I’ve been taking saunas for 20 years and finally have made my own Vihta (a bundle of birch branches to soak in warm water and gently slap against the skin to help stimulate blood flow and opening of the pours on the skin while in sauna).

It took 10 mins, with help from my Finnish friend Ove:

1. locate a birch tree and some new growth

2. cut a few branches 12″ or so in length

3. tie branches together with some twine

4. cut the ends.

5. soak in warm water – in the hot sauna of course.

It was great.  Finns have been doing this for centuries.  After sauna, my skin felt even more fresh and invigorated.  Nokia phones, Finlandia Vodka, and now Vihtas for sauna.  3 great contributions from Finland.

Members of the Twin Cities Sauna Society….

For a great 3D blueprint of an awesome mobile sauna or backyard stationary sauna design, click here.

The intention is to get folks to try out a real sauna at some special events.  Plus the Mobile Authentic Finnish Sauna will be available for folks to try out in their own backyards (before committing to build a sauna or buy one for themselves).  Theory is, once friends and family get to experience an authentic Finnish sauna, they’ll be hooked!  And rightfully so, health and wellness, green, and escape with ‘staycation‘.  Mobile Authentic Finnish Sauna: cabin life right in your own backyard.

Here is a list of Minnesota special events where I’ve wheeled over my mobile sauna:

• Lake Minnetonka, Excelsior, New Years Day ice dive, Jan 1, 2010.
• Fish Lake, Maple Grove, to help plungers raise money for Haiti.
• City of Lakes Loppet Cross Country Ski Festival, Feb 6-7, 2010.
• Polar Plunge for Special Olympics, Lake Calhoun, MN.

Let’s get a mobile sauna in your town!  I’ll help you wheel it around.  For a worldly view of mobile saunas, check out this site!!  saunasessions.ca has a wonderful posting of well organized photos and information on the craziest collection of mobile saunas… enjoy!  (one of my favorites is the firetruck sauna).

Maybe we can get over to Finland to check out the Mobile Sauna Festival.

Happy New Year!

8 am 1/1/10. It’s Zero degrees outside and i’m going to fire up the mobile sauna, parked at the Ice Dive in Lake Minnetonka.

8:45 am 1/1/10. The sauna is 150 degrees. The changing room is about 20 degrees.

1 pm 1/1/10. All the people have finished jumping through the hole in the ice. Despite the door opening and closing at least 400 times the sauna stayed above 145 degrees ALL day. We had about 400 people in and out of my mobile sauna.

1:15 pm: 1/1/10. I added a log to the Kuuma sauna stove. The sauna is now 185 degrees. I spoke with Bill, one of the event organizers, and he gave me the green light to jump through the hole in the ice. I am going to jump in and take a sauna.

If you have photos or videos of this years ALARC Ice Dive, Please email me.

8′x12′ exterior dimensions:

• Three functional windows.
• Half glass door, outward swing.
• Goofy wave optional.

6′x7′4″ sauna room:

• dimmer light for custom ambiance.
• Sauna thermometer: hovers well above 150 degrees thanks to the Kuuma Stove.
• Separate volume control for speakers safely stowed below the benches.
• The wood burning stove: 350 lbs. 1/4 inch steel, 80 lbs of granite rock.
• Stainless steel water tank: having warm water for rinse is a good thing.

5′x7′4″ changing room:

• Separate speakers, volume control, power amp.
• Wall mount lights with dimmer switch.
• Ample hooks.
• Cathedral ceiling, loft above sauna.

The Setting:

Bring the mobile sauna to where you want to sauna.

Thanks to Stephen Colmant for digging out this study on the effects of negative ions. Summary:  “The results suggest that negative ions may amplify the effects on humans of the sauna.”

It is wildly known that wood burning saunas create negative ions, akin to the experience of being close to a waterfall.  The technical explanation of this is most welcome, please comment.

Though I appreciate the study and hope to dive into it further, my view on this is somewhat like Bob Dylan’s when he wrote Subterranean Homesick Blues

“you don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows.”