Slates Hot Springs, California
Encyclopedia
Slates Hot Springs is an unincorporated community
in Monterey County
, California
. It is located 8 miles (13 km) north-northwest of Lopez Point, at an elevation of 118 feet (36 m).
Thomas B. Slate settled at the site of the springs in 1868. He claimed that the waters cured him of arthritis
. A resort developed which eventually was acquired by the Esalen Institute
. Hunter S. Thompson
worked as a security guard at the springs for a period in 1961.
About 0.25 mile (0.402335 km) northwest of the main group, on the left bank of Hot Creek, is another spring, 98 °F (36.7 °C) in temperature. This spring yields perhaps 5 gallons (18.9 l) a minute and was in 1918 used for laundering clothes.
It is said that the location of the springs was described by an Indian to Thomas B. Slate, who made his way southward with difficulty along the steep, brushy slopes, and succeeded in finding only the warm spring beside the creek. Later, however, he came down the coast in a boat, found the springs on the bluff, and settled near them in 1868. The locality is occasionally made a camping place by deer hunters, but as of 1918, it is about 17 miles (27.4 km) by trail beyond the southern end of the wagon road, it was not often visited.
The formation exposed along the bluffs is of slates that have been described as being probably of Jurassic
age. They are overlain by 30 to 40 ft (9.1 to 12.2 m) of gravel that is deposited on an ocean terrace along this portion of the coast. The heated water apparently emerges at the base of the gravel, though small warm flows also issue from the slate, close to the surf. It is said that when garden land on the terrace back of the springs has been irrigated for several weeks by a mountain stream the seepage water has so reduced the temperature of the hot springs that they are only tepid.
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
in Monterey County
Monterey County, California
Monterey County is a county located on the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California, its northwestern section forming the southern half of Monterey Bay. The northern half of the bay is in Santa Cruz County. As of 2010, the population was 415,057. The county seat and largest city is Salinas...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. It is located 8 miles (13 km) north-northwest of Lopez Point, at an elevation of 118 feet (36 m).
Thomas B. Slate settled at the site of the springs in 1868. He claimed that the waters cured him of arthritis
Arthritis
Arthritis is a form of joint disorder that involves inflammation of one or more joints....
. A resort developed which eventually was acquired by the Esalen Institute
Esalen Institute
Esalen Institute is a residential community and retreat in Big Sur, California, which focuses upon humanistic alternative education. Esalen is a nonprofit organization devoted to activites such as meditation, massage, Gestalt, yoga, psychology, ecology, and spirituality...
. Hunter S. Thompson
Hunter S. Thompson
Hunter Stockton Thompson was an American journalist and author who wrote The Rum Diary , Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 .He is credited as the creator of Gonzo journalism, a style of reporting where reporters involve themselves in the action to...
worked as a security guard at the springs for a period in 1961.
The springs
In 1918, the California State Mining Bureau issued a report from the state mineralogist about the springs and their properties. According to the report, Slates Hot Springs is the southernmost of the four groups of hot springs in coastal Monterey County. In 1918, J. A. Little owned the site. The water there issued at ten principal points in a distance of 125 yards (114.3 m), halfway up the face of the bluffs that here border the ocean. A small private bathhouse has been built near the easternmost spring. The waters range in temperature from 110 °F (43.3 °C) to 121 °F (49.4 °C), are mildly sulphuretted, and the run-off streams are lined with abundant green algous growth. Small deposits of alum, gypsum, and carbonate of lime or magnesia were noted at the edge of one spring. The waters taste distinctly sweetish.About 0.25 mile (0.402335 km) northwest of the main group, on the left bank of Hot Creek, is another spring, 98 °F (36.7 °C) in temperature. This spring yields perhaps 5 gallons (18.9 l) a minute and was in 1918 used for laundering clothes.
It is said that the location of the springs was described by an Indian to Thomas B. Slate, who made his way southward with difficulty along the steep, brushy slopes, and succeeded in finding only the warm spring beside the creek. Later, however, he came down the coast in a boat, found the springs on the bluff, and settled near them in 1868. The locality is occasionally made a camping place by deer hunters, but as of 1918, it is about 17 miles (27.4 km) by trail beyond the southern end of the wagon road, it was not often visited.
The formation exposed along the bluffs is of slates that have been described as being probably of Jurassic
Jurassic
The Jurassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about Mya to Mya, that is, from the end of the Triassic to the beginning of the Cretaceous. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of the Mesozoic era, also known as the age of reptiles. The start of the period is marked by...
age. They are overlain by 30 to 40 ft (9.1 to 12.2 m) of gravel that is deposited on an ocean terrace along this portion of the coast. The heated water apparently emerges at the base of the gravel, though small warm flows also issue from the slate, close to the surf. It is said that when garden land on the terrace back of the springs has been irrigated for several weeks by a mountain stream the seepage water has so reduced the temperature of the hot springs that they are only tepid.