baths and traditional spa treatments. If you are looking for a more authentic bathhouse experience, the Buckstaff Bathouse offers various packages, several of which I have added to my To Do List for next visit.

Hot Trails:

Hot Springs National Park is not all about the water. Those Ouachita mountains that help make the hot springs also make for some great hikes. When I originally planned this trip, I assumed the temperature would be close to 100 degrees, so I wasn’t planning on hiking. Because the weather was so pleasant, Hillis and I changed our course and were able to get in a short hike. We opted for the Goat Rock Trail, which is one of the North Mountain trails. This trail is a moderate, 2.6-mile, out and back journey that took a little over an hour to complete. The hike is pleasant with plenty of shade and great views at the top. It is true that parking is difficult, but, like the weather, we lucked out and found the last spot in the small lot.

Hot Beer (Cheese Dip):

As I mentioned, only two of the eight bathhouses on Bathhouse Row are still functioning. The Fordyce is the national park Visitor Center. The Hale is a hotel. The Lamar is the park gift store. The Ozark is the Hot Springs National Park Cultural Center. The Maurice is currently vacant. (Any takers?) And the Superior Bathhouse is a brewery. That’s right, A BREWERY – and the only in the world to use thermal spring water in their beer (not to mention the only one inside a national park). How can you not go?

Surprise surprise, I was most excited for this part of the day. It never ceases to amaze me that our national parks really do have something for everyone. Knowing beer cheese dip was something everyone would enjoy, I recruited some family members to come join us for lunch. The adults shared the Beer Bath – a sampler of all 18 beers on tap with clever names and bold tastes like Big Dill (Pickle Sour), Spicy Ride (Jalapeno Ale), Foul Play (Oatmeal Stout), and DeSoto’s Folly (Golden Stout). It is a must do. The beer paired nicely with my chili-slaw dog. Yum!

Hot Operations:

My very favorite part of this trip to Hot Springs National Park was our visit to The Gangster Museum. I briefly recalled that Hot Springs had a claim to mob fame, but our time in the museum gave a great overview to the whole illegal scene going on in Hot Springs over the decades. At first I thought our tour guide’s gangster outfit and jokes were a little silly, but by the end of the tour I was all in.  When we arrived home, I checked out a copy of David Hill’s The Vapors, a book about the mob in Hot Springs. If you want to adequately prepare for your visit to Hot Springs, I suggest you read the book.

As Al Capone once said, “You can get much further with a kind word and a beer than you can with a kind word alone.” That’s what it was… right? Whatever the quote, after this visit, I have many a kind word to say about Hot Springs National Park. The day, paired with a pickle beer, was well worth the trip. Even in the heat of a Hot Springs Summer.

Next up… Glacier National Park… Coming September 2024!