After failing in our quest to dig our own hot tub in the sand south of San Felipe we cruised about 50 miles south along the coast to Puertecitos, a tiny town known for its tidal hot springs (aguas termales).
About 1/4 of a mile from the local campground located on a rocky outcropping at the tip of the bay, there are spring fed pools right at the tide line. The pools are at different heights, and each has a different temperature depending on how big the pool is and how much tide water is mixed in. The spring water itself is extremely hot on its own (just dipping a toe felt like you would suffer skin burns). In order to enjoy the pools, you have to check tide charts and time your soak with an incoming or outgoing tide to get the right blend of ocean water and hot spring water.
Our second day at the campground we walked up for a sunrise soak which proved to be both the most satisfying albeit the most effort. It was an incoming tide so we could watch the waves lapping right up to the springs. With one large swell the middle pool we had been in went from comfortably warm to freezing cold! We retreated to the upper pool which was visibly steaming and at that point you could barely keep your feet in. There was one small inlet of cold water that we all crowded around trying not to burn ourselves. We stayed in that pool slowly pushing further and further away from the incoming tide and towards the back of the pool for about 40 mins. When the tide would come up, we hand mixed the cold ocean water in with the rest of the pool and waited for the answering swirls of scalding water from the spring to mix in.
It was a humbling experience to feel so physically the forces of nature at work. And marvel at just how transient nature can be. In a matter of minutes, the tidal hot springs were fully covered with the ocean tides, unable to even be seen – only to reemerge once the tides got lower. No doubt we will be at the whim of nature many times on this trip – an integral part of our homes and our comfort. The tidal hot springs were also a perfect tie-in to the block the kids are studying now on the moon, stars and tidal shifts.
We rounded out the day with paddling around on the boards in the bay and workouts, along with another trip to the hot spring pools in the afternoon. It felt like a luxurious spa day, van-life style.
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