Our Stay at the Alvord Hot Springs
- Kati Cooke
- Feb 7
- 8 min read
Updated: Mar 8
Having lived in the PNW my entire life, I somehow avoided the southeast corner of the state entirely. Honestly, I had no idea what went on there - it was basically Nevada or Idaho (I wasn't even sure which).
When I met my husband five years ago, he casually mentioned his desire to see the Alvord Desert. I had never heard of this! I was shocked to hear it was a full SEVEN HOUR drive from Portland - I couldn't believe you could drive for that long and still be in Oregon.
It took us almost four years to finally make the trip down to the Alvord. I'm currently writing up our complete travel itinerary, and I'll link it when it's complete! In the meantime, I wanted to give all the important details on the Alvord Hot Springs & Bathhouse, where we rented a bunker for a few nights this past Thanksgiving.
The Infamous Road
The Alvord Desert is about 7 hours from Portland. You'll go south on Highway 26 through Prineville, then take Millican Road to Highway 20, which you'll follow to Burns. This is the last chance to fill up on gas. Do not risk it!
You are still two hours away from the Alvord Hot Springs! Don't trust that any other gas station you see on Google Maps will be open (businesses in this area tend to just be open or closed whenever they feel like it).
After Burns, you'll take Highway 78 for about 65 miles. We did this completely in the dark, as it was November and the sun set pretty early.
After an hour of driving through absolutely nothing, there is a turn-off onto Folly Farm Road. This eventually turns into Fields-Denio Road. This is the infamous 30-mile gravel road that everyone warns you about.
Honestly I was expecting it to be far worse. It was very well maintained, and I think any car could handle it. Watch for the free range cattle! The Alvord Desert is known as one of the darkest skies in the country - so a black cow in the middle of the road might not be easily visible. One of them startled me so badly, it was on the shoulder of the road, and I saw the glowing eyes, had a heart attack, then realized it was just a cow.
After 30 miles on the gravel road, you'll reach the Alvord Hot Springs & Bathhouse! Not a lot to see in the dark, but it is right across from the Steens Mountain.
The Alvord Hot Springs Facilities
My husband originally wanted to car camp at the Hot Springs, but I convinced him to rent a bunker, and thank God we did. Temperatures dropped to the low 20s every night (we accidentally left our water tank out one night and it froze solid). You have to call to reserve a bunkhouse (do NOT count on walk-up availability) and the prices change depending on the season.
The Hot Springs also have spots for car/tent/RV camping, but no RV hookups. There is NO running water! The camp office has a single toilet and hand-washing sink for the entire campground to share (with several warnings that the water is not drinkable). It was honestly pretty disgusting and was out of service for most of our trip.
I would highly recommend bringing supplies to bag out your waste, and I'll leave the rest up to your imagination. The bathroom situation was definitely the most unpleasant part of our stay.
Our bunker had the following amenities:
electrical outlets and a power strip
small windows
a small space heater
lighting
two queen beds (no linens!)
a rocking chair
a table with a few chairs
a picnic table outside
a fire pit outside
an entire plague of spiders to keep you company overnight
I'll start with the positives: I loved being able to charge my phone, my headlamp, and even my laptop so we could watch the movies I downloaded. We were still freezing all night, but the space heater was a life saver. It is so incredibly dark in the desert that the lights in the bunker were also really nice.
I also shockingly had (Verizon) cell service! As much as I wanted to unplug, this was a pleasant surprise so I could download movies and even call my mom to tell her about our adventures. The metal bunkhouse walls blocked most signal, but outside I actually had great reception.
Unfortunately, it wasn't a super comfortable stay, but still much better than sleeping outside in the freezing cold. I'm going to sound like such a baby, but I cannot stand spiders. The bunkhouse was infested with the biggest, nastiest spiders in every corner, on the ceiling, under the bed, everywhere! I had to actively not look at the walls or I wouldn't be able to sleep. I don't usually have a problem with tent camping, but for some reason, being "inside" with a bunch of spiders felt so much worse.
I would recommend staying in a bunkhouse if you visit the Alvord in the fall or winter, but if the weather is comfortable overnight, tent camping would be much nicer. Especially with the stars!
The Hot Springs Bathhouse
As overnight guests, we had unlimited access to the Alvord Hot Springs. We never had them to ourselves, but only had to share with 2-4 other people each time. Everyone was super friendly and we had no issues with drug use or other weird behavior (which can't be said for every Oregon hot spring I've visited).
The Hot Springs are open to day-use-only guests from 9-5 (ish), for an $8 fee. You'll pay at the office, and it's recommended to call ahead to check availability. Clothing is optional unless children are present. Overnight campsite guests can use the Hot Springs for free at any time, day or night.
