Barnes Warm Springs

Current status: no soaking

Barnes Warm Springs, also listed as Frenchglen Warm Springs or Frenchglen Hot Springs, is closed to soaking. The spring rises at the old Barnes homestead just east of Frenchglen, on land that is now part of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. Refuge rules prohibit swimming anywhere on the refuge, and the field guide maintained by Trailkeepers of Oregon reports that the soaking pool has been returned to nature, with a refuge sign at the spring warning people to keep away.

A lot of websites and guidebooks still describe a small warm pool you can sit in after a short walk. Some even give its size and depth. That is old information. You can still walk out to see the spring and the homestead, but leave your swimsuit in the car.

What you will find

The walk is the attraction now. From a line of junipers, the spring pours down into a small pool. The water is warm, around 90°F32°C, which is pleasant for a hand dip but well below hot spring temperatures. Decades ago a bathhouse stood here, and people from the community and cowboys from nearby ranches came to wash and soak.

Beyond the spring is the old Barnes homestead. The Barnes family, last of all Don “Jiggs” Barnes and his family, ran sheep and cattle on the lower slopes of Steens Mountain and kept hay fields for the Eastern Oregon Livestock Company. The refuge canceled the ranch leases in 1978, and the house was later removed. What remains is a corral with fencing made of woven willow, a small sod shed now protected under a frame and roof, a few spruce trees and Siberian elms, and an old apple orchard with metal baffles around the trunks. Look for an old basketball hoop on one of the cottonwood trunks.

Getting there

Frenchglen is a tiny settlement on Highway 205 at the west foot of Steens Mountain, about an hour south of Burns.

From Burns: Head east on Monroe Street (Highway 78) for 1.9 miles. At the junction with Highway 205, turn right toward Frenchglen and drive south for 58.1 miles on paved highway.

The walk: The full walk starts at the Frenchglen Trailhead by the interpretive panels near the Frenchglen Hotel. A short paved path leads to a bench and a sign for the Barnes Springs Footpath. Cross a culvert over the willow-lined Warm Springs Canal, bear right at the hiker sign, and follow a mowed track along the canal to the Steens Mountain Loop Road.

Turn right for about 15 yards to a gated farm track. This is the Barnes Springs Trailhead, which you can also drive to: it is 0.2 miles up the gravel Steens Mountain Loop Road from the turnoff just past the Frenchglen Hotel, with parking by the gate. Use the walk-through gate beside the vehicle gate and follow the gravel track along the base of a sagebrush slope, with the canal on your left. When the canal bends away, you will see the big cottonwoods of the P Ranch to the north, and then the green patch of the homestead ahead.

The spring is beside the track. Past it, the road is signed for official use only, but a side track drops to the homestead, where you can walk past the corral to the sod shed. Stay out of any area posted as closed.

The round trip from the Frenchglen Trailhead is about 2.6 miles with only about 30 feet of elevation gain, so it suits almost anyone.

When to go

The walk works all year. Spring and fall are the most comfortable, with cool mornings and the most bird activity along the canal. Expect red-winged blackbirds and marsh wrens in the cattails, California quail and mourning doves in the brush, and deer and coyote sign on the track. Summer afternoons are hot and exposed, so go early. Winter can bring snow and freezing wind off Steens Mountain.

The refuge is open from sunrise to sunset.

Rules and etiquette

Malheur National Wildlife Refuge has strict rules, and they apply here:

• No swimming or soaking. The refuge bans swimming, and the sign at the spring says to keep out.
• All areas are closed unless posted open. Stay on the track and respect “Area Closed” and “Official Use Only” signs.
• Sunrise to sunset only. No camping or overnight parking on the refuge.
• No campfires and no drones.
• Dogs must be on a leash, and you need to pick up after them.
• Do not collect anything, including plants, antlers, rocks or old ranch artifacts.

There is no charge to visit the refuge. Restrooms and picnic tables are available near the Frenchglen Hotel.

Where to stay nearby

• Frenchglen Hotel, the historic inn at the trailhead, is the obvious base and is where the walk begins.
• Page Springs Campground, run by the BLM, is a few miles up the Steens Mountain Loop Road on the Donner und Blitzen River and is the closest developed campground.
• Steens Mountain Loop Road campgrounds farther up the mountain open once the seasonal gates open, usually in summer.
• Burns, about an hour north, has the closest full range of motels and services.

Where to soak instead

Alvord Hot Springs, on the east side of Steens Mountain, is the nearest place where you can legally soak. It is a private ranch facility with two concrete pools, campsites and bunkhouses, and it charges a fee. It is close as the crow flies but a long drive around the mountain by road, so call ahead to confirm day use before you make the trip.

Safety notes

• Respect the closure. The refuge has its own law enforcement, and the pool is now left for wildlife.
• Heat and sun: There is little shade on the track. Carry water, especially in summer.
• Remoteness: Frenchglen has very limited services and spotty cell coverage. Fill up with fuel in Burns before you drive south.
• Footing: The track is gravel and grass, and the homestead area is strewn with fallen limbs, so watch where you step.