Moorbad Gmös
The peat therapy resort Moorbad Gmös in the vicinity of the town of Laakirchen is one of the few bogs in the Alpine foothills of Upper Austria. The bog dates back to the Mindel glaciation and was created by a "dead-ice hole". In 1987 the local authorities of Upper Austria declared the area of 3.4 ha of the Gmöser Moor a natural preserve. A path around the area has since then given the visitor the opportunity of observing rare flora and fauna. In 2002 the spa was chosen as background scenery for the TV-production Schlosshotel Orth.
About the area
The habitat was formed on a moraine of the Mindel glaciation and forms one of the few bogs in the Alpine foothills on the east side of the Traun River. Up to the time that humans began to interfere with nature, a bog landscape with its variety of flora and fauna was able to develop. Due to cultivation of the bog landscape by man the 3.4 ha Gmöser Moor can today be designated as a carr or fen which the original forms of flora and fauna have survived.This was the reason that the Gmöser Moor was declared to be a natural preserve in 1987.
Fauna
Due to the number of animals – of which some are severely endangered and all under protection – the Gmöser Moor represents a unique refuge and environment in form of a biotope for the region.For example, there are amphibians such as yellow-bellied toads – decidedly water inhabitants – and reptiles such as the grass snake which live in damp forests, fens and bogs.
A great number of bird species find the best conditions for breeding and have been observed for a number of years.
The fieldfare is to be found her with the only breeding colony of the whole area.
The marsh warbler is not solely bound to reed landscapes, but is mainly to be found in bushy areas. It is a summer guest for us and spends the winter in Africa.
The whinchat can be found in the surrounding meadows, as it is a typical meadow bird, which breeds on the ground. In the surroundings of the Gmöser Moor this bird could only be observed one or two times when breeding. The whinchat is also a summer guest in Austria and spends the winter in Africa
The Eurasian nuthatch remains with us all year round. It breeds in caves and draws the observer's attention to itself by being able to crawl headfirst down trees.
The golden oriole only visits as a summer guest at the end of April on its return journey from Africa. It only breeds irregularly in Gmös, whereby its nest is strictly obscured high up in the trees. The male bird can be easily recognized by its bright yellow and black feathers.
The common kestrel can be observed over all open areas with flat wings spread and then pouncing down with closed wings on its prey of mice or other small mammals.
Other observed bird species:
Mallard, grey partridge, pheasant, quail, moorhen, wood pigeon, great spotted woodpecker, skylark, wren, robin, black redstart, blackbird, song thrush, garden warbler, blackcap, willow warbler, chiffchaff, goldcrest, common firecrest, spotted flycatcher, marsh tit, blue tit, great tit, coal tit, short-toed treecreeper, starling, Eurasian jay, European magpie, carrion crow, tree sparrow, house sparrow, common chaffinch, greenfinch, goldfinch, yellowhammer und reed bunting.
Migrants, former breeding birds and guests
Grey heron, white stork, garganey, tufted duck, red kite, hen harrier, Eurasian sparrowhawk, goshawk, European honey buzzard, buzzard, hobby, lapwing, curlew, green sandpiper, Eurasian woodcock, common snipe, collared dove, cuckoo, long-eared owl, tawny owl, common swift, hoopoe, grey-headed woodpecker, European green woodpecker, barn swallow, house martin, tree pipit, dunnock, redstart, wheatear, redwing, mistle thrush, sedge warbler, aquatic warbler, reed warbler, icterine warbler, lesser whitethroat, whitethroat, wood warbler, pied flycatcher, collared flycatcher, crested tit, long-tailed tit, red-backed shrike, jackdaw, common raven, brambling, hawfinch, serin, siskin, bullfinch, linnet, common rosefinch and common crossbill.The manifold biotope structures and the special climate features which are prevalent in a bog landscape result in an extremely diverse insect world, which serves as a food source for the birds of the area.
In the area where peat is dug, one can observe the most different sorts of dragonflies and a great number of mosquitos.
Flora
The vegetation of the bog landscape is dominated mainly by carr forests dominated by bog birch trees. Here one can observe the remnants of a great number of plants which are typical of bogland areas. Among these are the downy birch, European heather, milk parsley, blanket mire and common sedge.Peat diggings can be found both in the centre and on the edges of the bog. The older sites are covered with marsh moss, whereas others can be identified by their duckweed, marsh cinquefoil and sparganium growth.
Peat moss is an excellent water store. They die off at the point where they stand in water and continue growing above this point. The underlying dead particles are continually compressed downwards by the new growth from above. Thus, over a period of several ten thousands of centuries, provided that the climate and environmental conditions are in order, smaller or larger layers of peat are created. The peat layer in Gmös is, however, not exceptionally thick, as the peat mosses could not compete with the pressure applied and could therefore not turn into an ombrotrophic bog.
On the pond within the bog landscape a widespread reed-cultivation has developed.
The peat pulp resort
History of the spa in Gmös
Around 1900 Johann Vizithum – a farmer in the neighbouring village of Rahstorf – used to dig peat in order to obtain fuel to run his threshing machine. He had suffered over years from severe Arthritis and realised, that whenever he trod barefoot in the bog, he experienced a definite improvement of his ailments. This was the reason that the Moorbad Gmös was founded in 1907. Since that time peat has been manually dug and prepared on a daily basis. Following the applications the peat is returned to the bog.Centennial
100 years ago – in time of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, when the emperor of Austria had spent his summer holidays at the spas of Karlovy Vary, Františkovy Lázně and Mariánské Lázně in the Czech Republic – even a small Upper-Austrian village got its first peat therapy spa. 1907 the first owner named the spa after his wife Cäcilia and people from all over the country came not only because of the established guest house but also because of the new bath house.Cäcilienbad has been renamed into Moorbad Gmös, the infrastructure has been adapted to the contemporary requirements and even the methods of treatment have been improved and expanded in order to guarantee the patient's recovery.
On 11 August an event of the Gmundner Festival is guest in Gmös for the first time. Peter Raab reads Thomas Bernhard's "Wut und Komik" in a matinee.