Tecopa, California
U.S.A.

telephone (N/A)

website (N/A)

GPS: 35.8719N, 116.2323W

Tecopa is hot, dusty, tiny settlement in the Mojave Desert, southeast of Death Valley National Park and 85 miles west of Las Vegas, Nevada. This settlement consists of little except a few RV parks and a handful of businesses, but one unique feature of this town is a small bathhouse where bathing suits are expressly prohibited. The Tecopa Hot Springs Bathhouse is a small concrete-block structure that contains soaking pools full of water piped from natural springs—the mineral content of which is considered first rate among hot springs enthusiasts. The bathhouse is part of Tecopa Hot Springs County Park. Apparently, the origin of the nudity mandate is a mid 1800's treaty between white settlers and Paiute Indians which specified, among other things, that no pollutants would ever be allowed in the pure waters, and that includes dyes from clothing. The bathhouse structure, built in the 1920's, is divided into men's and women's sections. Each half of the bathhouse consists of two soaking pools, a changing room, a bathroom with two showers and a small courtyard, enclosed so that nude sunbathing is possible. Nudity is required in all soaking pools.

For most of its history, the bathhouse has been open 24 hours to the general public at no charge. However, in 2004 Inyo County contracted with a private company to operate the county park. Since then a small fee (about $5) has been charged and regular hours established. General in-season hours are 6:00 am until 10:00 pm (or 11:00 pm Saturday and Sunday). However, the bathhouse is subject to closure from 9:00 am until 6:00 pm during the summer (and summer may be defined as May through October here), when Tecopa is practically abandoned anyway due to the extreme heat. If you visit when the temperature is scorching, plan on an early morning or evening soak. Shoshone, a few miles from Tecopa, is the closest place with a motel, restaurant and small grocery store.

To find the baths, all you have to do is find Tecopa on a map and go there. There is very little in Tecopa, and the baths are basically the community center. The sign on the front reads "County of Inyo, Tecopa Hot Springs." (You can find driving directions to Tecopa, including the location of the bathhouse, under the separate listing for Tecopa Wild Springs.)