When the day is done and you want to warm your muscles, make a 20-minute car jaunt from Hope Valley to Grover Hot Springs, an outdoor heated pool set in a meadow surrounded by 8,000-foot-high peaks. Soak your bones as the steam rises from the spring-fed pool, which reaches 104 degrees. If you prefer the pins-and-needles effect, there's also a cooler swimming pool on-site. In December, Grover Hot Springs set up a wide movie screen and played movies under the stars (pictured). They're thinking of extending the tradition through the winter; call in and cast a "yes" vote if you're planning a visit.

Grover Hot Springs State Park, 4 miles west of Markleeville at the end of Hot Springs Rd.; 530-694-2249. Through the winter the hot-spring pool is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. everyday except Wednesday. The cost is $5 per person.