Hot Springs Eternal – 10 Curative Qualities of Western Hot Springs

By Bennett Owen

Credit: Jack Crossen

In the early 1900s my Grandfather helped build the plunge at the upper end of the Grasshopper Valley…a place where the cowboys could have a soak from time to time and rest their aching bones. The Indians too were well aware of the curative powers that hot springs provided and of course the ancient Roman baths spawned some of the great spas of Europe.  

Credit: Jack Crossen

Grandmother used to fill up gallon jugs there to use as drinking water. My Uncle credits thermal baths with keeping his skin cancer at bay for decades.  It’s easy to be skeptical of anecdotal evidence but on a recent My-West road trip I saw a young boy cured of a nasty skin rash he’d suffered for years…and all he had to do was go swimming. Now that took some arm-twisting!

Credit: My-West.com ©

That said, here are 10 good reasons to visit nature’s hot tubs:

-       Remarkably successful in treating skin disorders
-       Purifies the blood by eliminating toxins via sweat and diuresis
-       Well-known analgesic and painkilling capacities
-       Effective against rheumatic conditions
-       Muscle relaxant
-       Stress reduction
-       Balances mineral deficiencies
-       Benefits neuralgia sufferers
-       It cures insomnia – as in two kids sleeping 12 hours after swimming at Elkhorn
-       Negative ions contribute to a feeling of physical and psychological well-being.

Credit: Jack Crossen

And there is one more benefit that I can personally attest to. After a day of skiing, hop into a hot springs with your significant other…the snow all around…the stars dripping from the sky…and if that’s not a fountain of youth, I don’t know what is.

Credit: TravelingMel.com

Now help us out here. If you have a hot springs health story please share it with us!