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The Skinny on Fifth WaterMore on Fifth Water This is from our Out Trails column. It was intended to be funny and sarcastic. |
The original columnBy Chase Long Can you read the message someone carefully printed on the sign shown in the photo? The sign is located at the Rays Valley Road trailhead and warns that there may be nude people at the hot springs on Fifth Water Creek, a tributary to Diamond Fork up Spanish Fork Canyon. Being a dedicated investigative reporter, I deemed it my duty to check out the hot pots to see if that information is accurate. I grabbed my binoculars and telephoto lens and found a vantage point on a hill, where I could watch without disturbing the action. An interesting assortment of people made the short hike to the main pool, which is one of the best undeveloped hot springs in the western United States. Families with small children came during the day, along with single individuals and couples. They all kept their swimming suites on, albeit one of the couples seemed a bit tight and overly affectionate, considering the public setting. A ranger hiked through in the later afternoon. He chatted with the bathers and then returned up the trail. As the sun sank low over the ridge, the families and responsible-looking citizens left and younger people started to show up. "This could get interesting," I thought, realizing that the springs are located in Utah County, of all places. "Maybe this is where BYU coeds come to unwind." Sadly, the only nude bathers I saw that trip were males who looked like they were high school-age burnouts. On a subsequent trip, to recheck my facts, I saw a male/female couple (ancient hippies, from their look and demeanor), completely disrobe during the middle of the afternoon, paying no attention to those around them. Parts of their bodies sagged out all over the place. A few minutes later two granola-type females arrived, hairy legs and armpits and all. Fearing they might get naked, I decided to leave. I’m a calloused, investigative reporter but that mental image was just too much. My conclusions: The message on the sign is accurate. If you hike Fifth Water, be prepared to see skin. Rangers try to control drugs and alcohol there, and they encourage people to keep their clothes on, but nudity persists. The hot springs are definitely inviting if you are interested in soaking in relaxing, hot, therapeutic mineral water. But you will probably be disappointed if your goal is to see beautiful, naked bodies. You’ll see skin but you probably won’t find it titillating. If you don’t want to see naked people, hit the hot pots during the morning or early afternoon. |
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The Angry ResponseI am writing in reference to Chase Long’s article (The skinny on Fifth Water, August). I found his article to be offensive and a sad commentary on certain behavior in a beautiful place. I have been hiking in to the "hot pots" for 23 years now, and, as I have become more familiar with the area, each year I fall more deeply in love with the place. I view the "hot pots" as a sacred place, not to be denounced or put down because people take their clothes off to soak in its therapeutic pools. I find it sad that Mr. Long deemed it his duty to check out the "hot pots" to see if he could see some beautiful naked women. He missed the whole beauty of the place by focusing so hard on that one idea–(he missed) the beauty of the hike and the surrounding area. Why the heck didn’t he get in the water? About the granola-type women that were mentioned: why would Mr. Chase run from them? Is he so perverse that nakedness can only bring sexual arousal, and when it is in its natural state it brings disgust? Perhaps a panel of judges should be called in to rate his physical attractiveness. I have hiked Fifth Water in every season and each season brings its rewards, frustrations, surprises and loveliness. Early spring is a hike through melting snow and lots of mud, with budding trees and wild flowers popping up through the snow. Summer brings more surprises: baby squirrels venturing out of their dens for their first outing, deer, fox, magpies, hawks and once, just once, I got a glimpse of a mountain lion high above on the cliff. As you hike through the meadows you are surrounded by wild flowers, salsify, gum weed and hounds tongue, which has the aroma of buttered popcorn. The hot springs also support a large population of blow snakes, which are completely harmless to man. They frequent the springs for water and its warmth. One time I was soaking in one of the side pools and heard some rustling behind my head. I turned around only to find myself eyeball to eyeball with a blow snake flicking its tongue aimlessly. They need not be feared, but looked at as part of the ecosystem as they keep the mouse population in check. Late summer brings more stagnation to the pools, as the cold-water flow is low and the pools are considerably hotter, especially this year. When the goldenrod blooms, it marks the end of summer and the nights become cooler. A late afternoon hike to the hot springs is breathtaking in the fall with the maples and scrub oak in their glory and when the sun sets the hot water is your reward. Hiking to the springs during the winter has it challenges, and the worse part about the hike is you get cold during the last eighth of a mile through the field to the parking lot! One way to beat the hike and speed things up is to ski in, although that means bringing more gear. It is relatively easy getting in but coming out is hard work. It is during the winter when your reward at the end of the trail is most appreciated. Those 107-degree pools never felt better. What is most titillating is to be soaking in the middle of a snowstorm. Just don’t stay so long that you are unable to get back home, unless you’re camping for the night. On the hike down from Fifth Water, there are two waterfalls before you get to the main waterfall that falls over the hot springs. The waterfalls are a side attraction to the hot springs. If you look hard enough, there is a cave formed by years of cascading water and erosion; nothing much to look at, but intriguing nonetheless. There are several private tubs before you reach the main spring area. They were built and designed by Ross Lundgren, a 75-year-old man that pushed his bike up or down the trail, depending on how he accessed the springs. In the wintertime, he attached skis to the wheels of his bike, so he could ski out. A remarkable man that died a year ago from a brain tumor, I considered him to be responsible and reasonable and he always got naked. Our family affectionately called him "skinny man." He taught my children how to heat beans and boil eggs in the hot water. We have missed him. The hot springs aren’t all about getting naked. They are a sanctuary away from one’s daily routine, a place to unwind, soak, relax–a place to enjoy nature with its sounds, smells and raw beauty. A sacred place to be enjoyed by all–clothed or otherwise. Cathy O’Bryant |
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