Spencer Hot Springs

I enjoyed this spot quite a bit. There are some good hot springs, which are possible for sitting in if you find them not too hot at the time There is plenty of camping all over the roads, varying largely in size from the size of a single car to larger rigs. The backdrop of the Taiyobe mountains to the west is very beautiful, especially in mid May, while I dropped through.

I only stayed one night while on a larger journey driving through US-50, and I didn't really get any good pictures. I still found it a lovely spot and would probably stay here longer if I didn't need anything more than Verizon 3G Extended Network.

The road in is a long, wide, and straight dirt road, which was in excellent collection while I came through. Some of the minor roads around the springs were in lesser conditions, skinnier, etc., but I did see a variety of different vehicles making it to various different spots while I was there. It should probably not be too difficult to find a spot to unhitch and scope out the area for larger rigs.

Fair word of warning: some people do go into the hot springs nude, and you may well see them just driving through.

The area was very quiet while I was there, save for the burros. It was also very clean where I stuck to, and I didn't really see anything that I needed to clean up or anything. It was just a pleasant place to stay for a night in those regards.

It is rather far out, away from much of anything. Austin, NV is probably the closest place, and that's just a small town. There's not really much out this way. Some people may love that, some people may struggle with that. I mostly enjoyed it.

It is definitely saved on my places to return to!

This place is way off the highway but with that you get views and silence. We are off roaders and the area has lots to explore. We enjoyed the hot springs and camped a ways aways so we could see if it was occupied or not. There are three good hot springs here and during the week we had one of them to ourselves.
We felt very safe and enjoyed the burros that passed through every night. They make a little noise but where else can you camp with wild donkeys. We did have decent cell service just a little slow.

We liked this place a lot at first, by the end of the weekend, we had seen two separate groups of people use these hot springs as a public bathtub. Hair washing, leg shaving. There wasn't enough turnover of the water to remove the soapy film so we didn't use it after the first two days...No one else seemed phased by this so use at your own discretion.

Logistics: There is no easy way to get to these hot springs. It's a very bumpy 5-7 mile long road. It's smooth (no big potholes) but it was a washboard so we couldn't go faster than 5 mph in our class C.
Once we finally made you there is a maze of roads that take you around to campsites. There are a lot to pick from and plenty of flat spots that likely require little to no leveling. You can stay near the hot springs to be next to the action or drive further out for more privacy and quiet. A lot of van, truck, and trailer campers when we were there.

Cell Service: It is NOT fast enough to work. Emails were easy, there is plenty of calling service, but data is hard to find. Sending attachments, video calls, and upload/download speeds were weak at best. Our T-Mobile phone said we had LTE service with full bars, but it wouldn't tether at all. Our Verizon phone was on extended network 3G and was what we worked from. We used a We-Boost to get better coverage but it didn't make much difference. Again, easy calling service, enough for quick things. Not enough to stream or Video Chat.

Things to do: Hot Springs. Hike. That's about it. The hot springs are awesome. There are were three nearby where we stayed and they varied in temperature. It's an open desert so you can hike till you're bored. Austin is the closest town and it's a small town with a western vibe. There isn't a lot in the town and the library has limited hours for working.

Also worth noting, Austin is at the top of a mountain. It's a long windy road to get to and from the town. It's about 30 minutes from the hot springs. The drive to Austin is do-able and there were plenty of semi and trailers on the road but if you are a nervous driver, take it slow because it is windy.

All in all, if you have a truck or are tent camping, it is super easy and fun to stop by. If you have a bigger RV and aren't too adventurous with where your rig drives, keep driving. It's a cool spot to see and an excellent free camping location if you need a place to hang out at for a night or two.

