You know someone is a connoisseur of hot springs when they plan whole vacations around “taking the waters.” I’ve done an onsen tour in Japan and traveled to Iceland and Hungary primarily to do dozens of dips. Part of my love of the Esalen Institute in Big Sur is because of the hot springs and it’s also why I led the efforts for Burning Man to buy Fly Ranch. When I took a two-year sabbatical after turning 50 (my “midlife atrium”), one of my three topics I studied was the geothermal physics of hot springs.
So, New Mexico is a great place for me. There are dozens of geothermal soaking spots around the state with the closest one to MEA being Montezuma Hot Springs which is right next to a creek allowing for hot/cold plunging. But, my long-time favorite is Ojo Caliente, opened in 1868, which is no longer the funky place I used to go to 30-40 years ago. I try to make a ritual of making the drive one hour from Santa Fe to do a day-pass monthly or, once a year, spend the night (as the baths are quietest early in the morning and late at night).
After trekking to Ojo earlier this month with my friend Vanda, here’s my very opinionated ranking of their public springs pools. I haven’t included any commentary about the cliffside private pools, the dry and wet saunas, the spa treatments, labyrinth, dining, or hiking. Here’s just my top 9 list of the pools with restorative minerals that will revitalize you:
- Soda pool. This might surprise some since it’s the only covered pool, but that’s what I love about it as it’s great for floating and not getting a sunburn. It’s reliable in the heat (shade) and the cold (the structure keeps it warm inside) and it’s the perfect temperature of 103 degrees. There’s a lower back flume and hotter trickle for the back of the neck. On the north side, there’s a place where you can rest your head between two rocks to create a shoulder massage. Soda springs are good for digestion and arthritis.
- Lower cliffside iron pool. Again, this might be a surprise as it’s not as popular as most of the other pools, but I love the combo of the aggressive sideways flume for the back along with the really perfect hot trickle for the back of the neck.
- Mud pool. First, you cake your body with water-based mud (it’s not thick) from Dixie cups under spouts. Then, you bake on a lounge chair until your mud has become a lighter clay and you venture into the warm mud pool for a douse. You finish with a shower under a pail. It’s a lovely ritual.
- Iron pool. This has a long history of being popular with Native Americans and is good for the blood and immune system and, like with the mud baths, gives the skin a healthy tone. I also love the pebbles on the floor which feel great on the feet and there are four flumes to massage the top of your head.
- Lithia pool. This one’s good for mood and digestion and offers six water spouts above your head.
- Terrace pool(s). This is the new option. I was never a fan of the singular arsenic pool in the shape of a bowl at the terrace level as it was small and sometimes a favorite place for friends to talk (one of the best things about Ojo is there are attendants who walk around with Silent Whisper signs to remind you that this is a contemplative space). But, they’ve just opened three additional pools on the terrace and one of them, the kidney-shaped pool, is built into a beautiful rock, has pebbles on the floor and both a below water flume and a head flume. This is a nice addition and most people could be satisfied just hanging out in the four pools on this terrace.
- Upper cliffside iron pool. It’s nice to be able to do both the upper and lower and this pool is a great temperature and one of the two head flumes is one of the strongest at Ojo.
- Arsenic pool. I like hot and this is the hottest pool at 104 degrees. And, it’s good for arthritis, stomach ulcers and skin conditions. It’s also perfect for hot and cold plunges given that it’s next to the large pool. But, the arsenic pool is small and it’s not well-suited for quiet plus it’s a little distance from the rest of the pools.
- Oval natural springs swimming pool. At 80 degrees, this pool is perfect during the hot summer and it’s large which means you’re less likely to be disturbed by people talking, but I come for the hot pools so that’s why it’s at the bottom of my list.
One of the beauties of having MEA in Santa Fe is all the great attractions you can experience before or after a workshop. For me, when I meet someone who is a regular at Ojo, I always ask them their favorite and least favorite pool and we compare notes. Now you know my list. Enjoy your soak!
-Chip
P.S. If you can’t make it to Santa Fe or Baja, join me in North Carolina or New York in the next couple of month as my “Learning to Love Midlife” tour continues:
June 13-15 at The Art of Living Retreat Center, Boone, North Carolina
July 11-13 at the Omega Institute, Rhineback, New York