Wild Willy’s Hot Springs in Mammoth Lakes: Everything You Need to Know
Wild Willy’s is one of the most popular hot springs in the Mammoth Lakes area. It’s easy to access, has large pools that can fit many people, and is set against the gorgeous backdrop of the Eastern Sierra mountains.
It is a completely natural hot spring, meaning the bottom is dirt/rocks and there are plants growing in and around the hot springs. The soil around the hot springs is mostly natural clay, so you can give yourself a nice little exfoliating spa treatment with it!
This guide will provide you with everything you need to know about visiting Wild Willy’s Hot Springs before you go. If you have any questions that aren’t answered here, leave a comment on this post!
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Know Before You Go
It’s completely free!
Clothing optional — people do bathe nude here.
Roads closed in winter.
Located on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land.
Follow Leave No Trace principles.
How to Get to Wild Willy’s Hot Springs
Take the 395 and turn onto Benton Road. If you’re on 395-north, it will be on your right. If you’re on 395-south, you’ll need to take the turn out and drive across the north side of the 395 to reach Benton Road.
From there, drive about 3 miles down Benton Road. If there’s a lot of snow, the road to the hot springs won’t be accessible and you’ll need to park on the side of Benton Road and walk/snowshoe to the hot springs. We didn’t do this as there was not any snow on the ground when we visited.
If there is no snow, then take a right turn after you’ve driven about 3 miles down Benton Road. The road is dirt and gravel and is pretty bumpy. I’d recommend taking an all-wheel drive vehicle if you have one!
Drive down the dirt road for about 1.5 miles until you reach the parking lot at the end. There are a few smaller roads that branch off of the main one — don’t take these!
Once you park, grab all your stuff for the hot springs and walk down the wooden walkway for about 0.2 miles. You’ll see the hot springs once you get to the end.
Best Time to Visit Wild Willy’s Hot Springs
I visited in June 2023, but the previous winter had an unusually massive amount of snow, which meant it was a bit more like visiting in late spring.
The weather wasn’t too cold and it was gorgeous with snow still on the surrounding mountains. In winter the ground will all be covered with snow, which looks pretty magical from the photos I’ve seen.
We arrived just after sunrise to avoid people, but the car campers beat us to it. There were already a couple of groups here and one solo guy who loudly talked to anyone who would listen the entire hour we were there (don’t be that guy!).
Rumor has it that this place gets much more lively and a bit weird at night, so if you’re looking for a party or a weird time, come at sunset.
What to Bring to Wild Willy’s Hot Springs
Towel: If you’re staying in a hotel or rental, they likely do not allow you to take their towels from your room. We bought ours at the local Vons for $15 each, but you can also bring your own if you plan ahead better than we did! I prefer Turkish Towels since they’re lightweight and easy to travel with.
Swimsuit: This is unofficially optional. Just remember that there is clay and dirt in and around the hot springs, so I would stay away from white or light colors that could get stained. Mine is from Aerie!
Water bottle (non-glass): Sitting in hot water can dehydrate you faster. If you plan on being here for a while, bring a water bottle (I LOVE my Owala 24oz) to help replenish everything you’re sweating out.
Reef-safe sunscreen: Keep the hot springs chemical-free with reef-safe sunscreen.
Beanie (in winter): It can get freezing cold here! Although the hot springs will keep your body warm, your head may still get cold.
Change of clothes: Wear or bring clothes you can change into after taking off your wet swimsuit. I opted for some clothes that were easy to slip on while changing under a towel.
Bag for wet swimsuits: I wish I had the foresight to bring a bag for my wet swimsuit! It would have been nice to throw it into a bag while changing.
Walking shoes: I wore my New Balance Trail Shoes throughout our trip to Mammoth Lakes and they are the absolute best travel shoes I’ve owned. They’re grippy, super comfortable, and have some platform height, which I love! I wore my boots the day we went to Wild Willy’s—and even sandals would be fine here—but these trail shoes are so great I always recommend them over everything.
Backpack: I absolutely love my anti-theft travel backpack. It fits a ton of stuff (including my giant camera!), has a zipper on the back so people can’t pickpocket you, and has pockets and a zipper pouch inside.
Wild Willy’s Hot Springs
There are a few hot springs at Wild Willy’s, all right next to each other!
The first hot spring you’ll see as you reach the end of the wooden walkway is on your right. It is smaller but can probably fit about 3-5 people. It’s connected to the largest hot spring.
To your left is the famous heart-shaped hot spring. It didn’t quite look like a heart shape when I was there, but I think it’s all about the angle! This one seems to be the hottest and deepest hot spring. It was occupied when we were there so I didn’t get the chance to sit in it myself.
Farthest from the parking lot on your right is the largest hot spring. It is shallow (about 2’ at the deepest point when we were there in June 2023) and not as hot as the others. You can probably fit 10-15 people in this one comfortably. This is the one we sat in and it was still lovely!
Wild Willy’s Hot Springs Camping
Since this is public land, you can camp here for free! People parked their cars in some of the bigger turnouts along the road, as well as in the parking lot itself, and were camping in their cars.
There are vault toilets, but I didn’t use them while I was here. The only running water are the hot springs themselves, which you cannot safely drink from. Bring plenty of your own!
Follow Leave No Trace principles and pack it in, pack it out. Do not leave any trash or items behind. The beauty of these hot springs is how everyone who visits does their part in keeping them clean, accessible, and a great experience for future visitors.
Other Hot Springs in Mammoth Lakes
There are a few hot springs off of Benton Road that you can easily hop to after visiting Wild Willy’s. Some are a bit more difficult to get to, and are all much smaller than Wild Willy’s.
Wild Willy’s Hot Springs: Of course! These are the hot springs covered in this post.
Crab Cooker Hot Spring: This is a single, smallish hot spring that has a pipe pumping the water into it. There is a valve so you can control how much water gets pumped in since it is HOT. Hot enough to cook crabs, hence the name. We visited this one, but it was a bit too hot for us and the mosquitoes were swarming (I got bit twice in the 5 minutes we were there!). I highly recommend a high-clearance car with all-wheel drive to get to this one.
Hilltop Hot Spring: The walk to this one is a bit longer than the others, so you may get lucky with less people visiting it. We haven’t visited this one yet, so I can’t give any tips or info from personal experience.
Rock Hot Tub: We also didn’t stop to visit this tiny hot spring, which is said to have the coolest temperature of the bunch.
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