The Sauna
Popular in Finnish culture, saunas have been used for thousands of years to gather, connect & restore. The modern day wood-fired Wandering Sauna recreates this experience with earth's elements fire + water in a beautiful, natural setting at Bodhi Farms. This sauna has been designed to accommodate all levels of sauna users. We offer multiple levels of seating positions in the hot room, cold water with a ladle to add to the rocks, and ample opportunities to cool down between hot room visits.
The Wandering Sauna will be at Bodhi Farms ~ situated near Cottonwood Creek under a grove of trees, surrounded by Mother Nature's elements. Advanced reservations are required so we can make sure it's hot & ready for you! Please bring two towels per person. Each adult must sign the waiver upon arrival. Please read through the below information & arrive 10-15 minutes prior to your start time to check in at the Welcome Shack. Please email if you'd like to reserve any beverages or make reservation at our restaurant before or after you session (bringing your own alcohol is prohibited).
Private Session for up to 6 people: $250 per session
Reserve your Private Sauna Session at our introductory rate of $250 for up to 6 guests (a 1.5 hour session, which is the ideal minimum timeframe to experience the benefits of hot/cold cycles).
Single/Couple Session: $150 per session
For just 1 or 2 people, we have a discounted rate of $150 per session.
The Experience
There is a small changing room in the sauna for your convenience. Wear your bathing suit under your clothes, and bring 2 towels and a water bottle. No metal whatsoever; no jewelry or metal inside the hot room. Leave all valuables/jewelry in your car or at home. We are not liable for misplaced items in/around the sauna space.
The mobile sauna design has hosting groups in mind and can seat 8 people max at a time. The room configuration and outdoor seating options are designed to allow maximum functionality in a very efficient space. In the front of the sauna you’ll find a curtain-partitioned changing room with a bench and coat hooks to comfortably change from your civilian garb to your bathing suit. Moving from the changing room into the common room, you’ll have access to a number of storage cubbies and more coat hooks to organize your items into their cozy temporary homes. USB ports are available in the event you need to plug your cable and device in for a boost of energy.
From the common room we invite you to pull open the tempered glass and cedar sauna door and step into our cedar clad hot room with your towel and drinking water. Make your way in the space to find a bench at any one of three different heat levels. Once you find a place to spread your towel on the cedar benches, we invite you to relax in a position that suits you and the space you’re in, whether it be sitting or laying down its your space to do as you wish. As you would expect, heat rises to the ceiling so naturally as you move around the different levels of benches you can challenge yourself with increased air temps ranging from 160-190+ degree F at the ceiling. We encourage users of ALL sauna experience to follow their bodies indicators of heat tolerances.
This sauna is designed to allow water to be added to the hot rocks during your session. As water hits the hots rocks and quickly evaporates into the air, you will feel a dramatic increase in the temperature of the air within the hot room. A more humid air environment reduces the body’s effectiveness to use sweat to cool the skin. The rapid increase in air temp is temporary and we invite users to breath slowly and deeply and allow your core body temp to rise while dialating blood vessels, evident by reddend skin. During this purification process, toxins are being moved from your bodies muscles and tissue towards the skin via sweat. While sweating during your hot room session is the ultimate goal of the heat cycle, we strongly encourage you to drink ample water to replace the toxic sweat.
The Basics ~ Sauna 101
There are many health benefits to sauna; relieving tension and stress, improving blood circulation, and more. If you haven't been in a while or are new, please review the following:
WHAT TO BRING:
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Swimsuit & water shoes to get in the creek if you choose to cold plunge!
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The sauna is a short walk to the creek, restrooms and parking lot.
HYDRATION & HEALTH ISSUES:
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Please show up fully hydrated!
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We will have bottled water available, but we encourage you to bring your own full water bottle (you can leave water bottles in cubbies in the non-heated part).
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Pregnancy, blood pressure or cardiovascular complications are a definite NO GO for the sauna. Consult a doctor prior to your visit to the session if you are unsure.
HOT/COLD CYCLE:
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Allow yourself to sit for the heat a while, perhaps 10-20 minutes, and be aware of your body’s reactions. Any upset stomach or dizziness is a sign that your body is ready for a break from the heat — take a cool down by stepping outside, and then next time, ease more slowly into the heat cycle. The cold phase of the temperature cycle of sauna is critical because it’s the counterpoint to the heat. Some may think that because feeling cold could be uncomfortable that it's to be avoided or under appreciated.
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The Sauna experience incorporates extreme temperature variations for a specific reason. The heat expands blood vessels and increases blood flow throughout the body, especially to the skin as evident by the red/flush appearance of your skin when you’re hot. When the Hot Room raises your body’s temperature the blood vessels dilate, moving more blood throughout the body and skin, your metabolism increases and is evident by sweating and sometimes feelings of hunger after a session. Your body is working to shed excess heat to maintain a ‘normal’ temperature and therefor, burning calories throughout the heat cycle is a welcomed side effect of Sauna.
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You can exercise your muscles all you want but if you don’t have healthy blood flow to your muscles and organs you’re not receiving the entire benefit. When your blood vessels expand with heating then contract with cooling, you are actually exercising your blood vessels to remain flexible. When you exercise your blood vessels you are counteracting the effects of cardiovascular complications.
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After a time in the Hot Room, head outside to one of our cold-water rinse stations. First cool the areas where your body sheds most of its heat, THIS PROCESS IS MORE EFFECTIVE WHEN DONE QUICKLY. Ladle water over your head and back of your neck. Immerse your entire body in cold water, stream/lake.
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After a cool-off period, head back into the hot room for another round of Heat.
Wandering Sauna
Sauna craftsman Barrett Johnson has a passion for introducing sauna culture to Montana. A natural fit with our winter climate, Barrett is on the forefront of melding Finnish culture as Montana defines its own.
The Wandering Sauna is focused on manufacturing the highest quality portable wood fire saunas & we are fortunate enough to be able to showcase one of these incredible designs at Bodhi Farms. To learn more about Wandering Sauna, visit wanderingsauna.com.
"Reconnect to the here and now, to friends and family, and to your sense of self — through the healing restoration of wood-fired sauna. Sit back. Breathe deep. This moment is all yours."
~ Wandering Sauna Founder Barrett Johnson