https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php Thu, 17 May 2012 19:58:34 +0000 86400 Manage articles https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/news/the-bn-campaign-against-body-shame-cabs-r131
The BN Campaign Against Body Shame (CABS)

Raising awareness of the damage caused by 'Body Shame'

• The vast majority of people feel some level of anxiety about their bodies. In extreme cases it may lead to eating disorders, or refusal to seek medical attention

• Body shame may contribute to the persistence of some barbaric ‘traditions’ or other abuses inflicted on babies and children
  
• Body shame blights the lives of many people and the CABS campaign aims to combat this

• As Naturists, we are less likely to be affected by Body Shame issues and we are an ideal group to get this national campaign started

What do we want you to do?

• Wear a badge with a picture of yourself, nude, during a well publicised time frame (Obviously, this would be when you’re clothed)

• The badges will be small button badges and your picture will appear on the badge at around 18 – 20 mm (about ¾ of an inch) high

• Nudefest, will be a chance to have professional quality pictures taken, for free, to be used on the badges.  There’ll be plenty of opportunity to get involved if you don’t go to Nudefest

• We believe that the campaign will help to build Naturism’s positive image and raise the profile of BN

• Please sign up by sending an email with "I'm in" in the subject line to geoff.read@bn.org.uk. Thanks!

]]> Thu, 17 May 2012 17:26:25 +0000 fe709c654eac84d5239d1a12a4f71877 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/a-chill-out-break-2011-r130 Winter break in El Portús, Spain.

www.elportusuk.com

This year my friend Phil and I decided to have the Christmas period away from it all and fly off somewhere warmer for a couple of weeks.

As Andrew Welch is now the UK rep for El Portús, Spain I contacted him to find out what was available. At the time of asking all types of accommodation for any dates were there for the booking.

Given the options and prices we settled on a Type B “mobile home” also called a casita as that had the luxury of a bedroom each rather than the pricier Hacienda which have one bedroom and a sofa bed, from 15th - 29^th December.
The casita allocated to us actually had 3 bedrooms. A double bed, 2 single beds and a room with 1 single bed.

We booked our flights from Stansted to Alicante. Although Murcia airport is much closer the flight times and price suited us better. Murcia is about half hour from El Portús and Alicante about hour and half drive.

We left the cold UK drizzle full of the anticipation of a warm and sunny fortnight.

Having decided we were not going to hire a car, as this was going to be a chill out holiday, Andrew arranged our taxi transfer and Blas was waiting for us on arrival. With Blas being Spanish (neither of us speak Spanish apart from the usual courteousness and greetings) conversation was a little hard but as I can speak a little French (as can Blas) we persevered and had limited conversation (Spanish/ French/English) with Blas doing the tour guide bit on the way and arrived at El Portús just before 2 p.m.

During winter the site supermarket closes at 1.30 but we had packed white coffee/tea and some biscuits so after booking in Blas drove us to our casita and the kettle went on for a well needed brew.

Our casita was above and behind the Hacienda with a lovely view out to sea. The webcam shown on the El Portús website is virtually the same as the view we had.

The casita itself was a little “weary” in it’s furnishings but had all the necessary crockery, cutlery and pans etc. needed including a coffee maker. We also had an electric heater which was used as the evenings and mornings were chilly.

Toilet rolls, soap and towels are all supplied as was a bottle of mineral water waiting in the fridge for us although the tap water is ok to use for brewing hot drinks.

The cooking facilities in the casita are only a hob which is fuelled by bottled gas as is the hot water for the sink and shower. After unpacking we relaxed on the veranda for a while drinking coffee and taking in the view in the warm sunshine.

I decided to take a walk to find the location of the pool, the restaurant and the supermarket while Phil relaxed in the afternoon sun. All three places were just down the hill in front of the Hacienda, but being on a hillside there were steps and sloping roads and paths to contend with (cars and golf buggies seemed to be used a lot) and returned to the casita for another coffee.

Whilst the sun was still shining we both took a walk down to the beach and then through the camping and caravan area to reception to purchase our Wi-Fi code for the week at €12 (or €3 per day). Returning to the casita we fired up our notebooks and linked to the Wi-Fi. By now the sun was going down giving the first of many spectacular sunsets of an orange/red sky across the sea and over the mountains. It also became much cooler.

By 7.30 we were getting hungry and found some clothes to put on for a meal in the restaurant (although nudity is the norm you have to be clothed for the restaurant).

