I’ve never experienced a mud bath before, so when I slipped my feet and legs into a warm tub of thick and smelly peet moss, I thought for sure some worms would start crawling up my stomach. But after the first awkward two or three minutes, I began to relax and sink into the pleasure of having nature cleanse my body. I was at the quaint and affordable Oasis Spa in Calistoga, California, an area known for its vineyards and hot springs. The Spa’s immersion mud bath is a century-old recipe of volcanic ash, peat moss, and mineral water, and is followed by a 15-minute soak in a jet bathtub. I became so hot that even the cool rag on my forehead couldn’t prevent me from sweating, but I breathed deeply and reminded myself that my body needed this detoxification. Thank goodness for the woman who kept bringing me icy cold cucumber water.

Next, I toweled off, walked into another room, and lay in lightweight blankets to cool down. When a massage therapist began rubbing my back, I could sense that the deep heating had successfully prepared my muscles for treatment. The knots in my neck and shoulders seemed to release easier than during most massages I’d received, so I was devastated when the 55 minute timeframe ran up. If I hadn’t had to rush to a dinner at the nearby Castillo di Amoroso, I would have spent more than a few hours in comforting Calistoga.