There are two pools, one outside, and one covered by a tin roof. There is a small bench and changing area, but no privacy. The pools have upside down buckets for seats, and everything is really slippery.
The cleanliness is questionable, but the owner is very vocal and argumentative in his responses to Google reviews that point this out. He swears that the water has been tested multiple times by the authorities and is up to code. Personally, I don't entirely care. I've sat in mud pits at Umpqua Hot Springs with naked hippies. This felt like a spa compared to that experience.
The Playa
The Alvord Desert is perhaps most famous for the playa - a 12-mile by 7-mile "dry" lakebed. The Alvord Hot Springs campground has a private road for playa access. It's about a mile long and definitely worth walking out (I mean, what else are you going to do here?).
Unfortunately, the playa was like a sinkhole of quicksand when we visited in late November. Usually, November is the tail end of the dry season and people are still driving and camping on the lakebed. We took about two steps onto the mud just to feel it, and it almost ate our shoes.
There's always some dummy who tries to drive onto the playa when it's muddy, I'd highly recommend NOT being that person. You're hours away from any emergency services or tow truck.
If you do visit during the dry season, you can camp on the playa! Just be sure to set up traffic cones and lights around your campsite and stick to the edges. People drive ATVs and cars on the lakebed and might not see a tent in time to stop, especially at night.
The Surrounding Area
To avoid posting an entire novel here, I am splitting up my Alvord Desert trip into several blog posts. As I write them, I'll update the links here, so be sure to check back! (And sign up for email notifications!)
One of the first things you'll notice upon driving in, is the Steens Mountains! They are right across the road from the Hot Springs and I definitely suggest going for a hike. We did a fantastic 5.5 mile hike and explored some abandoned mines. I'll add the write-up here when it's finished. Unfortunately we missed the cutoff for the Steens Mountains Loop road to be open (it closes in mid-November each year, then opens again in May/June depending on weather), so we didn't get to explore as much as we'd like to.
Almost every blog written about the Alvord Desert mentions the famous milkshakes at Fields Station. It's about a 30-minute drive south from the Hot Springs. We were eager to see what the hype was all about, and unfortunately we were disappointed. The employee was very cold and impolite, and our first thought was racism (we are an interracial couple and have dealt with weirdness in rural areas before). We read some Google reviews of the restaurant and saw that many others have had the same issue with the staff being rude.
The food was pretty good, but nothing noteworthy. The milkshake was absolutely massive, so I'd recommend splitting one unless you just ran a marathon or haven't eaten in days. The staff member became progressively friendlier as we hung out and ate, so I'm really not sure why she had a burr up her butt when we came in. While we waited for our food, I enjoyed looking at all the photos of animals people had locally hunted. A word of caution - almost every food item in the convenience store was extremely expired! It is really the only place to buy food for miles, so if you really need something, I guess it's worth it, but don't count on buying groceries or cooking supplies here.
After spending a day in the Alvord Desert, we drove to the "nearby" Owyhee Canyonlands. I will also write a separate post about this. I always assumed Southeast Oregon was like one area where everything was close by, but nope! The Owyhee Canyonlands and Leslie Gulch are a whole 3 hours away from the Alvord Desert. I'll add the link here when I finish my write-up!
Final Thoughts and Fast Facts
Overall I loved my trip to the Alvord Desert! There were some expectations I needed to leave at the door, but once I embraced the rustic nature of the campground I had a great time. I definitely don't recommend coming in November. The playa will likely be closed, the Steens Mountain Loop is closed, the sun sets at 4 pm, and the nightly temperature makes it impossible to want to do anything outside after sunset. I still had a wonderful time, but I would absolutely do the trip differently next time.
Things to Know
The Alvord Desert Hot Springs campground is 7 hours from Portland, and requires driving an hour on a gravel road full of free range cows
The closest gas station is Burns, almost 2 hours away
There is no running water!
Prices change depending on the season, you have to call ahead to reserve a bunkhouse and get the prices
The Hot Springs are open 9-5 (ish) for day-use guests, for an $8 fee, or 24/7 for overnight guests for free, and clothing is optional
Dogs are allowed
You might have cell service, but don't count on it
Helpful Links
Alvord Hot Springs & Campground website
A documentary about the inspiring life and tragic death of Jessi Combs, who broke the land speed record on the Alvord Desert (there is a memorial for her by the Hot Springs, and we we met two of her friends during our stay, who told us about this documentary)
If you visit the Alvord Desert, I'd love to hear about it! It was one of the more unique places I've been to, and while it's not for everyone, I really enjoyed the experience. We were also extremely lucky to have clear skies, and got some wonderful photos of the Milky Way, which I will leave you with.
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