Hot Springs National Park, AR
A short downtown climb that gets steep on the mountain side.
Overview
Map & elevation
Plan your hike
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Hot Springs Tour Guide
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 area
Arlington Lawn and Hot Water Cascade“Arlington Lawn is coming up, with Hot Water Cascade beside its pavilion. This is the park's largest visible spring, where thermal water spills down a rock face into two pools.”
Plays on the road 0.2 mi from the trailhead in the Parkwolf Hot Springs Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“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!!!!”
Trail guide
Canyon Trail is a 0.7-mile, one-way climb from downtown Hot Springs to the West Mountain Trail junction. It starts behind the Mountain Valley Spring Co. visitor center and climbs from Central Avenue into the wooded mountain trail network. Allow 25 to 45 minutes one way. There and back on the same route is about 1.4 miles. This works best as a direct connection to a longer mountain walk; it isn't a loop.
The tread is packed gravel, with a typical grade around 10%. The steepest stretch is between West Mountain Drive and West Mountain Trail, so this short distance still takes effort. The path weaves uphill through trees, then meets the mountain route network. It's not ADA-compliant.
At the upper end, Canyon Trail meets the separately named West Mountain Trail. You can return the way you came or continue onto another marked route, such as Oak Trail; those extra miles are not part of Canyon Trail's 0.7-mile distance. Dogs are allowed on leash.
The trailhead is behind the Mountain Valley Spring Co. visitor center on Central Avenue. Use downtown off-street parking around Bathhouse Row; nearby lots include privately operated parking across from the row and to its south, so allow a walk to the trailhead.
Wildlife
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.
Keep exploring
ModerateOak Trail1 mi · 35 min · 0.1 mi awayA short dirt climb from Bathhouse Row into West Mountain’s trails.
EasyTufa Terrace Trail0.3 mi · 24 min · 0.2 mi awayA short paved climb to pale tufa beside the thermal cascade
ModerateLower Dogwood Trail0.7 mi · 30 min · 0.2 mi awayBoulders mark a brief mountain climb before the loop drops downhill.
EasyGrand Promenade0.5 mi · 45 min · 0.2 mi awayBenches, spring views, and bathhouses on an easy half-mile walk.
ModeratePeak Trail1.2 mi · 40 min · 0.2 mi awayA 400-foot climb rewards you with summit overlooks and a tower.
ModerateOertel Trail1.4 mi · 45 min · 0.3 mi awayA steep, bumpy gravel climb links downtown with mountain trails.
ModerateFloral Trail0.4 mi · 30 min · 0.4 mi awayA quick valley dip linking two North Mountain trails.
EasyHot Springs Mountain Trail1.7 mi · 1 hr · 0.4 mi awayAn easy loop above Hot Springs, with a view between the trees.
Restaurant · 0.1 mi awayThe Pancake ShopA 1940 breakfast institution a few steps from Bathhouse Row.
Lodging · 0.1 mi awayThe Arlington Resort Hotel & SpaA 1924 landmark with twin towers and its own thermal bathhouse.
Sight · 0.2 mi awayArlington LawnA lawn where two earlier Arlington Hotels stood.
Sight · 0.2 mi awayHot Water CascadeThermal water tumbles through two pools along Bathhouse Row.
Restaurant · 0.2 mi awayThe Ohio ClubA 1905 bar with live music, a Reuben, and a casino past.
Restaurant · 0.2 mi awaySuperior Bathhouse BreweryThermal-water beer in a 1916 Bathhouse Row landmark.
Lodging · 0.2 mi awayHale Bathhouse and Hotel HaleA historic bathhouse where spring water fills your private tub.
Sight · 0.2 mi awayMaurice Historic Spring AreaA tiny spring display with a long Bathhouse Row history.Parkwolf’s Hot Springs ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
