Things Are Heating Up at New Spring Grove Sauna Business

SPRING GROVE – Is Minnesota the sauna capital of America? The New York Times thinks so. 

A February 2024 article, Sweating Buckets, and Loving It: Minnesotans and Their Saunas, claims that since the pandemic more people in the Gopher state are experiencing the winter tradition that came to America with their Finnish and Scandinavian ancestors in the 1800s. Apparently, manufacturers aren’t able to keep up with demand.

The city of Cokato, Minn., calls itself “Sauna City” due to its rich history of being home to many Finnish immigrants and several sauna manufacturers. 

In Finland, sauna (pronounced SOW-NA) is considered a community experience, where strangers often gather together for a traditional Finnish bath, consisting of sitting in 180- to 200-degree Fahrenheit dry heat, followed by a cooling dip in a lake.  

Finland has an estimated three million-plus saunas amongst a population of 5.5 million, where Finns can relax, de-stress and make peace with the long winter. A sauna is a place where Finns catch up on the latest gossip, tell stories or sit quietly and embrace the heat.

Saunas have health benefits as well, including reducing the risk of heart attack or stroke, lowering blood pressure and improving immunity from common infections such as colds or influenza.

Dayna Burtness is pictured in front of the two saunas at Little Dipper Sauna Co. near Spring Grove. The Big One on the left seats ten people and the Little One on the right up to seven. Both saunas are on trailers so they can be taken to different locations. (Photo courtesy of Little Dipper Sauna Co.)

For many Minnesotans, their first experience with a sauna was at a lake cabin in northern Minnesota. But recently there is evidence that sauna culture is growing throughout the state. In 2016 the 612 Sauna Society, a traveling membership cooperative offering community saunas in the Twin Cities, was formed. 612 sets up at designated stops throughout the metro. Mobile saunas can be parked anywhere people gather using social media to inform bathers about where and when.

Little Dipper Sauna Company

And now, closer to home is the Little Dipper Sauna Company, a new enterprise by Dayna Burtness and Nick Nguyen on their Nettle Valley Farm in rural Spring Grove. The couple began offering community sauna sessions in early February, featuring two saunas: The Big One, which seats ten people complete with a changing room; and The Little One, with a greenhouse-like see-through shell, seating 6-7. Both saunas are on wheels and can be transported to other places as needed. 

The Little One was bought on Facebook Marketplace and the Big One was purchased from Sauna Supply Company in Cokato.

Little Dipper Sauna Co. caters to the needs for both community sessions and private sauna parties.  

Burtness explained that community sessions are announced on their website and social media accounts and people can sign up for a session – the cost is $20 to $40 on a sliding scale. Private parties are available to groups that want to celebrate a birthday, anniversary, family get together, bachelorette party or special event. Costs range from $200 to $400.

This group of women enjoyed a sauna at a recent community session. Saunas are considered “dry heat” with water poured on heated rocks to provide steam. (Photo courtesy of Little Dipper Sauna Co.)

Both saunas generate heat through wood fires, which makes it convenient for moving the saunas to a variety of settings — a remote valley in the woods or a streetscape in a town — as electricity is not needed.

A sauna is considered “dry” heat with 10 percent humidity compared to “wet” heat you would find in a steam bath, where there is 100 percent humidity.  Even though steam is created when water is poured on hot rocks in a sauna, the steam quickly dissipates. 

“Eventually, we envision offering sauna services within 45 minutes from the farm,” Burtness said. “We would like to work with businesses that want to host special events, such as breweries and other gathering places.”

Saunas are intended to provide a relaxing atmosphere where bathers can relax and disengage from their hectic lives. (Photo courtesy of Little Dipper Sauna Co.)

Work-life balance pivot

The Little Dipper Sauna Co. might not have happened had Burtness and Nguyen not needed to change their business plan and find a healthier work-life balance.

They bought their 70-acre Nettle Valley Farm, a regenerative livestock farm northwest of Spring Grove, in 2015 and for the past ten years have raised and marketed pastured pork. 

Burtness fell in love with farming at the age of 19 when she worked on an organic vegetable farm. The couple grew up in the Twin Cities area, but she had roots in southeast Minnesota – her dad is from Spring Grove.  

So, when they looked for a place to own land, it was natural they would farm in Houston County – Burtness is the sixth generation in her family to do so.

In addition to Little Dipper Sauna Co., Dayna Burtness and Nick Nguyen continue to farm, raising meat goats and growing organic heirloom seed for a Mabel seed company. (Photo courtesy of Little Dipper Sauna Co.)

Nguyen and Burtness share an entrepreneurial spirit. Raising and marketing their pork on-farm and embracing organic and regenerative farming practices is challenging hard work. Initially, Burtness ran the farm, Nguyen worked remotely in the tech industry. And when Burtness needed an extra set of hands, she knew where to find them. Recently the couple had to pivot from business as usual when Burtness was diagnosed with a rare neurological syndrome that made it difficult for her to continue raising pigs on a large scale. 

Mal de Debarquement Syndrome (or MdDS for short) is a rare neurological disorder characterized by a persistent sensation of motion sickness, which makes moving pigs around a pasture feel like a ship tossed at sea.

“My dad had MdDS too, but it’s not clear whether it is genetic,” she said. “I have found that stress can exacerbate the symptoms as well.”

Burtness says that they have had to re-evaluate their work-life balance because of MdDS.

As the saying goes, when you get stuck with lemons, you make lemonade. Or in this case, a community sauna. 

Little Dipper Sauna Co. owners Dayna Burtness and Nick Nguyen take a sauna break on their Nettle Valley Farm.
(Photo courtesy of Little Dipper Sauna Co.)

“I have always loved saunas.” Burtness said. But she also loves raising things. Nettle Valley Farm still does farming, including raising goats for meat and invasive species control. They also grow organic certified heirloom seeds for Driftless Seed Supply in Mabel.

“I guess Nettle Valley Farm and Little Dipper Sauna Co. has the feel of agro-tourism,” she said, “bringing people together and building community in the countryside.”

Dayna’s pitch: Bring a swimsuit, two towels, lots of drinking water, a robe and sandals for hopping around outside between rounds of penetrating heat. Meet old and new friends and soak in the healing warmth of a wood fired sauna.