Bardócz private mofetta - Covasna

Baths and mofetta of the Counts Mikes The Zsombor stream runs westwards from the Bálványos Pass (940 m). Its headwater area is just as rich in mineral water and gas deposits as the area around the Sósmező (Poiana Sărată). The oldest bath guidebooks refer to this place as Mikes-Zsombor Baths.  The earliest mention of it comes from Balázs Orbán, who visited the place before 1868. “Here is the Hortyogó or Fortyogó (...) medicinal spring, which rises from the peatery a short distance from the stream bed” – he wrote. “Its water has a yellowish-brown colour and is used for bathing in tubs of planks. It is highly curative against gout, bone pains, shrinkage, and stiffness of muscles, as well as old wounds. (…). Across the stream called there is another medicinal spring called Hammas (...), whose waters could easily be collected for a great bath.” The ideas of Balázs Orbán were successfully put into practice by Count Benedek Mikes, who had the bathing pools renewed, since the mineral water and gas eruptions in Zsombor were on his lands. Their restoration was continued by his son, Count Ármin Mikes in 1943. His work was prevented from being completed by the Second World War.  After the change of regime, the land in question reverted to the Count Mikes and Roy Chowdhury de Ulpur family of Zabola (Zăbala). In 2007, the great-grandson of Ármin Mikes, Gergely Roy Chowdhury of Zabola, started the third renovation of the mineral water and gas pools, and the new mofetta was built on a stone base near the pool of the Vallatófürdő, which contains hydrogen sulphide and carbon dioxide gas of the solfataric type. Here, one can also see sulphur precipitation on the pit wall. Medical indication: This mofetta offers symptomatic treatment for cardiovascular problems. Usage: Approaching the mofetta requires caution; it can be dangerous if used incorrectly. Before entering the dry bath, you should be well rested, and the gas level should be checked. The easiest way to do this is the open flame test: where the flame goes out, you should not bend down anymore. Occasional, single use should not exceed 10 minutes.

💙 The mofetta is one of the most important natural and effective medicinal element of Malnaș-Băi.  For a long time, there was an oral tradition that this place was discovered by shepherds who used to bathe their goats with skin trouble in the Lobogó Baths and noticed its beneficial effects. As far as we know, the former Lobogó was the site of the warm baths’ collecting pool, on which the Hercules frigidarium was later built. The brochure published by the bathing administration in 1899 in the edition of the Transylvanian Carpathia Society describes an already operating mofetta, which is referred to as “the carbonic acid gas and hydrogen-sulphide air bath (steamer)”. “Used under regular supervision in accordance with health requirements” – says the brochure. “It creates a very pleasant warming sensation throughout the body after a few minutes of stay, which intensifies into perspiration with longer exposure” – wrote a doctor of the baths’ management, Dr. Endre Szabó.  Unfortunately, no one has kept track of the number of mofetta victims here over the past century. There were several, people replied to our question. Mrs. Zsolt Salat read out the late László Zsigmond’s article entitled Embert is öl a hanyagság (Negligence Can Kill), published in the Háromszék daily in 2005, about her father, who was the fifth victim of the outdoor mofetta at the time. According to János Sala, a local resident, the two-part Málnásfürdő, a restored mofetta with a terrace roof made of natural stone, is currently under renovation (2017). Each of the 119 mofettas of Szeklerland - Covasna county has two boreholes of small depth, lined with ceramic tubes. From it, carbonic acid-rich mineral water erupts, and the carbon dioxide released from the water feeds the mofetta, still known as the steamer (gőzlő) by the locals. The internal fitting-out and arrangement of the building are in progress. A 70 cm high layer of concentrated carbon dioxide gas has accumulated in the mofetta’s twin pools. Based on our data, the gas has a concentration of 89.8% and a natural radioactivity of 267.3 pCi/l. There is also evidence that the subsoil around the mofetta is rich in carbonated mineral waters, as the former Hercules frigidarium was built in the immediate vicinity of the health trail, and its waters were fed into the current leisure centre.  The mineral water that fed the Hercules was so rich in carbon dioxide that, after draining the building’s bathing pool, a large quantity of mofetta gas was left over and used as an “air bath”. The glassed-in ceiling of the indoor frigidarium warmed the air and the mineral water. It was in this building that the nearby moor earth (sapropel) was first used for sludge treatment.  Just a few metres from the mofetta is the Bugyogó of Malnaș Băi, the Lábáztató (Footbath), or as the old-timers used to call it, the Bivaly-feredő (Buffalo Bath). This is a wet mofetta, which signalled before 1848 that “the subsoil here has mineral water”. The place belonged to the Imreh family of Malnaș Băi and was known as Honoráta Imreh’s meadows. This is how the new name of the Lábáztató (Foot Bath) became Semseyné Bugyogója (Mrs Semsey’s Bubbler). The honourable lady lies in the crypt of the Reformed Church in Málnás.  The geological formations around Malnaș Băi harbour carbon dioxide reserves that could be the basis of future balneology.  Medical indication: This mofetta offers symptomatic treatment for cardiovascular problems. ❗️ Usage: Approaching the mofetta requires caution; it can be dangerous if used incorrectly. Before entering the dry bath, you should be well rested, and the gas level should be checked. The easiest way to do this is the open flame test, where the flame goes out, you should not bend down anymore. Occasional, single use should not exceed 10 minutes.

