Stop by if you are traveling in Eastern Oregon in the summer.
This mysterious tepid water springs from a pond beside the canal.
Frenchglen Hotel & Drover's Inn
From Burns, Oregon, head south on State Highway 205.
Just an hour's drive away is Frenchglen, a community of about 10 people.
Beautiful whitewashed buildings along the road caught my eye.
This is the French Glen Hotel, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, which is also available for overnight stays except during the winter months.
Built in 1924, the hotel was in its early years a regular lodging for visitors to nearby livestock companies.
Today, guests who come for the unspoiled wilderness stay here.
A quiet spring bubbling up
The highway makes a sharp turn in front of the French Glen Hotel, where the Steens Mountain Loop branches off.
This road can take you near the top of Steens Mountain, which is nearly 10,000 ft above sea level.
Further branching off just beyond this intersection is the Barnes Springs Footpath.
Here I got out of the car and hiked 0.9 miles one way.
The trail was flat along the canal.
When I saw a pond behind huge rocks on the left, I have arrived.
A trail led into the bushes.
And a mystically clear pond appeared.
The east end of the pond was connected to a canal, which was calf-deep.
At the western end was the source that gushed up from a rocky area protected by a wire fence and a nearby sandy area.
Clear, colorless, tasteless, odorless, and 88 degrees F.
The lukewarm water will be pleasant in the summer.
Rocks were placed to dam up the area around the source, making it deep enough for soaking.
It was the perfect place to spend a quiet, peaceful, solitary Sunday.
Summary
Barnes Warm Springs, Frenchglen, Oregon, U.S.
My rating
Type: Undeveloped
Rule: Clothing optional
Chemical use: No
Water temp: 88 degrees F
