I seem to get asked about saunas quite a lot especially if people I'm chatting to hear I have been to a gay sauna so I thought I might do an essay on the subject.

Saunas are becoming much more of a common place in this country as they have already been for some decades in other European countries. Many a straight guy in most other European countries think nothing of getting their clobber off and displaying all to everybody without the thought of some horny gay guy lusting after them and many a number of them are mixed saunas too.

These days you can pick up almost any area newspaper and you'll spot adverts for saunas mostly straight of course in less you know where to look. Of course places like London and Manchester are heaving with gay saunas and with nice fit bodies going to them, however the rest of the country is not so well represented, but more seem to spring up every year.

Of course the first thing I get asked about saunas is "what's it like", which is a bit like being asked, "what's it like to be gay" (LOL).

Maybe as recent as five years ago I would never have thought about actually going to a sauna whether it is straight or gay. Back then I was like most UK citizens programmed to be more reserved and as the Chancellor of the Exchequer puts it "prudent", for me it was just another one of those strange UK taboos. Once I kind of came out onto the Leeds scene, which must have been maybe 4 years or so ago, I suppose it was inevitable that I would try at least one gay sauna at some point, it was just a matter of time.

I first got the urge to try one out towards the end of my last relationship as it was not working and I was horny as hell and once I become curious about something, man do I become curious (LOL). Of course like everyone else who gets to read a copy of a publication called "Boyz" a UK gay scene magazine, in it you find a list of places to go across the country, pubs, clubs and saunas. Once you've read one at least once you start to become aware of what's available in your area and suddenly one day whilst out on the scene I found myself taking an extra look at the address of my nearest gay sauna. At the time there was only one sauna in Leeds, there are two now, as you will see from my Leeds scene page. Noticing the address more closely I noticed that the area it was in was not what you would say is exclusive to be subtle, or to put it less subtle say more like a 12" dildo stuck up your arse kind of subtle, it was in a shite bollocks area. Pretty soon after that night I checked it out on the map and thought well I'll check out exactly were it is and how bad it looks, this I did on one of my Sunday morning jaunts when I went out to get some petrol. The following weekend I decided to pluck up the courage to go and try it out, this I did one Saturday afternoon.

I parked my car outside a street near by making sure nothing valuable was visible and my mobile phone was fully charged just in case when I came out of the sauna it had been nicked or broken into (LOL), yes it is as bad as that in that particular area. Once satisfied that my 1 litre dinky car was all locked up and the extra steering lock had been attached, I gazed my eyes from my car to the direction of where I could see the sauna. Being nervous as I was walking towards it I became self-conscious of anybody walking by in the street after all it is in a residential area with houses all around it. For a few seconds once at the door I wondered what to do there was no bell or anything to ring, but then worked out just to go in. On going in I found a small narrow passage way with another door locked, the walls around the door had notices on about parking. On quickly reading the parking notices I thought fuck oh shit have I parked in the wrong bit and then thought oh well if I have I ain't walking out moving my car then walking in again, but quickly worked out that I was okay where I parked. One of the notices on the wall explained that I needed to ring the bell for attention. On doing this man quickly came to my attendance opening the door and the first thing I was asked was "You do know that this is a gay sauna", LOL. Now I was asked this because I was not known to the bit of totty working there so it was more a case of him just making sure in his capacity as totty sauna boy I knew the score. As soon as he was asking me my eyes could see men clad in only towels sitting in the lounge area either reading scene papers of watching tv. Just like being in a gay pub as soon as fresh meat appears all around, people look up from what they're doing to check out the talent, this I was used to being on the scene. The hot totty sauna boy then escorted me to his main reception area explaining that it cost £10.00 to use the facilities and asked for my money then gave me a towel and key for my locker number. He then proceeded to quickly explain where all the facilities were. Being nervous you don't really take all that in first time, in the main you're wondering where you have to take your kit off and whether everyone is gonna dive into the changing rooms to see the newly arrived totty. The changing rooms were pretty close to the lounge so most people could very easily see you getting changed so I got changed pretty quickly and wrapped a towel around. I decided best thing to do first would be to sit in the lounge area for a while maybe read up on scene publications and just glance around at any totty that might be about and it would give me time to decide what to do next.

Once you get the first bit over with, getting changed and checking the place out on your first visit, only then do you become less nervous and more aware of what you might feel like getting up to. The sauna I first started going to have a TV lounge, a wet and dry sauna, Jacuzzi, a dark room with TV showing porn and some dark room cubicles for more personal action.

People also ask me "well what do you do when you get there", mmmmmm, well that depends but I'll try and explain to those of you who have never been to one but are maybe thinking about it. On my first couple of visits I felt pretty nervous so I tended to kind of watch more than actually do anything, but after a while there was no stopping me. Just like on the scene you get different guys looking for different things. I don't like it when it gets heavy, plus I'm also into safe sex so barebacking and stuff like that for me is a big no. One of the big surprises for me to begin with, was the amount of group sex that some guys were getting up to, I'm more of a one to one type of guy but was quite enjoyable site I can tell you. Some guys are happier playing about in the wet sauna, because it steams up and others can't see what's going on, whilst others will enjoy as many guys watching as possible. Some guys seem to be able to perform with any one and for quite long periods of time usually with the aid of poppers. I can't just go with anyone I have to find someone attractive and they have to be in my kind of age range too for me to get involved in any activity. Another surprising thing for me was the amount of guys with big dicks above 8" and there are a lot of guys out there with big ones, I'm not a size queen but there are a lot of bigger than average blokes out there.

You can basically get up to what you want with other guys, or what you're comfortable with is generally the rule for me. If you go to one of these places often enough you will get at least one guy trying to make a pass at you, either by looking at you or maybe even touching you. If you want such attention then you just allow the situation to develop or just say no thank you. Just like the scene you get guys of all ages shapes and sizes going to these places and they are gay, straight, or bisexual as well as married too.

You're unlikely to find the man of your dreams or get the relationship of your life in one of these places; you can however make friends and also get some action at the same time. Also remember most people don't tell the whole truth about their sexual history or activities, so always keep the option of choice open to you and practice safe sex. One thing I found surprising were the number of guys not practising safe sex. As a rule it's always good just to look at what your playing with, before you play with it, if you do that and practice safe sex then you stand a better chance of not catching most things that will get you going to the clap clinic. You might not be able to see HIV but you can see some other sexually transmitted diseases.