To kick off our 2.5 weeks in Arkansas on our 50 state road trip, we spent a week in Hot Springs – a city about an hour southwest of Little Rock which is home to Hot Springs National Park.
We visited in March because every year the city plays host to the World’s Shortest St Patrick’s Day Parade, with it being the 20th edition of the event in 2023 when we were there.
Despite us being there for this legendary event, the city is perhaps better known for the hot springs in the area which is how it got its name, resulting in it becoming a popular tourist destination and eventually a National Park.
Hot Springs National Park
Hot Springs National Park is a somewhat unusual National Park because some of the city’s downtown area is in the park itself. Hot Springs is named after the hot springs that abound in the area, a feature which made it popular in the late 1800s with people who believed that the water held healing powers. As a result, bathhouses and hotels sprung up all over the place.
Along Central Ave – the main road running through downtown – you’ll find Bathhouse Row which, as the name suggests, features bathhouse after bathhouse.
Some of these are still in use as bathhouses, others have been converted to retail and dining establishments, while a couple are now used and maintained by the National Park Service. One of these features a small museum area with exhibits about the area’s history, along with the opportunity to walk through a former bathhouse.
Hot Springs In Hot Springs
Hot Springs National Park covers more than 5,000 acres. Behind Bathhouse Row there’s a park with more than 25 miles of trails for you to explore. Some of the park features open hot springs where you can see the steam coming off them. It might seem obvious given the steam and the name of the city, but it was still surprising how hot the springs were when touching the water!
There are at least two of these above ground hot springs, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there are more – we just didn’t search for more. One of them – Display Springs – has an average temperature of 134°F (56°C).
Why Are The Hot Springs Hot?
If you’re wondering – like we were – what causes the hot springs in Hot Springs to be hot, wonder no more. A brochure provided by the National Park Service explains it as follows:
Rain and melted snow trickle into cracks in brittle rock (novaculite and chert) along the ridges of Ouachita Mountains. Gravity pulls the water slowly downward through a network of cracks in Earth’s rock crust.
The rock temperature increases with depth and the water emerges from the springs at an average temperature of 143°F (62°C). When the water reaches a major fault on the west slope of Hot Springs Mountain, pressure propels it upward. The hot spring water does not result from a volcanic process. Its roundtrip journey – from the recharge zone along the mountain ridges to the park – takes over four thousand years.
We found it fascinating that it takes more than 4,000 years for the water to go through this cycle. That means that the water seen on the surface today first started making its journey before the Pyramids of Giza were built.
Drinking The Hot Spring Water
I don’t think you’re supposed to drink the hot spring water directly from the above ground hot springs, but you can still partake in the waters. That’s thanks to the water fountains you can find at various spots along the main drag.
Shae and I stopped to try the water at the Hill Wheatley Plaza Thermal Water drinking fountain and were pleasantly surprised by its taste.
We’d tried water like this before in places like Manitou Springs, CO. The taste in those other places wasn’t particularly pleasant as it’s always had a slight – or more pronounced – sulfur taste, but that’s not the case in Hot Springs.
The reason why their water tastes better is because the water isn’t heated through a volcanic process. Because it warms up gradually over thousands of years, it avoids that sulfuric taste, although it was still a little weird drinking hot water like that!
Here’s a quick video of Shae trying the hot spring water for the first time:
The Grand Promenade
Running parallel to Bathhouse Row behind the bathhouses is The Grand Promenade. The half-mile long brick walkway was started in 1933, although delays due to a lack of funding meant it wasn’t completed until 1957.
As we ventured further up into the park behind Bathhouse Row, there were several spring boxes. The spring boxes cap the hot springs and help protect the quality of the water inside.
Hot Springs Mountain Hiking Trails
The Grand Promenade is nice if you want to take a gentle stroll through the park. If you’d like something more strenuous though, there are many more miles of hiking trails, several of which take you up Hot Springs Mountain.
Shae, Truffles and I decided to take the Peak Trail up the mountain. It’s a short 0.6 mile hike uphill, with several information boards along the way.
Hot Springs Mountain Tower
Sitting atop Hot Springs Mountain is the Mountain Tower. There’s been an observation tower on the top of Hot Springs Mountain since 1877, although there have been several different towers during that time.
This latest 216 foot tall Mountain Tower was opened in June 1983 and features an elevator if you don’t want to have to climb up all its steps.
Shae and I decided not to go up in the tower for a couple of reasons. We’d hiked up there with Truffles and pups aren’t allowed in the tower, so we’d have had to take it in turns to go up. They also charge $13 per person for adults (less for seniors, children, military, etc.), so we personally weren’t interested enough in paying $26 to go up to see the view, especially considering there were some nice views from other overlooks at the top of the mountain.
Army & Navy General Hospital
We took a different trail back down the mountain which, as luck would have it, took us past a giant, impressive building we’d seen from below but had no clue what it was.
Thankfully there was an information sign on the trail down which explained that it was the site of a former Army & Navy General Hospital. It opened its doors in 1887, with patients getting the benefit of thermal baths which were thought to help treat many conditions.
It ultimately treated more than 100,000 patients, with it subsequently becoming a rehabilitation center in 1960, although it’s no longer in use.
Final Thoughts
Even though we didn’t end up soaking in the water at any of the bathhouses still working today, Shae and I had a great time in Hot Springs. It’s a really cute, walkable city with tons of history and interesting things to see and do.
[…] Rock – the state capital of Arkansas – is only an hour east of Hot Springs, so we were planning to visit when staying in Hot Springs for a week. It was therefore nice that […]