Pagosa Springs hot springs question (Durango: camping, incomes, live in)

[TruBlu12345]

We will be traveling to Pagosa Springs this summer for vacation and to scout out potential retirement areas. I've had a couple people tell me that the smell from the hot springs is pretty bad and we probably would not want to camp anywhere near there nor live there. Is this true?

[CosmicWizard]

I love that smell....the smell of healing, relaxing mineral water. I won't attempt to answer your question becasue I don't know if you'll love it or hate it.

[prerunner1982]

Its not that bad, the springs are in town so I dont know about camping by them. It does take some getting used to but doesnt seem to stop the residence or vacationers that come through town every year.

My parents live in Pagosa (and are looking to sell thier house) and love it there. I have visited there many times and enjoy it myself, partly due to the mountains. My parents do most of their shopping in Durango which is also where they work as it is a bit bigger town.

[AMB8301]

Some days the smell seems stronger then other days. It's not a "get in your car and leave" smell, but rather when we are walking around, we'll sniff and say "oh we can really smell it today", but in a minute you get used to it. The odor isn't through out the entire town, but if you are downtown and walking right in front of the springs, then yes you'll probably smell it. My IL's live in Pagosa, I'm over in Durango so we do make the drive over once in a while.

[jazzlover]

The sulfur smell (actually sulfur dioxide--the "rotten egg" smell) can be noticeable in town under the right conditions. It is usually worse in winter when there are inversions that don't allow the air at the surface to rise and dissipate any odors or pollutants--a quite common occurrence in most mountain valleys. So, don't think because there isn't much odor when you're there in the summer that there won't be some odor in the winter. The hot springs at Pagosa are relatively "sulfurous" compared to a number of other Colorado hot springs. I still like to soak there once in a while, though, more so in the winter than in summer.

On a side note, Pagosa is a beautiful spot, but it has grown pretty wildly in the last 10-15 years--and, like so many Colorado spots, not very smartly. It is still relatively isolated, a factor that will probably work against it as fuel prices skyrocket. Summers are beautiful there, but winters can be long and quite snowy. I know several people (all Colorado natives) who eventually moved away from there because they finally just got flat sick of the winters that lasted for 6-7 months. With propane prices at well over $3.00 and headed nowhere but up, and gasoline pushing $4.00, I think places like Pagosa may really start to lose their attractiveness--especially for retirees on fixed or even declining pension and investment incomes.

One final note, Archuleta County is in severe financial trouble and has had to lay off a fair chunk of its county employees. I'm sure that hasn't done much positive for county-provided services there.

[sterlinggirl]

Originally Posted by jazzlover

I still like to soak there once in a while

Talking with Jazzlover just wouldn't be the same if he didn't smell like brimstone