Sounds like the 14-15-16th of April is the one.
Should be Beautiful again this year~

Hi Peter,

Of course you can tag along. The more the merrier. If you can get Good Friday off work you could hike in with us on Thursday night. If our friend Alan goes, he'll be hiking in either Friday night or Saturday morning.

Not many folks know about Willett H.S. since, until fairly recently, it was located on a private inholding within the national forest lands. Sespe Hot Springs is about 7 miles away from Willett.

It's been a few years since I last visited Sespe Hot Springs, but they were really nice when I was there. Very little use due to the difficulty in getting there. The trails can be in poor condition since they are no longer maintained due to budget cutbacks. The only downside to Sespe Hot Springs is that there is no shade anywhere near the hot springs and you'll end up with a bad sunburn unless you're slathering yourself in sunscreen frequently. Depending on the time of year, recent rains, and other conditions, by moving a few rocks around you can mix the cool water of the creek with the super hot spring waters to acheive good soaking conditions. The water at the source is way too hot to deal with, but you can create a pretty neat wet sauna by using your freestanding tent fly near the source. The best campsites in Hot Springs Canyon are close to the Sespe River.

If the road to the Condor Refuge is open again above Fillmore, hiking from Dough Flats is probably an easier route into Sespe Hot Springs, although it is about five miles longer. The entire area is loaded with ticks, with the worst months from late April to November.

Yeah, that's it. The flash flood warning is very well founded. I've seen it when the river is really running and have been surprised by where the recent high water marks are. Contrary to the description, the trail is NOT mostly flat. It might appear that way looking at the way it follows the contour lines down the Sespe, but I can assure you that even though it's fairly well graded, there are still quite a few hills between Lions Camp and the Hot Springs. Ten miles seems like it's a bit of an overstatement, since I believe it to be more like eight or nine. It just feels longer due to all the undulations the trail takes as it snakes it's way along.

Also, the leader of the horsepacking group, Tony Alvis died in the landslide at La Conchita a year or so ago trying to save other people and property. We were up there at the springs a while back and it looks like his work is being carried on, and the spring box had been cleaned out at the ranch.

John and I both have Friday the 14th off, so we'll probably be meeting up on Thursday night around 9:00 PM at the Lion's Camp trailhead. The forest service revamped access to the area recently and there is a new parking lot, restroom, and trail access about half a mile away from the old Lower Lion's Campground where the trail used to start. That may be where the extra milage came from if your description is a really recent one. The forest service also re-routed the first portion of the trail recently so as not to impact the endangered Arroyo Toad.

Anyway, we usually hike a couple of hours at night using our headlamps since the first part of the trail is just a fire road and fairly wide. There is only one river crossing that must be done at night, and that is fairly soon after you leave the trailhead. Watershoes are a must, and trekking poles help with the crossings. Depending on how the trail has fared during the rains will determine the amount of difficulty in making it to the hot springs, and how many times we will need to cross the river since there are sectons of the trail that is well below the high water marks along the river.

Oh yeah, everyone is invited!