Looking for a bit of calm and serenity on your visit to the Black Hills? Moccasin Springs Natural Mineral Spa is ready to help you find exactly that. Located just south of Keystone, Moccasin Springs is a full-service spa offering massage, reflexology, aromatherapy, yoga and of course—soaking in the natural hot springs.
The site was first built in 1890 as the Minnekahta Bathhouse, but was closed and condemned in 1963. Trees reclaimed the pools, and nothing but crumbling walls remained of the once-popular health destination. Seeing potential to revive the past, Kara Hagen purchased the property in 2014 and began a long restoration project. Five years of labor and love later, the bathhouse was reopened under the name originally bestowed by the Native American tribes who frequented the site: Moccasin Springs.
Newly reopened, there is now something for all types of relaxation. Everything from the materials to the lighting in the main building create a relaxing atmosphere; guests are greeted with a warm stone fireplace that reaches up to the ceiling, and huge timber beams that span the width of the room. The massage and yoga rooms are similarly appointed, paying homage to the sandstone and ponderosa pines of the hills just beyond the walls.
Outside, the new site boasts four pools ranging from 88 to 102 degrees fahrenheit. Guests who want to be able to swim a bit can enjoy the original moccasin-shaped pool and a larger area excavated in 1913. These two large pools range from 88 to 93 degrees. The smaller, hot-tub sized pools next to the bath house are where you can rest and soak away your cares in water up to 102 degrees.
After a day of soaking and pampering, stick around for dinner at Buffalo Dreamer. Only open for dinner, the chef here aims to prepare food with love and deep intention. You’ve just spent the day working to rest and restore your body—now enjoy a dinner that continues your journey by nourishing and connecting you to the earth all around you.
From start to finish, the renovation of Moccasin Springs was a project of love the owner wants to share with everyone who visits; she offers a singularly unique opportunity to revel in the healing of the mineral springs the area is famous for. If you seek restoration and rejuvenation, this is exactly where you need to be.