Closed each December 1st through the 28th

Reservations to Valley View Hot Springs are highly recommended due to limited capacity. Even if accommodations are vacant, admission cannot be assured without a reservation.

Advance reservations are a benefit of being a member
Effective July 1st, 2013: Advanced reservations are a benefit of Membership. Non-members are still able to reserve any accommodation or campsite (not already reserved by a member) by calling the reservation line one day in advance of their expected arrival.

Overnight guests can arrive anytime between 11:00 am and 9:00 pm, Tent campers are able to get set up any time, Vehicle sites are available after 12 noon and indoor accommodations are guaranteed by 4 pm.
Campsites and accommodations must be vacated by 12 noon on the day of departure, all departing guests off OLT property by 4 pm.
Day Visitors can check-in between 11 am and 6 pm departing by 8 pm.

The Visitors Services desk and telephones are open from 9 am to 8:50 pm every day. No one is admitted when closed. No exceptions.

** Rate Increase and Taxes - Effective March 1st, 2020
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Admission Fees: There is a $2.00 increase on Day Pass Admissions and a $4.00 increase on Overnight Admissions. May through September, a day pass admission is going to be $17.00 per adult. Overnight admission will be $34.00 per adult. October through April, Day Pass Admission will be $15.00 per adult and Overnight Admission will be $30.00 per adult. Children are still admitted at no charge. Pet fees will remain the same.

Taxes: OLT is required to pay several taxes, State taxes and Saguache County Taxes. We do not have to pay tax on admission fees but we do pay taxes on sales and lodging. These taxes have increased steadily over the years. Up until now, OLT has paid the taxes from the payment made. From now on, taxes will be added to the payment. As an example, during the summer, Elm cabin costs $75.00 and up until this year, the taxes OLT paid (about $5.10 was sent to the state out of the $75.00 paid). From now on the tax will be added meaning that Elm cabin in the summer will cost $75.00 plus tax, or about $80.25.

Admission Fees

Accommodation Rates

Nightly accommodations rates are in addition to per person fees above.

Tent Space   + No Charge/night + $10/night 

Twenty four dispersed tent sites are located across the property and available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Some sites are near parking and trails while others are a short walk away. 

Vehicle Camping  + $10/night+ $15/night 

[[vehicle camping]]

Oak Dorm Bed  + $10/night + $15/night 

Use of 1 bunk bed in a common dorm room located upstairs from shared dining room and kitchen

Oak Room   + $20/night + $30/night 

1 bed in private room, shared kitchen and dining room, hydroelectric heat

Sunset Room  + $55/night + $70/night 

2 beds in private room, shared kitchen and half bath, geothermal heat

Spruce House Room 1 (single) + $45/night + $60/night     

Spruce House Room 2 (double) + $55/night + $70/night     

Small Cabin  + $50/night + $60/night 

Cedar Cabin

1 bed in upstairs loft, 1 on lower level, geothermal heat

Aspen Cabin

1 bed in upstairs loft, 1 on lower level, geothermal heat

Large Cabin   + $65/night + $75/night     

Cottonwood Cabin

2 beds in 2 private rooms, 1 futon, kitchenette, hydroelectric heat, Pets allowed

Willow Cabin

2 beds in 1 room, 1 futon, kitchenette, geothermal heat, Pets allowed

Elm Cabin

2 beds in 1 room, 1 bed in separate room, kitchenette, geothermal heat, Pets allowed

Discounts

OLT Member Senior Discount (65+): $5 off per night on overnight private indoor accommodations only. ID Required.

end faq

Cancellation Fees 

Upon arriving, each visitor is charged with the responsibility to help preserve the unique nature of this space and our shared experience together. Our guidelines are detailed below and help clarify where and why each is important. Our full, formal policies can be found online including OLT's Terms of Admission, Privacy Policy, and Registration Form.

Overall, guests simply need to keep three concepts in mind:

Responsibility ...for yourself, your children, others in your group, and your pets.

Respect ...the environment, facilities, staff, others, their privacy, and the simple peace and quiet.

Recognition ...of what you can learn about yourself, how we work together to protect this special place, and the world we live in.

• 

  At Your Own Risk

• 

  Clothing Optional

• 

  Don't Shoot Strangers

• 
  

  No (re)entry 9pm - 11am

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  Honor Diversity

• 

  Kids with Parents

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  Learn and Share

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  Manage Pets

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  No Glass or Ceramic

• 

  No Overt Sexuality

• 

  No Smoking / No Fires

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  Peace and Quiet

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  Play Nice

• 

  Respect Wildlife

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  Tread Gently

• 

  At Your Own Risk

• 

  Clothing Optional

• 

  Don't Shoot Strangers

• 

  Honor Diversity

• 

  Kids with Parents

• 

  Learn and Share

• 

  Manage Pets

• 

  No Glass or Ceramic

• 

  No Overt Sexuality

• 

  No Smoking / No Fires

• 

  Peace and Quiet

• 

  Play Nice

• 

  Respect Wildlife

• 

  Tread Gently

At Your Own Risk

No lifeguard on duty. Natural wilderness area. 8,700' elevation. Beware loose rocks and slippery surfaces. Emergency call stations at Sauna and Welcome Center.