The Torjahágó (Pasul Turia), rich in gas fields and mineral springs, lie about 10 km from the centre of Torja (Turia), in the valley of Jajdon. It got its name from the fact that before the construction of the road between Sepsibükszád (Bixad) and Torja, here it was possible to cross to the Olt valley under the southern foot of the Kőmöge (1,241 m), via the Torja Pass, on the so-called Torja Road.  The area of Torjahagó is known in the geological literature as the Pokolvölgy (Hell Valley) from Futásfalva (Alungeni). For centuries, in summer, the people of Kézdivásárhely (Târgu Secuiesc) and Torja have used its waters, pools and its “stinking pits” (büdösgödör) for primitive bathing cures and refreshment. Countless mineral springs erupt in the area. Large areas in the zone of the strong gas eruption are completely devoid of vegetation. Here, the trees are scrubby, and animals crawling on the ground and low-flying birds fall dead into the hollows.  The roofed mofetta of Jajdon belongs to Turia village. Medical indication: This mofetta offers symptomatic treatment for cardiovascular problems. Usage: Approaching the mofetta requires caution; it can be dangerous if used incorrectly. Before entering the dry bath, you should be well rested, and the gas level should be checked. The easiest way to do this is the open flame test: where the flame goes out, you should not bend down anymore. Occasional, single use should not exceed 10 minutes.

