So it's a dreich autumn day in rural Scotland. The rain's getting heavier, and the light's starting to close in.
Option 1: head for shelter, and hide away from the elements.
Option 2: take all your clothes off, and ease into a hot bath at the foot of a steep hill, overlooking a roaring gorge, swollen by the rain.
When you're at the ecoYoga Centre in Argyll, it's axiomatic that you'll choose Option 2. Not out of any sense of overt exhibitionism, but… just because.
Because in all senses of the phrase, this place is off the grid: remote, tranquil, and espousing all aspects of the sustainable, at-one-with-nature lifestyle.
So it's perfectly natural to have a lovely relaxing hot bath, while raindrops keep falling on your head, and you soak up the uninterrupted views of the magnificent landscape all around. (True adherents of the Scandinavian hot/cold, pleasure/pain principle normally alternate the bath with a dip in the chilly gorge, but it's moving too quickly today. That can wait for tomorrow…)
Where is this nirvana, and why does its name feature the word yoga so prominently? We'll address the second question later, but first it's important to give a sense of place.
ecoYoga is at Inverliever Lodge, not far from Kilmartin in Argyll. For decades, it was used by a charity as an out-of-town retreat for underprivileged city youngsters, until funds ran out. Current owners Nick and Rachel Loening had the inspired idea to take it over in 2005 and transform it into a destination that combines two of their passions: yoga, and green energy. It's a two-and-a-half-hour car drive from Glasgow, although for a small supplement there's a minibus pick-up from city centre stations or the airport (more relaxing, and more sustainable).
The centre is powered entirely by its own hydro system, which also generates a surplus for the grid. In practical terms, that means two things: Nick loves it when it rains (and being Argyll, it frequently does); and guests have an endless supply of hot water. Hence, the lower gorge bath (one of two outdoors - the other's less spectacular, and more for a quick dip when you've grown accustomed to the concept of bathing al fresco).
There's also a large hot tub, covered by a glass dome, with a cold plunge barrel outside. Oh, and massage sessions and an underground sauna, reached by a secret stairway. Really: who said green living couldn't be fun too?
All food (included in the price) is prepared in the communal lounge/dining room/kitchen. It's strictly vegetarian, which initially daunted this omni/carnivore, but never have I tasted such flavoursome meals, blending recipes from across the globe with ingredients grown on site. All hail wonderchef Claudia Escobar.
Her approach even inspired a rare detour for me from standard instant/filter coffee into the world of herbal teas, served DIY in the nearby workshop café around a woodburning stove, where you can chat with other guests, dream, or just nap.
Yes, sleep's a really strong selling-point of ecoYoga. The individual bedroom cabins are comfortable, if furnished basically, but the investment has wisely gone on the super-luxury mattresses. (One morning, after a good eight hours, I managed to breakfast…then return for a quick snooze that lasted three hours).
No shortage, then, of things to do here (slowly, gently, you understand). More vigorous choices abound: walking, cycling, sailing on Loch Awe or off the Argyll coast. Another time, if the energy can be summoned.
Or (and you're right, I've been putting off mentioning it) yoga. Lots of yoga.
Clearly, it would have been disingenuous to visit somewhere called ecoYoga and not try, for the first time in your life, to contort your body into all sorts of alien shapes.
Nick and Rachel bring various yoga masters to the centre as part of retreats, using a purpose-built studio with under-floor heating. Nick himself, who introduced ashtanga yoga to Scotland when he was based in Edinburgh, also teaches.
But for our visit, guidance was by Gingi Lee from London, a recognised guru. He took this novice and showed me that basic yoga was neither weird nor particularly difficult, even if dedication and practice clearly help. (It certainly had for other guests, forming incredible figures around us.)
But then, an elderly back rebelled, and it was deemed unwise to continue. Relieved? Partly, but also a tad disappointed, given how easy it is at ecoYoga to embrace things your conservative, suburban, middle-aged self might otherwise shun.
And there was, of course, an obvious solution to the back pain. Lead me back to that hot bath….
Full details of ecoYoga's facilities and retreats are available here
The next retreat is at New Year, from December 28 to January 2
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article