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Clothing Optional

We invite healthy, family-friendly naturism throughout the entire property and open space.
Eco-friendly sun protection available. *

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Don't Shoot Strangers

For everyone's comfort, cap and pack any camera device
away around others. Focus on landscape, wildlife, consenting friends and family only.

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Honor Diversity

Help others feel welcome and comfortable. Respect differences. Discover commonality. Share space, find balance, and let others steer conversations

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Kids with Parents

Safety and behavior of children is the sole responsibility of their parent or legal guardian. Never leave others to watch them. Infant's must use swim diapers, available. *

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Learn and Share

Take time to notice your surroundings, yourself, and those around you. Share stories and inspiration. Always listen... especially when sharing.

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Manage Pets

Pets must be quiet, peaceful, always attended, picked up after, and leashed well away from ponds. Barking, aggression, or damage cannot be tolerated.

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No Glass or Ceramic

Don't bring glass near water, hiking trails, or our bare feet. Shattered pieces are hard to recover and very dangerous. Metal bottles available.

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No Overt Sexuality

No private pools or sauna. Consensual adults must get a room or keep it in tents. All areas are to be kept kid-friendly, clean, and inviting at all hours.

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No Smoking / No Fires

Current restrictions posted in bathrooms. Share fresh, inviting air. Smoke inside vehicles only. Respect the high fire danger and remote location.

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Peace and Quiet

Silence phones, radios, and motors. Moderate alcohol, voices, music, and blinding lights. Quiet hours: 10pm (11pm on weekends) until 8am.

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Play Nice

Children of all ages discover, play, learn, and grow up here. As you do, be kind and mindful of others near and far and the experience you leave them with.

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Respect Wildlife

Keep food inside cars or cabins. Bears and other wild animals are drawn by scent endangering us and them. Although generally harmless, avoid contact.

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Tread Gently

Carefully avoid disturbing flagged areas, edges of ponds, water flow, historic sites, trees, and wildlife. Pack in / pack out food, trash, and 'noodles'.

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Planning Your Visit

• A Day Pass admission is from 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Please check-in before 6:00 PM. Overnight guests may arrive to enjoy the hot springs as early as 11:00 AM, knowing that accommodations may not be available until 4:00 PM. On the day of departure, vacate accommodations and campsites by 12:00 noon, departing OLT property by 4:00 PM
• The Office (phones included) is staffed from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm.
• The emergency phone, for on-site guests is monitored 24/7.
• A Government Issued Photo ID is required to admit anyone age 18 or older.
• As a naturist open space, the entire property is clothing-optional and always family-friendly.
• Isolated Location: There are no nearby gas stations, restaurants, pharmacies, grocery or general stores. (map)
• Flashlights: there is little or no artificial light
• Towel: Bring your own towel. We do not have loaner towels and only a limited number of towels to purchase.
• Family style restrooms are separate from accommodations. Only the Sunset Lodge contains a half bath.
• Wilderness: many of our ponds are scattered along short but rugged trails
• Children 18 and under arriving without their parents require a signed note giving permission for their guardian to bring them to OLT.
• Medication / Allergies: Inhalers.
• Eco-friendly sunscreen, lotions, and oils (always rinse off to protect our threatened species downstream). 
• Altitude: At 8,600 to 9,000 feet, guests from afar may need time to adjust to the elevation.
• Lodging: Bedding is not provided. Guests should bring their own bedding or sleeping bag.
• Cell Phones and Internet: Cell phones and free wifi may only be used near the Welcome Center. Cellular service is limited (AT&T, some T-Mobile, some Verizon). 
• Smoking and Fire Restrictions: Fire danger is often extremely high. Campfires are not permitted although grills are available for cooking. Smoking is only permitted in the Smoke Shelter or within vehicles.
• Seasons and Weather: Colorado weather can change dramatically. Check forecasts and come prepared for rain, wind, and snow.
• Closed each December 1st through the 28th.

OLT's historic Everson Ranch, located at the western edge of OLT's holdings, is a 150-year old ranch that is currently being renovated within its historical facades to create an educational and living agricultural facility showcasing sustainable agricultural processes.

OLT's Everson Ranch connects the past to the present; a symbol and example of a historic way of life in the San Luis Valley. It has been a working ranch since it was homesteaded in 1872, passed down from generation to generation. The vast ranch extended for miles and included the hot springs and its year-round water supply.

Everson Ranch was added to the Orient Land Trust in 2004. After being subdivided into residential lots in 2001, OLT took on the Ranch as its first capital campaign. Given its considerable development potential and the fact that the ranch bordered protected and public lands, the 760 acres was now valued at $850,000. Nonetheless by 2010, OLT members had raised the necessary donations to secure the land, reservoir, and several additional parcels. Their generous contributions saved the unspoiled views, wildlife corridor, dark skies, waters, and wetlands. Since that time hundreds more acres have been added, and more are planned. The Ranch is bordered on the north and south by Federal and State lands, parts of which are also stewarded by OLT.

