Travertine trip report 8/31/2014 and 9/1/2014

We stayed at Bridgeport after driving from Yosemite National Park. We stopped by Travertine close to 6 pm on 8/31. The drive up was a bit rough but nothing a volvo sedan couldn't handle. I just kept it in first gear the whole time. When we got there, the 4 mail pools were almost full, so we hiked down to the small pool down the hill. It was just enough for 3 people or 4 if you want to get really close. We had it to ourselves for 10 to 20 minutes. When we got back to the mail pools, there were even more people. Everyone was clothed and lots of people were drinking beer. Lots of 20 and 30 year olds and glass bottles unfortunately. It sucks to see some a remote area still get crowded. The upper pool was too hot. I measure the source at 140 degrees F!

The next morning 9/1/14, we got to the springs at about 8am. There were two cars already heading back. We passed a hippie camping in his old van. There was one guy soaking in the upper pool and no-one else. I guess the hot upper pool cools down at night. We tried the 4 mail pools. They were kind of shallow and stinky. We went back to the lower pool and it smelled much better and had better views. We hiked back up after 20 minutes and saw a group of 4 at the mail pools, all clothed. We saw a couple in the upper pool. After our quick visit, more cars started pulling up.

Compared to Deep Creek, this place has it's pros and cons. The dirt road is quite short and doesn't require detailed directions. It's a bit more remote, at least when it's not a holiday. There's not much of a hike. You just park and walk 30 yards or so. On the other hand, there's no creek to swim in when you want to cool down, and there isn't a beach for laying out. I don't know how common nudity is here, but I didn't see much.