Big Sur’s Sykes Hot Springs – which are illegal – have again become a destination.

As social media platforms exploded over the last 15 years, so did the exposure of picture-perfect destinations in Big Sur, which seem to have become a bucket list for many out-of-town travelers. It’s why traffic on Highway 1 often snarls around Bixby Bridge, where seemingly every tourist needs a selfie.

Many Big Sur destinations have fallen victim, but none further afield than Sykes Hot Springs, which are 10 miles east, via the Pine Ridge Trail, from Big Sur Station. For years, the hot springs attracted a never-ending stream of backpackers, some of whom would leave their gear behind, not wanting to haul it out. The backcountry became, in essence, a dump.

When part of the Pine Ridge Trail was washed out in the torrential storms of 2017 – which also washed out Sykes Hot Springs, which are man-made, and constructed with sandbags and rocks – the nonprofit Ventana Wilderness Alliance embraced the opportunity to clear out that gear and revert the riverside location to its natural state. Mule-load after mule-load of gear was hauled out.

The area where the hot springs are is twice-protected by federal designations – it’s both in the Ventana Wilderness, and the Big Sur River has been recognized as a “wild and scenic” river. Both mean, essentially, that it should remain wild, untainted by human impacts.

But since the Pine Ridge Trail reopened in March 2021, the hot springs have been illegally reconstructed, and traffic on the trail is brisk.

However, the U.S. Forest Service, which manages the Los Padres National Forest, does not have a single ranger in its Monterey District to enforce federal regulations, so it seems likely the problem will once again fester.

Andrew Madsen, a spokesperson for the Forest Service, says people in his agency are more or less resigned to the outcome, as it can’t manage the site. “We went into [the trail rebuilding] with our eyes wide open – of course [the hot springs are] going to come right back. It’s just a fact of life.”