Today, OLT is transforming the Everson Ranch into an Agriculture and Education Center in order to model sustainable agricultural and innovative energy production methods. If the Northern San Luis Valley is to be saved from further development, and thus open space preserved, the historic ranches of the valley need to be saved.

OLT is presently developing a natural resource management plan to guide land stewardship activities on the historic ranch, providing direction for the natural, cultural, agricultural and recreational resources there. Projects include holistic grazing, permaculture principles, riparian corridor and pasture restoration, innovative funding models for agricultural property owners, conservation educational programs for adults and youth, science research and camps, and wildlife habitat enhancement. Educational facilities will soon allow us to share the remarkable experience and bounty these lands offer us.

The northern San Luis Valley is in the throes of a historic drought. Water table levels are 40 feet below where they were ten years ago. While this is largely due to historic level drought, center pivot agriculture driven by subsurface pumping, as well as a governmental program to remove water from the San Luis Creek basin to pay for the Rio Grande Compact water debts, the reality is that this situation is likely to be permanent and future models of successful agriculture need to encompass that reality.

The Everson Ranch management plan includes holistic grazing methods (https://savory.global) and permaculture methods (www.hialtpc.org). We are developing and modeling economic viability models such as work vacations, low-water food production methods (greenhouses, drought resistant plants and animals, etc.), alternative energy production.

The Orient Mine, active from 1880 through 1932, was the largest producer of iron ore in Colorado, having produced about two million tons of limonite. It is believed that the name Orient came from the Old French word meaning east (rising sun), since the mine is located on the eastern side of the San Luis Valley. (There is no evidence of Chinese or other Asian miners working in the mine.) The Orient Mine had two associated town sites - one in the upper area in the early years and the lower town site which was active in the early 1900's. Today nothing remains of the towns except stories and a few foundations.

At its peak, the town of Orient had a population of more than 400, supporting a library, barber shop, school, 2 restaurants, a boarding house for 300, a saloon, a milling company and other small businesses including a supplier of work clothing.

Today, the Orient Mine is significant because for the last forty years or so it has been home to nearly 250,000 migratory bats. Bats were first documented at the Orient Mine in 1967 and have played a vital role in the chemical- and pesticide-free agriculture of the Valley. The Orient Mine is a designated Colorado Natural Area and Colorado Division of Wildlife Watchable Wildlife site.

Access to the interior of the Orient mine is currently prohibited due to White Nose Syndrome, a fungus that severely disrupts the sleeping pattern of hibernating bats to the point of colony collapse. White Nose Syndrome has not been found in Orient Mine as it doesn't, so far, affect migratory bats, but the Orient Mine is also home to five or six populations of hibernating bats. OLT's voluntary closure of the mine is part of similar closures throughout the American West to prevent the spread of this disease.

The mine is also a glimpse into the geologic history of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and the San Luis Valley, a glimpse into a past that begins over 1 billion years ago. Its more recent history as an iron mine, starting in the late 1800s, has connections to Colorado mining history. 

It's a unique place where visitors can immerse themselves in nature while connecting personally with OLT's cycle of sustainability. Through their stewardship and contributions, they help preserve the natural resources they so enjoy. Families can learn about and share this delicate eco-sanctuary with their children and pets. The property is entirely clothing optional and exists completely "off the grid", self-sustaining its amazing variety of features including...

• a diverse ecosystem rich with wildlife, birds, bats, and plant life
• a series of all natural, body temperature soaking ponds along wilderness trails
• geothermally and hydroelectrically heated hot tub, sauna, and village
• pure, natural spring fed swimming pool and showers
• all-season camping and rustic accommodations

Safe, Family-Friendly, Clothing-Optional Naturism
OLT promotes a vibrant, safe, family-oriented naturism. Naturism, or the option to choose whether or not to wear clothing, is a natural, personal choice that is appropriate for people of any age or setting, most especially pristine natural spaces like Valley View Hot Springs. Nudity is simply a state of nature, and at OLT it is promoted in an environment of non-sexual, child and family safety. Naturism allows each of us to be one layer closer to nature, to discover ourselves as we are without the expectations and pressures of the greater culture. There is no shame, no expectation, nothing but the natural state of being. Read more...

Admission is limited! Valley View Hot Springs is owned and operated by Orient Land Trust, a charitable non-profit organization. To preserve this delicate and peaceful ecosystem, visitation is managed through a guest quota for day and overnight use. Even when accommodations are available, we frequently must turn people away, especially on weekends when our capacities are reached. Reservations are highly recommended.

An OLT Membership is quick and easy, allowing earlier advance reservations for each donor level ($35+). Rest assured, 100% of your unrestricted donations will be applied toward mission accomplishment. With your continued support, OLT will preserve this amazing space and experience to inspire stewardship among ourselves, our children, grandchildren and generations to come.

Most visitors find the familiar smiles as remarkably welcoming as the warm waters and unspoiled vistas. Even those who come to get away with __ acres all to themselves appreciate the respect and kindness of the few people they may encounter.