Hot Springs is a very unique spot that most park visitor’s experience. In the early 1900s, a man named J.O. Langford noticed hot springs on a map of the Rio Grande country of Big Bend. He purchased the land from the state without ever having seen it. Then he packed up his family and moved to the area to open a health spa.
Needless to say, he was shocked at how rough and remote the country was. But he was determined to make a living, and he built a hotel, bathhouse, and a post office, and a small resort village sprang up. After years of raids by bandits and Indians, drought, and pestilence, the resort closed.
But the foundations of the bath house, right beside the rushing Rio Grande, still exist, and still collect 105 degree water from hot rocks deep beneath the earth's surface. It makes a fine place to relax after a long drive or hike.
The only problem with Hot Springs is its accessibility. It's only 1/4 mile from the parking lot along an easy trail. So you can bet, if you're there on a weekend during the day, that you won't have it to yourself.
The trick is to visit late at night, or early EARLY in the morning before sunrise. I usually drive to Big Bend overnight, arriving around 3 or 4am, and lounge naked in the hot spring water, waiting for the sun to rise over Mexico. It always does, and it's always spectacular.
Weekend nights, though, can be crowded with local kids from nearby towns. And rangers REGULARLY patrol the springs late at night on weekends, especially in spring and summer. At these times, DON'T go naked and DON'T have alcohol or any illegal substances because a ticket here is a FEDERAL offense.
However, in mid-week, dead of winter, when it's below freezing outside, you can enjoy the toasty-warm water all to yourself in your altogether with an illegal cocktail to keep you company.
Overnight parking is illegal at Hot Springs. According to the park, as long as you're not ASLEEP anywhere in the vicinity of the springs, your car can be there overnight. Meaning, as long as you're soaking, you're cool. Don't try to sleep in your car or camp there. You'll get busted.
The three-mile road to Hot Springs is rough dirt, and scary, but passable to all cars unless it's extremely wet. At one point the road narrows to one lane on a narrow ledge 30 feet above the canyon floor, and it's scary for big cars or SUVs. But it makes a great waker-upper for those in your car if you've driven there overnight!