1 active Hot Springs alert
- InfoBurn ban in parkA burn ban is in effect because of high fire danger. - In the campground and picnic areas, only gas and charcoal grills are currently allowed; the ban was enacted August 15, 2026.Official details
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Where it is
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Before you go
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Hot Springs Tour Guide
Your drive to West Mountain Picnic Overlook, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Hot Springs National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this place
West Mountain: Town Views and a Stone Shelter0:00 / 0:25
“West Mountain's lower and picnic overlooks are ahead, with views back over Hot Springs.”
Plays as you drive up to West Mountain Picnic Overlook in the Parkwolf Hot Springs Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The People Behind the Baths
- Fordyce Bathhouse: Beyond the Baths
- Buckstaff and Quapaw: Choose Your Soak
- Superior Bathhouse Brewery: A Meal by the Springs
- 18 audio storiesacross Hot Springs’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor White-tailed Deer, Groundhog, Mexican Long-nosed Armadillo, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 19 trails, 33 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
More about West Mountain Picnic Overlook
A shady stop above Hot SpringsWest Mountain Picnic Overlook is a drive-up picnic stop halfway around the Summit Loop on West…
West Mountain Picnic Overlook is a drive-up picnic stop halfway around the Summit Loop on West Mountain, with picnic tables and a shaded stone shelter above the city. It is a good place to linger if you want a seat in the shade along the mountain drive. The shelter and tables are the reason to stop; the lower and summit overlooks make their own stops along the same loop.
Three views along the driveThis middle overlook looks toward Hot Springs from the higher slope.
This middle overlook looks toward Hot Springs from the higher slope. The lower overlook takes in Bathhouse Row and downtown, while the summit turns south toward the Trap Mountains and Lake Hamilton. Give this one a few minutes to take in the city view and look around the picnic area.
A shelter built for a pauseThe stone West Mountain Shelter House dates to 1924 and is the oldest shelter still standing in…
The stone West Mountain Shelter House dates to 1924 and is the oldest shelter still standing in the park. The park's shelter houses were built as places to rest and enjoy the views, and that purpose still fits this spot.
Arriving by car or trailWest Mountain Drive climbs from entrances on Prospect Avenue and Whittington Avenue to Summit…
West Mountain Drive climbs from entrances on Prospect Avenue and Whittington Avenue to Summit Loop. Follow it uphill to the shelter and parking lot. Designated parking at scenic-drive stops is free. The mountain roads are winding and restricted to vehicles no longer than 30 feet. West Mountain Trail access is across the street or beside the lot.
Frame the picnic tableFor a photo, use a shaded table or the pine branches as a foreground and leave room for the…
For a photo, use a shaded table or the pine branches as a foreground and leave room for the rolling hills beyond. That gives the picture both the view and the picnic setting that define this stop.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Hot Springs
71 sightingsWhite-tailed DeerMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
11 sightingsGroundhogMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
12 sightingsMexican Long-nosed ArmadilloMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
16 sightingsTurkey VultureMost seen around noonSighting map
41 sightingsCardinalMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
27 sightingsSummer TanagerMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Hot Springs. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
