Hike To the Gila Mountains’ Jordan Hot Springs

The Gila Mountains is one of my favorite wilderness areas in the US. Via the Backpacker.com website comes a hike to a hot spring I will have to check out the next time I am in the area:

Do it Escape to a hot-spring paradise in this remote, ancient volcanic region. Though a 300,000-acre wildfire raged through the Gila Wilderness in summer 2012, this 13.6-mile, out-and-back overnighter didn’t burn, and it will still take you to one of the area’s best backcountry pools. You might even have it all to yourself if you plan a midweek spring trip.

From the TJ Corral trailhead (1), take the Little Bear Canyon Trail (729), which rolls in and out of several dry washes as it meanders northward. Pass through piñon-juniper grassland and an old burn area, then ascend a steep 500 feet to follow a broad ridge. A saddle (2) at mile 1.2 provides a comfortable, sandy spot to enjoy the view across the 1,200-foot-deep West Fork valley. In .9 mile, stay right past the trail marker for The Meadows (3), then cross a 6,300-foot pass (4), the hike’s high point, in .3 mile. Long views show the serpentine Middle Fork of the Gila carving its way through a sculpture garden of towering columns and cliffs. [Backpacker.com]

You can read the rest at the link.