Wells, Nevada, isn’t really a place that many travel bloggers write about. A truck-stop town off Interstate 80, we’d imagine that most people visiting Wells are there to get gas, spend the night in a motel, or grab a quick bite at Bella’s Restaurant and Espresso, which admittedly, is a fantastic diner.
But stick around to explore for a little while, and you’ll find that Wells is actually home to tucked away hot springs and alpine lakes within 30 minutes of town.
Angel Lake, at an elevation of nearly 8,500 feet, is the shimmering pearl of the East Humboldts, which are on one of Nevada’s most scenic mountain ranges.
The drive to the lake is an adventure in itself, as Route 231 winds climbs 12 miles from Wells and winds its way upwards (without any guardrails!) to offer sweeping views of the valley.
Once you reach the parking area this alpine gem is backed by cliffs that rise hundreds of feet above the lakeshore. It’s also the jumping off point for trails that explore the East Humboldt wilderness, and it’s popular with summertime trout fishermen, as well as home to a small campground (open June-October; make reservations here).
On the day we visited we pumped up the paddleboard and enjoyed a spectacular, solo paddle beneath the towering cliffs. The water is chilly (did we mention it’s at 8,500 feet?), but you can watch curious trout swimming right beneath your board as you crane your neck up at the cliffs.
Even if you don’t fish or get out on the water, the view alone is worth the drive.
If, on the other hand, you’re looking for warm water, 12 Mile Hot Spring on the outskirts of town is a primitive spring that’s—you guessed it—12 miles from town, and accessible via a 2-mile hike (one-way) into a dusty, tucked away canyon. The road leading in to the hot spring is dirt, and you can drive to within a 1/4 mile if you have high-clearance 4WD. (We tried to drive it in a 2WD vehicle…bad idea, we had a LONG way to reverse).
Click here for detailed directions, and while it’s a little bit “out there”,” not highly visited, and the pool is relatively small, the water is clear, it doesn’t smell like sulfur, and on the day we visited we had it all to ourselves. Pretty much everything we’re looking for in a hot spring!