We had decided that as we were on a chill out holiday our evening meals would be in the restaurant with our breakfast and lunch being chosen as and what took our fancy). So with the exception of two evenings we dined in the restaurant. A varied menu of starter, main meal and dessert costing approximately €40 for 3 courses for the two of us. There was also a “menu of the day” which was starter, main and dessert OR coffee for €9. These often were different from the choices on the menu. Some starters were very plentiful and could easily be shared by two. Luckily that was pointed out to us by Jaejoong (not sure of spelling), the young waiter/barman, when we ordered the Baby Cuttlefish dish. Most meals come with chips but can be ordered with salad if preferred. There is even eggs, bacon and chips for the Anglophile that we both can recommend lol. Every meal we had was good, very enjoyable and filling along with the beer or wine and quite often we had the restaurant to ourselves with a few German, French or Spanish on some days there or in the bar area. We did not detect many English voices around.

We filled the next few days with visits to the supermarket for essential (bread & lunch etc.) purchases, sunbathing, reading, pc’ing, swimming (in the winter pool which we often had to ourselves) and generally relaxing, with maybe an afternoon beer from the bar and of course, our evening meal taken in the restaurant.

On Monday morning (19^th) having had breakfast and coffee was tidying up ready for another day of relaxation when we heard a loud noise which sounded as if inside the casita. Nothing being apparent we checked a few things then realised that the seat Phil had been sitting on had collapsed. It is just like any caravan seat with wooden struts holding a bench seat and the front strut had come loose and the wooden seat has collapsed inside. Thank goodness he wasn’t sitting on it at the time. Reported to reception and early afternoon a man with a screwdriver arrived to do the repairs.

Having no transport of our own we decided to take a taxi to Espacio Mediterráneo on Tuesday for some shopping. Espacio Mediterráneo is situated the other side of Cartagena and I reckon about 20km from the site. Reception called the taxi for us from their usual firm and Blas arrived to take us. En route we had more stilted, tri-lingual conversation and Blas told me about his trip to see family in France for Christmas and that his friend would be our driver when we were returning to the airport at the end of our stay as he would still be in France.

Espacio Mediterráneo is a very modern shopping precinct with many fashion shops and a huge supermarket which has everything you could want from white goods, TVs’ etc down to the humble toilet roll or toothbrush although cigarettes could not be found. There is even an aisle with lots of British items including butter, peanut butter, biscuits and teabags. As we had found the evenings quite chilly we wanted to get a fleece jacket each and was pleased to find a C&A store with exactly what we were looking for. Was even more pleased that the label said 30% off and mega pleased to find there was a promotion for another 20% off. The jackets were very useful purchase for the remainder of our holiday.

Before Blas was due to return to pick us up we had some lunch then waited by the Casino for our ride back. On the way back Blas kindly stopped at a small tobacconist where we could buy some cigarettes. The return trip to Espacio Mediterráneo cost approximately €40.

That evening, as we had eaten out at lunch time, we decided to self cater for our evening meal and enjoyed soup, bread and fruit.

During the following days we continued with our relaxation policy, renewing our Wi-Fi payment (can only book a week at a time) and generally just watching the hours tick by whilst relaxing in the sun.

On Friday 23^rd, with no special plans we settled on the usual routine of breakfast, swim, shower and sunbathing/reading when our peace was shattered by a van and a tractor on the path between our casita and the Hacienda delivering and laying piping along the length of the path. This was accompanied by the 2 Spanish workmen shouting rather loudly to each other. This carried on for a few hours and right through siesta time. Having laid the pipes which were not connected to anything the men disappeared quite late in the day leaving the tractor parked up there.

There were notices up to say that on Christmas eve there would be Traditional Christmas songs being sung from 5.30 - 6.30 so I decided to join in while Phil went for a stroll along the beach. This was taking place in the restaurant area and we also discovered then that the restaurant and bar were closed all day (notice on the door). Apparently reception was not aware of the closure. It was a very pleasant hour singing various songs, carols and canons. Mostly done in different languages for each verse. English, Dutch, German, Spanish, French and even one verse in Latin. Luckily we still had another carton of soup so dinner that evening was soup, bread and fruit again.

Christmas day arrived warm and sunny and after breakfast we took a walk down to the beach so I could “perform” my sand angel (as opposed to snow angel) and I also dared a paddle in the sea, which was a bit too chilly to swim in but wonderfully clear. We came back via the pool and had another swim.

