Sauna Days 2022

Sauna Days 2022 Wow- a fantastic event with great weather (1st nice weekend of the year up here in Northern MN).  There was something for everyone (Sauna, Social Hour/Apps, Venik Treatment, Blacksmithing, Live Music, Saturday AM Cold Plunge, Breakfast Buffet, Presentations, Yoga, Live Podcast, Finnish Smorgasbord Buffet, Wood Fired Hot tub, Stargazing, and more Sauna)!  Larsmont Cottages on Lake Superior (Troy, Craig, and crew) was a fantastic host and a beautiful resort with something for everyone.

Upon my arrival on Friday night, it was straight to Larsmont’s on-site sauna that boasts a medium external feed Kuuma.  A great crew was already gathered for the sauna, Venik treatment, and cold plunges.  Having never experienced a Venik treatment, I was skeptical but left the experience amazed.  I highly recommend it if you ever get the chance and find it comparable to an excellent massage for the first time.  Dan Bondarenko and Alex Blyashuk (Master Kazan) provided the Venik experience all weekend to any interested (many treatments = jello arms).

With six different saunas on-site for the event and four of them with Kuuma wood stoves, Great Heat and Loyly were everywhere.  Mix in Lake Superior mere feet away for the necessary cold plunge, and you have near perfection.  My Great Grandpa (Richard) and Grandpa (Herbert) would’ve loved to see how their stoves have evolved into North American sauna culture.

The event sold out (I met people attending from Texas and Arizona), and when I checked out, multiple people were booking for Sauna Days 2023, which will be the same weekend next year. This would’ve been impossible without Glenn “The Sauna Guru” Auerbach doing the heavy lifting to spearhead everything.  I’ll take the over on ten sauna rounds done by Glenn over the weekend and give you two to one odds.

To make a great weekend even better, on my way home, my family hiked Gooseberry Falls, which was running as I’d never seen in person before.

Thanks to all the people and sponsors who contributed time, resources, and knowledge to make it memorable!

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