Frequently Asked Question's: The Hot Springs Trail
How long is The Hot Springs Trail?
The HST is comprised of 4 parts, totaling 2,421.4 miles.
Part 1: The Coast Connect Trail
303.8 miles
Part 2: The High Sierra Hot Springs Trail
329.6 miles
Part 3: The Nevada Trail
607.3 miles
Part 4: The Idaho Soaktennial Trail
1,180.7 miles
Are the section guidebooks the same as the main guide?
Yes, the main guidebook is the summation of these 4 section guidebooks.
What is the longest section without water?
Part 1: CCT - 19.4m. When leaving the town of Ojai, CA.
Part 2: HSHST - There are no water alerts during this section.
Part 3: NVT - 36.8m. When leaving the town of Tonopah, NV.
Part 4: IST - 41.5m. When leaving Mile 0. *This section is open to bike-packing.
How many hot spring areas does this trail visit? 100
There are 64 wild, 22 semi-developed wild, and 14 resorts.
Are each of the 100 hot spring areas along this trail, 'on-trail'?
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58 of these areas are located on-trail, requiring no extra effort to visit.
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31 are visited by completing out & back hikes of various lengths.
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And finally, 11 of these areas are located *off-trail.
*Mileages for these off-trail areas has not been included in the overall hiking mileage; however, these areas will be visited 'on-trail' if following the recommended resupply and multi-sport options.
Are each of these 100 hot spring areas usable?
No, 4 of them are located on private property, and are closed to the public at this time.
What are the current trail tread percentages?
XC (off-trail) = 4.9%
Existing Trails = 45.3%
Jeep or ATV Roads = 11.56%
Dirt Roads = 15.84%
Gravel Roads = 8.10%
Closed Roads = 1.26%
Paved Roads = 8.28%
The majority of XC miles are encountered in Nevada, as ridge-running.
The majority of paved and gravel road miles are found in the final section of the Nevada Trail and sections 1-3 of the Idaho Soaktennial Trail. These sections can be hiked but are also legal to pedal and are therefore recommended for bike-packing.
Is this trail easy to hike?
With proper gear, adequate health, and backcountry navigation/survival skills, yes, but if any one of these is missing, it may be difficult in places.
How many opportunities to resupply are there? 47
Part 1: CCT - 11
Part 2: HSHST - 9
Part 3: NVT - 6
Part 4: IST - 21
How many Farmer's Markets are accessible from this trail? 16
4 are held immediately along the trail.
5 are held within 0.5m of the trail.
7 are held along an official resupply option.
Are permits required anywhere along this trail?
Yes, in the High Sierra. Get a free, self-issued interagency backcountry permit, en-route, in either Kernville (if going Nobo) or Mammoth Lakes (if going Sobo).
Is this really a National Scenic Trail?
No. It's a proposal for one.
Why? Were you hoping it was?
You see, some people out there want this trail to stay wild, for it to be an adventure that only the hard-cores can do - people who can navigate by map alone, climb steep grades without switchbacks, and handle a little road walking here and there.
However, there are also people who want to see this trail become an NST, for it to be used as a way to help prevent these springs from getting overgrown or overrun by riff-raff. They want to see it used as a leveraging piece to restore the old corridors and trails utilized by this route, in connecting these springs. They also want to see trail badges here & there plus a few new trail segments get built that would eliminate some of this trail's road mileage for thru-hikers.
What would you like to see?
Either way, I'd love your feedback.
Where can I find additional information about this trail?
For answers to the deeper questions, get my free Insider's Guide to the HST
