At this hot springs in the high desert country of the Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge, you can soak in a free, natural 102 F rock pool, watching bubbles rise from the rocks below while songbirds zoom overhead. Plenty of free campsites are nearby, scattered along grassy streambanks amid groves of silver-leaved quaking aspen.

Most visitors here take a dip in the hot springs, camp, and then drive on. But to see the refuge’s wildlife and mountain scenery up close, use ...

From Lakeview, drive . . .

Wear long pants to protect your legs from the sagebrush. Expect to scramble a bit when you pass an aspen grove with trees felled by beaver. When you reach the broad meadow bowl of Barnhardi Basin, you’ll have to cross Barnhardi Road to reach the cabin, a dilapidated 10-by-16-foot plank shack in a grove of giant aspens (GPS location ...). If the cabin is your goal, you can return on a loop by following Barnhardi Road back to your car. If you’d like a longer hike,  . . .

Other Options

Those who . . .

This chapter is an excerpt from 100 Hikes: Eastern Oregon