Trip report 02-10-11

I arrived at the Freedom trail head at 1:00 pm it was sunny with a gentle breeze and @ 60 degrees. Before I crested the last hill I spotted 2 Road Runners. As I hiked over to observe them I noticed another Road Runner also. So as I followed them into the valley northward I wandered if they were related to the huge 3 foot bird I saw @ 1 month ago. These birds were just under 2 feet tall and much faster than the larger one. As I got to the bottom of the valley all three birds ran very quickly in different directions. So I returned to my Ford Explorer.
Previously I have timed my jog to the springs. I start at the large boulder on the south side of the parking lot and end at the large Juniper tree near the beach. On my last jog I did in 10 minuets and 21 seconds. So I intended on making it in under 10 minuets. When I got to the Juniper tree near the beach I surprised myself by getting there in 9 minuets and 5 seconds. With out really trying. Next time, I will try to get there in under 9 minuets, just for the fun of it.
When I got to the beach I noticed a huge amount of trash. So I picked it up and piled it into a centralized pile. It was mostly clothing and beer cans with water bottles too. So I got my one 14 gallon trash bag out and collected as many cans and water bottles as I could fit into my trash bag. I also got 3 girls bathing suites. They were all very ugly. These girls are much better off NOT wearing these ugly suites. I estimate there is more than 4 - 40 gallon bags of trash left here.
When I crossed the creek I noticed it was just a little bit more than 3 feet deep, just over my belly button. For @ a 5 foot stretch then it was @ 2 feet deep most of the rest of the way. The temp of the water was still in the 40's which hurts my testes ;~(
You gotta love the hot springs to do this.
When I got to the pools a very nice and polite brother and sister were soaking in the Womb pool. Their parents had a house in Apple Valley but they were raised in Maine. It was his second time to the springs and her first. She was living in Oregon learning fire fighting techniques and taught classes on Leave No Trace. I liked her instantly.
I noticed there is almost no sand in the Womb pool, so it is now over 6 feet deep. I am guessing because my thermometer was broken. But the temp was maybe 102 or 103 degrees.
The Serenity pool is just a little more than 2 feet deep with sand all over. The temp here was a little warmer than the Womb at maybe 104 or 105. There is no trash around the pool area ;~)
The wall of the Anniversary pool is still broken. But some one did a good job filling it with sand bags and rocks. But it is leaking badly and none of the water is going from there into the Womb pool. The leak has eroded the sand around the willow tree. The temp there was @ 105 degrees.
The creek has gone down enough to allow soaking near the Arizona pool but it is still kinda chilly in it's deeper parts. A large sand bag was placed by some one to catch the hot water near the source. Making for a pleasant soak for 2 IF you like the other person that is. The temp there was over 100 degrees.
As the day went on a couple of nice guys from Germany arrived. They had hiked in from Lake Arrowhead. All the way down 173 to the Bradford ridge trail head. They had planned on camping for 2 or 3 days. I informed them of the U.S.F.S. rules. They have been camping at the hot springs around the Salton Sea and heard about this place there.
As I headed up the trail they had a very nice camp fire on the beach. I felt very clean and relaxed as I watched the 1/2 moon in the sky. Yes it is very nice to have such a great hot spring HERE .