We stayed here for one night in mid sept. It's a great free site off highway 50, there is lots of space and room for people to camp and spread out. The hot springs are nice, not exactly "natural" because they are rigged up with tubes and tubs, and some were kind of gross with scum on top, cigarette butts and beer bottles floating in them, etc. it would be great if people would respect the space, because it is incredibly beautiful and the trash was unsightly. Go party in a hotel hot tub, not this gorgeous natural area!. The mountains surrounding were wonderful and the camping was good though. More stars than I've ever seen! Really wasn't anything else around, so make sure you have all the food and water you need. Saw lots of jackrabbits and heard foxes screaming and donkeys brayying which was cool. Overall it was a great spot and I'd come back again!

Location: you take a left off highway 50 (if you're heading west) and make your first left. It's a flat and wide, well maintained gravel road for 5 miles until you get to "hot springs" road, take that left. From there the roads throughout the springs are variable- some are quite bumpy and rutted. We made it just fine in 2wd Honda odessey.

We stayed here May 16-18. I don’t usually write reviews but I felt compelled to in this case. I definitely don’t want to warn everyone off of this beautiful area. The area is very remote (which is normally something I like) and the dirt road out there is very, very washboard. It’s fine for smaller vehicles, but we have a 29 ft motorhome. So if you do come out here in a bigger rig just know you have to go slow. There are four hot springs. The first one you come to is a cow trough and it has algae growing on the side. The second one is further up the hill and is beautiful and has a natural bottom, so mucky but fine. There is another one thats farther left past the cow trough one, it was another cow trough but I was told it was cleaner and a good temperature. The one farthest away was the coolest and not only had goldfish but a lot of algae. Like way too much. We stayed on like a Wednesday and Thursday I believe. Wednesday night was awful, people coming and going all night. All the springs full. Thursday everyone had cleared out and we had the natural bottom spring to ourselves. It was hot but nice. Beautiful scenery. Wild burros and rabbits and coyotes. I would have really enjoyed my stay, but my dog woke me up on Friday morning. She let me know something was up then promptly went limp and started pooping and peeing all over herself uncontrollably. We didn’t have phone service and had to drive maddeningly slow to get to the nearest vet who told us to drive another 2 hours to a bigger town with a better vet. Long story short she had been poisoned, they think rat poison. She was almost dead when we brought her in. They saved her life, but it cost us about $1,300 and quite a scare. We have a 1 year old son as well so we are just thankful that it wasn’t him. She was on her leash almost the entire time (except her late night pee where she runs out and comes back) and I never saw her get into anything. I know this is a long post, I just wanted to give some valuable info about a truly beautiful place, but also warn others if you have dogs or small children maybe skip this stop.

The road is pretty good for the most part with a few rough areas and one pretty soft area. The views are great with lots of wildlife including wild burros, foxes, and rabbits. There are some flying insects, but surprisingly we didn’t notice any mosquitoes. The water is pretty hot and the tubs pretty slimy. The kids really enjoyed playing in the water. Not too crowded but there were several people coming and going.

My husband and I stayed here in our van overnight next to one of the springs. The spring was warm and we met some cool people while we were there. We saw wild donkey running through the fields. The wind was a little intense at night from a storm but besides that everything about this place was great. It’s a gravel and dirt road but if you keep a certain speed it’s not too bad going down.

We had a great experience despite really heavy wind and rain. It was neat to hear the donkeys at night. We were also able to see an antelope grazing by the top spring. Only negative was the road. I wish they would gravel it.

I do not know why the other reviewers say it takes 30 minutes. Yes the road is washboard but if you maintain a steady speed it wasn’t an issue. I have a 53 ft truck and trailer and yup my 41 foot trailer fit just fine.
They are donkeys not burros that come in the evening to drink the water. They can be a little noisy when other people try and get to close! We had antelope, jack rabbits and big fat field mice Also come visit.
We only went to the first “watering hole” and it was 113 degrees so be careful, but it was so quiet and amazing

This place is dirty, the hot springs had gross floaty things in it and the grounds are dirty from campers throwing trash around. This place needs some serious TLC. The only plus is it is very quiet and stars at night are amazing.