My “First Time” in the Moor Mud Spa Hochmoos
How a bath in the moor does the body good
The Moor Mud Bath Hochmoos is the only moor mud spa in the mountains of Salzburg and is well-known far beyond the borders of the Salzburger Saalachtal for its beneficial and healing effects: reason enough to do the medical check and head to St. Martin to take the first moor mud bath of my life.
It takes a little effort to get into the mud bath. So here I am, just about to take the first moor mud bath of my life. I lift my foot slowly and step hesitantly into the bathtub in front of me. Isabella who is accompanying me through the course of the bath, notices and nodding, encourages me with a smile. Very well then. Close your eyes and go for it.
At first I feel nothing but heat. It penetrates my body intensely. Moor mud baths are administered at temperatures between 38 and 42 degrees and can be tolerated very well by the human body. You need a confirmation from a doctor in advance before you can enjoy this. Those who suffer from serious cardiovascular diseases and acute inflammation should not use it. The heat and the ingredients can quickly become demanding of the body. I understand. The temperature almost takes my breath away in the first few minutes. I imagined a moor mud bath to be like a sauna but this is nothing like that.
Moor – natural remedies that work
The peat used for the baths is cut out of the moor once a week from May to October directly behind the Gasthof Hochmoos in St. Martin. The facility is closed in winter. Both the heat and the many ingredients have a beneficial effect on the body. Chronic rheumatic diseases, joint pain, bladder problems, menstrual problems or the desire to have children are the main motivations for patients to come here. A mud bath treatment means thorough detoxification and purification for the body. The organism is transformed and the body’s natural defenses are activated. In addition, metabolic toxins that the body has accumulated are eliminated much faster.
“People come here with different expectations and trust in the healing power of the moor of St. Martin”, Hans Schlechter, the owner of the hotel and also the mud spa, told me at the reception earlier. “The baths should be used at least five to seven times with a break of a couple of days in between, in order to see a lasting effect.” He always takes the baths at the end of the season to prepare himself and his immune system for the coming winter.
After a while my body gets used to the bath and becomes more relaxed. Nevertheless this has nothing to do with wellness as Isabella assured me earlier, “You really have to take time for this. Going into the bath quickly and then straight back to work or up a mountain really doesn’t work.” Good things need a while they say, and so I take this on board and have nothing planned for the rest of the day.
The people in the Salzburger Saalachtal have known about the healing and beneficial effects of the moor for several hundred years. A spa already appears in the chronicle of the Köhlerpoint, today’s Hochmoos, in the 17th Century. Later, in the year 1827, the parish priest of St. Martin, Johann Rumberger, devoted himself intensely to the bath and its effects. He was not only a priest but also a physicist and a nature researcher. It is thanks to him that since then more and more people have used the baths and swear by their healing properties. In 1872, the Schlechter family acquired the small farm as well as the inn and the adjoining bath and have continuously enlarged and modernized it. The “Bad Hochmoos” is a state-approved mud spa and the holder of the health resort seal of approval. The regular university analysis, required by the law on medicinal substances and health resorts, certifies that the healing moor of Bad Hochmoos has valuable balneological properties.
After 20 minutes my first bath is over already. While the tub runs out slowly, I remain sitting and Isabella frees me from the mud. I feel heavy, a little tired and relaxed: an intense feeling. After I have showered, she wraps me in a linen cloth and shows me to one of three relaxation rooms where I lie down for a rest. I think I may have even drifted off for a while. After about 20 minutes I feel ready to stand up and head to the massage room where a full massage awaits: the ideal ending to every visit here in the mud spa.
My conclusion: Since then I have been to the mud spa several times and have become a real fan. It is beneficial and pleasant, even though it has nothing to do with wellness. After the second and third times I was very tired but meanwhile I have begun to feel completely well and can recommend that everyone comes here and bathes in the mud. Despite all the advances in medicine, the old climate and bathing cures are still very current. Definitely thumbs up!
The health insurance companies cover part of the costs for a mud bath. It is advisable to contact the health insurance company responsible before the cure for approval. A cure with lasting effects normally takes three to four weeks and is usually enhanced by additional massage treatments.
Info:
Gasthof – Bad Hochmoos, Schlechter family
5092 St. Martin bei Lofer No. 3
info@hochmoos.at or +43 6588 82260
hochmoos.at
