The Fallen Willow Sauna offering cold water therapy

Jo Caley, alongside her partner Jon Grobler, launched The Fallen Willow Sauna, in Cottonworth in September and has so far been popular with people wanting to unplug from it all.

The off the grid sauna, situated on the banks of a private lake, is the evolution of a venture between Jo and Iain Derrick from Test Valley Swimming.

Jo said: “During lockdown Iain couldn’t carry out his lessons and the owner of the lake said ‘I would love you to come bring your groups down to the lake’, after coming out of lockdown the people liked wild swimming. He now does these regular swimming groups.”

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Jo also holds classes which includes yoga on the bank for anxious swimmers. She added: “We get them ready for going into the cold water as it can be really stressful taking the plunge into cold water but people can come away feeling like they have climbed Mount Everest.”

Jo has also been carrying out regular communal sessions including yoga and the sauna, but people are also able to book private sessions, which can involve wild swimming, yoga and spa treatments.

People cannot swim in the lake or use the sauna unless they have booked a session with Jo, or a swimming class with Iain.

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“Because it is private it is clean, not connected to the River Test. For a lot of people there is a worry about pollution and whether it is safe, but we test it everyday and it has never failed.”

To allow for the sauna to be installed, Jo and Jon spent months clearing the area. She said: “The space we decided to put the sauna in was bush and bramble, we spent a fair amount of time at weekends just clearing it just to create this little oasis.”

The new addition allows people to experience sauna and cold plunge therapy which offers a powerful combination of physical and psychological benefits that can enhance overall wellbeing.

Jo said: “The sauna completely wood fired, no electric, no running water. I say to people when they come down ‘there’s no off switch’.”

She continued: “It is really private. We wanted to create a space that felt wild but also special. For me as a yoga teacher and then doing wild swimming, it is about empowering people and giving them an experience.

“You can’t do anything else but just relax and chat, people come away with smiles on their faces.”

For more information, go to fallenwillowsauna.co.uk.