This bath is located in Bálványosfürdő (Băile Bálványos), Covasna County, Transylvania, being equipped with hot tubs, saunas, wet and dry mofettas, and surrounded by an electric fence for the safety of guests. Before visiting the location we recommend you to book in advance by phone! The Csiszár Baths, which is located on a mountain, can be reached via a forest footpath. Along the trail through the beautiful forest, there are numerous sources of potable mineral water. Benches, planks and stairs make the 10-15 minute walk up to the baths easier. Each of the 8 pools in the baths has a different and individual mineral composition of the mineral water. Information panels mark the history and medicinal properties of each pool and spring.  The Csiszár Baths have been the most popular destination in and around Kézdivásárhely (Târgu Secuiesc) for the last 100 years. The “Feredő” (Bath) under Bálványos, in the Torja forest, was built in 1895 by the distiller Dénes Csiszár. “Bálványos” is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Háromszék (Trei Scaune) region. The Bálványos Castle, the world’s unique Büdös (Stinking) Cave, the volcanic Szent Anna (Sfânta Ana, St Anne’s) Lake and more than 50 mineral water springs have attracted visitors for more than century. The Csiszár Baths, which include 16 thermal springs, was also built here. Of these, eight are enclosed in bathing pools, another two can be used for drinking cures, and a spring feeds the thermal gas bath built on it, known as the “Big Mofetta”. There’s also a smaller mofetta here, the “Virility (Férfierő) Mofetta”. Many people also like the “Eye Water” (Szemvíz). Four pools are large enough for swimming. From 1960 to 1990, the Csiszár Baths enjoyed their second golden age after their foundation. A treatment centre with heated baths, hotel and restaurant was built under the cold pools. In 1990 the public health centre closed. In 2012, the baths returned to the grandchildren of the former bath builder Dénes Csiszár, who, harnessing the power of community, organized a bath renovation kaláka (joint voluntary work), renovated the pools, bought the buildings, and made the springs available for use by a large number of visitors again. The financial support of the Hungarian state played a major role in the organisation of the kalákas and the renovation works. Medical indication: This mofetta offers symptomatic treatment for cardiovascular problems. Usage: Approaching the mofetta requires caution; it can be dangerous if used incorrectly. Before entering the dry bath, you should be well rested, and the gas level should be checked. The easiest way to do this is the open flame test: where the flame goes out, you should not bend down anymore. Occasional, single use should not exceed 10 minutes.

The carbonated mineral water hidden in the subsoil is the treasure of Petőfalva. It bubbles up at every step on the swampy plains of the Feketeügy (Râul Negru), so one can take a dip almost anywhere. For centuries, the village has been known for the carbonated mineral water springing up from an abandoned dead ditch of the river. These carbon dioxide-saturated soaks served as water mofettas in the past, and their medicinal properties were soon recognised.  During the communist era, not thinking about the protection of the mineral water springs in the countryside, drainage works were carried out in the Mezőföld, and the Fortyogó became the victim of a drainage ditch. For many years, no one bothered to renovate it. However, nature has taken care to heal the wound, because the untended water channel has in the meantime become clogged, and the former Fortyogó’s location was marked by the loudly bubbling mofetta gas. In 2008, the Fortyogó in Petőfalva was renovated as part of a movement initiated by the county government to renovate folk baths. The pool was renovated and a wood-fired sauna was built next to it. The Fortyogó comes to the surface along the crustal fracture on the line of which Hatolykafürdő (Băile Hătuica) lies to the north and Kovásznafürdő (Băile Covasna) to the south. Medical indication: This mofetta offers symptomatic treatment for cardiovascular problems. Usage: Approaching the mofetta requires caution; it can be dangerous if used incorrectly. Before entering the dry bath, you should be well rested, and the gas level should be checked. The easiest way to do this is the open flame test: where the flame goes out, you should not bend down anymore. Occasional, single use should not exceed 10 minutes.

