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California Central WestDeveloped, Small rustic Resort
Description: Rustic retreat nestled in a steep tree lined canyon. A little stream runs through it. Big restaurant style communal kitchen and refrigerator.$$$
Clothing optional? Yes
Accommodation: Small private cabins and a common group sleeping room. Camping.
Address: 13201 Orr Springs Rd, Ukiah, CA 95482
phone: (707) 462-6277
Email:
Website: http://www.orrhotsprings.org/things-to-know-beforehand.htmlDIRECTIONS: About 2 hrs north of San Francisco. Going N on HWY 101, Take the North State St exit – go 0.3 mi, Turn right at N State St – go 0.3 mi, Turn left at Orr Springs Rd – go 6.8 mi.
MAP: http://tinyurl.com/7f7r8
Details: Small, peaceful, no hype, rustic retreat visited mostly by locals and people from San Francisco who like to cook.
Facilities include: 3 or 4 funky but clean private cast iron bathtubs with warm water, a small shallow warm outdoor moon view pool, one very hot gazebo hot tub seats about 4-6 (heater goes off around 10pm), new moderately large tile and wood steam or sauna cabins with a little natural light. Wonderful large community omnivore kitchen with great stove, basic cooking gear, utensils, and spices. Large refrigerator and individual food storage bins available. Casual dining room to eat your own cooked meals. Tiny library. Pot bellied stoves often used to heat rooms. Unsecured parking in area across the road from the property. Easy access.
Nearby hiking: Wonderful looped hike through the shady redwoods about 5-10 minute drive down the country road.
NOTES:
For Day Use on the weekends, it is a good idea to call at least 2-4 weeks in advance to ensure availability. Maximum group size for Day Use is 4 people.Orr has gone through extensive renovations over the years, though it maintains its quaint charm. Best to check if construction will be going during your planned stay. They don’t seem to volunteer this information over the phone, or give discounts for the disturbance or reduced facilities. Last I heard they were planning to divert warm water to the cold outdoor pool.
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Place Category: Hot Spring
2 Reviews on “Orr Hot Springs, California, USA”
A wonderful facility, that has a restaurant style kitchen where you can store and cook your food. It’s for this reason that it was popular with some San Francisco chefs in days of yore. Not sure what it’s like these days. I do know one should definitely make reservations far in advance. It’s very popular.
Breitenbush hot springs near Detroit OR blows everything else “out of the water” !
According to the message on the answering machine, Orr Springs is closed for renovations from September 5-November 9, 2006. Any suggestions for other springs that would be similar to Orr, besides Harbin which I know about?
Anonymous said…
My childhood was spent in Mendocino County and now I am a resident of the Bay Area. I love San Francisco, but the busy city life drives me to Orr quarterly with child like anticipation. The short 2 1/2 hour trip to Orr always heightens my eagerness as I drive through the unique beauty of Northern California. The thick forests and the relatively empty roads always remind me of the uncomplicated retreat that lies ahead.
Orr in all of its naturally rustic beauty stands out from all of the others. The down-to-earth tubs and meticulously kept gardens immediately provoke a deep level of serenity. The air is fresh and sweet from the giant redwoods and the warm oak. It’s easy to take a deep breath and let the city stress slip away. The private rooms are classically beautiful with their claw foot tubs that can easily fit two. Lying in the tub I am surrounded by old wood, a high window streaming in light and loving detailed tile inlayed in the wall. The water is soft and has a wonderful aroma of musky sulfur. I want to stay in the tub all day but I have more to explore.
The communal tubs include a redwood tub that is supplied by hot water straight from the spring. The temperature is just right for a muscle-relaxing soak. It overflows into a natural stone shallow pool that is body-temperature. For a more refreshing dip, there is a cool pool that can take your breath away. A lovely little concrete pool fills with warm water before flowing into the cold pool. Behind the pool stands two separate steam and sauna rooms. Both are lovely.
The accommodations range from camping along a lovely stream, communal lodge or private cabins. All are very reasonably priced. I prefer the camping to complete my appreciation of the natural beauty of Orr. There are a couple of common rooms including a kitchen. All of your cooking tools are present, but you must supply your own food.
Compared to other more polished resorts you actually go for the natural beauty. If an over developed resort with lots of bells and whistles is your preference, Orr is not your destination. People come to Orr for its simplicity; which also means that wearing a bathing suit is optional. However, they do ask that you re-robe when in the common areas.
Enjoy the peace! Orr 707- 462-6277.
chris, CA, USA said…
10/6/2002- Lovely place…actually used to live there around 1975 and enjoyed the community-at-large which included Greenfield Ranch folk. Just as in the beginning of Orr (i.e., loggers coming for baths) the people from Greenfield would visit regularly. Whenever I have a business trip to San Francisco I always try to tag on a stay at Orr Hot Springs. I can truly “veg out” and return to my calmer ways. I remember a lot of the people in and around the place; and would love to communicate with someone about it. Regards, chris.
Martin, CA, USA said…
8/4/2002- I lived at Orr for six years, the first six years of my life. I go back regularly and can assure you that this is a much better place that Harbin or Wilbur. Not too pricy for the cabins next to the paths, but they are planning construction of a “fern village”, essentially more cabins a bit farther away from the pools, but much quieter and surrounded by trees. If you have any questions please feel free to email me at skorned14@yahoo.com . I would definitely recommend this place over any other that I’ve been to.
matthew, USA said…
2/8/2001- okay, orr IS a nice place, and the accommodations ARE first rate. we stayed in the expensive cottage with the kitchen and bathroom inside. Number 16 for $160.00/night. the really comfortable bed and extensively stocked kitchen really shined. my partner loved fixing dinner that night, the utensils and pots/pans supplied were more adequate than she expected, but it is a good thing we brought our own wok. no worries there. i cant say enough good things about the cottage, it was fantastic. but the springs… why would they simply offer bathtubs as the four private tubs? i mean , c’mon, it was a little tacky. it would cost very little to redo each room with a concrete square with inlaid tile in larger sizes in order to accommodate two per tub. you follow my idea? inside each private room should have been set up with something like the mineral dip right next to the cold pool crossed with the outdoor hot tub. the bathtubs were too cheap. also, the outdoor tub was not heated well. why not? why would you not equip all the tubs, everything, with heaters? what is the purpose to not have it heated well? we had a good time, for sure, but it seems that orr needs to get their act together and create a more polished and sophisticated atmosphere. they need to invest a little money and time and update the place. at the price we paid, it was not worth feeling like we got second rate experience. also, my partner was not comfortable with going clothing optional as she was the only woman there. just wanted to share my feelings, thanks for your review.