How To Ditch The Crowds At Diamond Fork Hot Springs [Fifth Water Hot Springs] -

So you want to visit Diamond Fork Hot Springs (Fifth Water Hot Springs) but don’t want to enjoy it with the crowds? Here are 6 amazing tips on how to avoid the crowds while visiting this Utah hot spring!

Diamond Fork Hot Springs in Utah. Sometimes called Fifth Water Hot Springs — This is an edited photo. If you would like to see the original, scroll to the bottom of this post.

Diamond Fork Hot Springs (Fifth Water Hot Springs)

Diamond Fork Hot Springs is really high on my list for the best hot springs in Utah! If you’re looking for additional Utah hot springs, you need to read 7 Amazing Hot Springs In Utah.

Don’t get lost! Follow the directions to get to the trailhead from All Trails and not the generic google search address because it will take you to the incorrect address. I also recommend reading the reviews on the Alltrails website because they explain the hike in details so you can have the best experience.

The hike is about 5 miles round trip. Most of the time you’ll be walking alongside Sixth Water Creek. You’ll know you are getting close because you’ll really start smelling the sulfur from the water.

Don’t miss visiting Mystic Hot Springs while you’re in Utah!

Table of Contents

How To Ditch The Crowds At Diamond Fork Hot Springs

Tip #1- Go Early!

If you are going on a weekend make sure to get up early! If you’ve never done a sunrise hike, this would be a great first one. The earlier you get to the trailhead the better.

Tip #2- Go Late!

Instead of a sunrise hike, you can try your hand at a night hike. As always, bring a hiking buddy with you along with some headlamps. Most of the time, you’ll have the hot springs all to yourself if you visit during the night.

Tip #3- Check BYU’s School Calendar and other local schools field trip plans

When BYU and other local colleges are in session, you’ll likely get less college students visiting during the week.

However, you do have to be aware that local schools will actually take field trips to the hot springs during the school year. My second time visiting, when we were hiking back down, we passed a class of about 40 kids.

Tip #4- Don’t Even Try Over The Weekends

Weekends are extremely busy at these hot springs so if you want a better chance to be alone, don’t go on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. But maybe you’re just an extremely lucky person. If that’s the case, then by all means, roll the dice!

Tip #5- Camp or stay nearby

If you stay nearby, you’ll easily be able to get to the trailhead before the crowds start arriving. If you are from out of town you can try camping nearby or finding a hotel.

Fifth Water Hot Springs Camping– You can check an app called The Dyrt to find available campsites. The three closet campsites near Fifth Water Hot Springs are Three Forks Campground, Red Ledges Campsite, and Diamond Campground.

Local Hotels- I recommend staying at Quality Inn in Spanish Fork because it’s the closet. The next closet hotel is in Springville called the Days Inn.

Tip #5- Spread Out

When you get to the end of the hike, you’ll find a large waterfall. That is the last of the hot pools that you’ll find. However, if you back track, you’ll find over 10 different hot pools all along that same river that you can soak in.

If a group of people is soaking in the main hot pool (the green one), there are still plenty of sections that you can soak in.

Tip #6- Go When The Gate Is Closed

During the winter time, the gate getting to the trailhead is closed to vehicles. However, you can still walk or bike in the snow to get to the trailhead. This does add an additional couple of miles onto your hike though.

This can be a good thing though if you want to ditch the crowds at Diamond Fork Hot Springs because most people won’t be willing to hike the extra distance.

Pro Tips For Diamond Fork Hot Springs

There will be naked bodies up there in the early morning. If that sort of things bothers you then maybe pick a more popular time to go.

There are some pretty large boulders near the hot springs that you can change behind once you’re done because we all know it’s terrible walking long distances in wet clothes.

Check the AllTrail app before going to read recent reviews to make sure that the trail is good, find out if the gate is closed, etc.

I’ve heard a lot of people talk about Fifth Water Hot Springs snakes. I however, have been twice and have never seen a snake at these hot springs.

In the past, there was a Diamond Fork Hot Springs fire. However, the trail is now open and can be enjoyed again.

Diamond Fork Hot Springs weather- The best time to visit these hot springs, in my opinion, is year-round! Each season you’ll have a different and unique experience. Before visiting, I would do a quick google search of what the Fifth Water Hot Springs weather looks like for that specific day, and unless there are not storms or dangerous conditions, I would go!

Diamond Fork Hot Springs Trailhead Map (Fifth Water Hot Springs Map)

On the maps below, you’ll see that you will be driving along Diamond Fork Road until you get to the trailhead. After that, you’ll walk along the trail that borders the Sixth Water creek until you reach Diamond Fork Hot Springs.

What To Bring When Visiting Hot Springs:

Water
Healthy Snacks
Change of clothes (Or you can just wear your swimming suit underneath your hiking clothes. Then all you would have to do is pack a set of underclothes to change into once you take off your swimming suit)
Towel
Bag To Put Wet Clothes In
Hair-tie (it’s a little difficult to get the sulfur smell out of hair after just one wash)

Hot Springs Etiquette

Be respectful of other guests. These are public hot springs, not to be enjoyed by just yourself.
Pick up after yourself. Double-check to make sure you don’t leave anything behind.
Bring a bag to pick up trash along the way. For the most part, the times that I have visited there have been minimal trash, which is awesome! Let’s all do our part to keep it that way.

If you end up going to these hot springs, tag me on Instagram so I can see your photos!

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