The Puturosu (Stinking) Cave is located on the Bálványos Pass, on the southern side of the Puturosu Mountain at an altitude of 1,052 m. The cavity, nearly 16 m long, is not naturally formed. It is thought to be the remains of medieval sulphur mines, the first 6 m of which are lined, and the further inward sloping cavity is nearly 9 m long. The cave gives off a foul smell of hydrogen sulphide, which can be stronger or weaker depending on the changing winds; hence also its name. It should be used with caution: the level of precipitated sulphur indicates how far into the gas you can sink. Because of the deadly gas and frequent accidents, a door was added to the cave entrance at the end of the 19th century. This cave is Europe’s largest natural mofetta, from which around 6,000 m³ of almost pure carbon dioxide gas is released into the air every day. With this, it surpasses its Western European counterpart, the Cave of the Dogs in Naples. In addition to carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulphide and other noble gases – helium, argon, krypton, and radon – are also erupting to the surface. Its natural radon level is 980,0 pCi/l, which is the highest value among all the mofetta and solfatara-type gases in the entire Kelemen-Hargita (Călimani-Harghita) volcanic range. The concentration of negative (2.8x104 ions/ml) and positive (3.3x103 ions/ml) ions, the humidity of the cave air (95%) and the gas yield make the Büdös Cave from Torja a pleasantly lukewarm gas bath and one of the most important natural mofettas in our county. At the turn of the century, the first Hungarian carbonic acid compressor factory operated with the gas pouring out here. Medicinal properties:  The water that drips from the ceiling is known to patients as “eye water” and has long been used in folk medicine to cure human eye infections. Indeed, it was possible to detect free sulphuric acid in the dripping water, and thus, as a vitriolic water, it is a world curiosity.  Because of the carbon dioxide in the gases, treatments are held over several days to help in the healing of various circulatory and blood pressure problems, as well as musculoskeletal disorders. Cave treatments are also beneficial for a variety of skin conditions and disorders of the peripheral nervous system, as well as for eczema and allergies.  Breathing in the toxic fumes of the mofetta is very dangerous, leaning under a marked strip in the cave and inhaling the gas can cause death within minutes. Usage: Approaching the mofetta requires caution; it can be dangerous if used incorrectly. Before entering the dry bath, you should be well rested, and the gas level should be checked. The easiest way to do this is the open flame test: where the flame goes out, you should not bend down anymore. Occasional, single use should not exceed 10 minutes.

Natural dry gas discharge  “One of the attractions of the Sugás Baths is the Gőzlő (Steamer) or Gyilkosbarlang (Killer Cave). In the cave’s carbonic acid gas, many rheumatic patients and people tired of life, at odds with fate and themselves, sought and found healing. It is a rare year when the cave does not take its victim” – wrote Vilmos Hankó in his book about Szeklerland in 1896. According to oral and written tradition, it was here, with the help of a mine shaft, that a rich military officer, desperate for gold, searched for “treasure”, believing the yellowish shimmering pyrite crystals in the Carpathian sandstone to be gold. But the treasure originally thought to be gold was found to be carbon dioxide, a suffocating medicinal gas.   The still-standing building of the Sugásfürdő mofetta was erected in 1894 and renovated along with the spa and resort village by the Municipality of Sepsiszentgyörgy (Sfântu Gheorghe) and is now a well-organised satellite spa and nearby resort of the county seat, where a modern leisure and treatment centre is also operating. In front of the mofetta building there is a frigidarium with gently simmering mineral water – it could even be called a water mofetta because of its gaseous bottom sources –, which is not functioning today.  The mofetta gas from Sugás is considered by geologists studying the area to be of volcanic origin. 64.1% carbon dioxide was measured in its gas. Its natural radon level is 280 pCi/l. ❗️ The mofetta in Șugaș Băi can only be used by registration. You can pick up the access key to the mofetta from the treatment center in Șugaș Băi after registration, daily between 11:00 and 18:30. After use, please hand in the key to the staff of the treatment center.  Medical indication: This mofetta offers symptomatic treatment for cardiovascular problems. Usage: Approaching the mofetta requires caution; it can be dangerous if used incorrectly. Before entering the dry bath, you should be well rested, and the gas level should be checked. The easiest way to do this is the open flame test: where the flame goes out, you should not bend down anymore. Occasional, single use should not exceed 10 minutes.

The balneary treatment with exceptional results in the case of cardiovascular diseases, is the attraction of tourists and has made the city of Covasna a resort of national interest, but also of international interest, recognized as the „resort of the heart". The Turism Covasna S.A. treatment base, including the Covasna and the Cerbul Hotels, is the only treatment base in the resort that has 3 mofetta enclosures and is located directly on the source of mofetic gas and mineral water.

The balneary treatment with exceptional results in the case of cardiovascular diseases, is the attraction of tourists and has made the city of Covasna a resort of national interest, but also of international interest, recognized as the resort of "heart". The Turism Covasna S.A. treatment base, which also includes the Căprioara Hotel, is the only treatment base in the resort that has 3 mofetta enclosures and is located directly on the source of mofetic gas and mineral water.