The mountainous boundary of Smoke Creek Desert includes Granite Range at the northeast, Buffalo Hills at the north, a group of mountains belonging to an unnamed group of highlands at the west, Terraced Hills at the south, and Fox Range at the east (Glancy and Rush, 1968, p. 7). Glancy and Rush (1968) discuss the geology of Smoke Creek Desert.
Round Hole Spring is a 10- to 12-m-diameter pool near abandoned buildings (Bonham Ranch) and flowing artesian wells. All are located in NE¼ Sec. 12, T28N, R19E. The highest temperature measured from the area was 37°C at a flowing well. Waring (1965) reported the spring to be warm, but it is difficult to take a measurement at depth in the pool, and the warm wells flow into it. Waring’s (1965) Ross Spring may also be in the area of the Bonham Ranch. Waring (1965) also reported Rotten Egg Spring, located about 2 km north of Bonham Ranch (NE¼ NE¼ Sec. 2, T28N, R19E) to have a temperature of 33.3ºC. The area of this spring was reeds with no flowing water in 1994; a flowing well near the road and 250 m down gradient from the spring area had a temperature of about 22ºC. Buckbrush Spring is located nearly 10 km to the north of the Bonham Ranch, according to topographic maps (Sec. 11, T29N, R19E). It was reported by Waring (1965) to be warm, but it is possible that the name has been misapplied. Although a large area of reeds is present at Buckbrush Spring, no spring flow could be found, and thus, no temperature could be measured in 1994. However, both Rotten Egg (34ºC) and Buckbrush Springs (25.5ºC) were flowing in April 2005 and a 49ºC spring that has not been previously described was located.
Observations by Mark Coolbaugh during a visit in April, 2005 include the following. A series of warm and hot springs and wells occur over a length of at least 13 km along the southwest margin of the Smoke Creek Desert. Some of these springs and wells lie along possible fault scarps downdropped to the east. Measured temperatures from springs and artesian wells are highest (up to 49ºC) in the central portion of this 13-km trend, in the vicinity of, and north of, the Bonham Ranch. Extensive deposits of gypsum and other salt minerals dominate the soils in this central area. To the west of the Bonham Ranch, large tufa columns occupy a possible ramp structure (en echelon step over) in the main exposed range front fault.
Photos
Flowing Well (19°C) (others hotter).