After a relaxing afternoon in the sun we went for our pre-booked setmChristmas meal (€30). There were 24 people booked for this meal.mThis started with prawn in filo pastry and hoi sin dip, chicken consommé and then dim sum. The main meal was roasted baby goat leg with sauté potatoes, mushrooms and peppers. The meal also included wine. Then coffee and Spanish “sweets.”mMoncho, the bar and restaurant owner presented us all with a Christmas gift.mDuring the evening there was fine rain and a cloudy sky.

We awoke the following morning to rain and overcast skies which then cleared for a short while but by lunchtime (2 p.m.) it had clouded over again and we spent the afternoon inside.

The next day was sunny again and after confirming with reception the booking for our taxi to the airport for 29^th had the usual swimming, sunbathing, reading time until the clouds rolled in again sending us indoors.
That evening it rained heavily whist we were dining but had luckily stopped for our uphill climb back to the casita.

Our last full day arrived warm and sunny again so you can guess that our day consisted of the usual sunning and reading and relaxing until it was time when we thought about packing. Being a naturist holiday this didn’t take long but you still wonder why you have so much to pack LOL

As our taxi was due at 7 a.m. the following morning so we decided to shower and get everything sorted before dinner. Phil had first shower and said that the water had gone cold mid shower. We checked the pilot light on the water heater and it was still on ok. I then went to shower. It started off barely warm then went cold and we discovered the pilot light had gone out. Phil relit it but when we turned the tap on for hot water it went out again.It appears our gas bottle had run out but luckily we still had some filter coffee left for a hot drink in the morning before the taxi arrived.

We had our last meal in the restaurant and this night there were quite a few people there. Said adiós to Jaejoong and went “home” for an early night.

At 7 a.m. we left El Portús in the dark for the journey to the airport. Conversation with Blas’s friend was even less as he could only speak Spanish but we did manage to understand each other basically. After an hour and half we reached Alicante airport and having seen the sunrise during the trip it seemed the day was promising to be warm and sunny again.

We checked our cases in and headed off to find a coffee and purchase some duty frees.mOur flight home departed 10 minutes early and with an uneventful flight we arrived back in the UK early to find the weather hadn’t changed whilst we had been away. It was still cold and rainy.mAnd so began our journey back to home with good memories of our winter break.

Pat


]]> Fri, 09 Mar 2012 13:43:56 +0000 4a213d37242bdcad8e7300e202e7caa4 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/information/about-naturism/roni-writes/why-don%e2%80%99t-we-open-the-gates-to-potential-new-me-r128 Roni Fine.

A common complaint among naturists is that there are too many men, particularly single ones: I beg to differ: the truth is there are not enough women, married or single!  So what can we do about this? We need to take naturism to women, to catch  their eye and interest.   I have always thought the fact that BN magazines feature photos of their members is a wise move.

Prospective naturist ladies are often put off by the posed pictures of young models with slim, shapely bodies that they see in other publications.  This often makes them feel inadequate.  Even when magazines include ladies of all shapes and sizes, women can still be reluctant to strip off, as they think they will be judged on their looks before anything else.  How wrong they are!

The naturist community is one of the few places where people are generally accepted for who they are, not for what they look like.

Anyway, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and we all rate different aspects of the opposite sex when deciding if they are attractive or not, which is just as well as there would be a lot of lonely people out there if they were all waiting for the “perfect” body to make an appearance!  “Love the one you’re with” is a good motto “Accept the body you are”, could be another one!

Blackthorns, like many clubs, have far more applications from men than women, but we still like to keep an equal balance of the sexes amongst our membership when we can.  We are very fortunate that our numbers are made up of all ages so we have a nice, varied mix of people which goes to make an interesting social atmosphere, but we would very much like to attract more female members. So what can we do in order to achieve this?

I believe word of mouth is still the best advertising campaign (and the cheapest!), and I encourage members to broadcast what they do and where they do it and, most importantly of all to the inquisitive, why they do it!  Once we get across to them the liberating feeling of being naked in the warmth of the sun, we are halfway to creating converts.

But reaching women, particularly single women, is the hardest challenge.  The majority of female members have been almost dragged along to a club or event by their partner and though some will give it a go just to humour them, most will not adapt or even try to.

I understand how they feel; I told my husband when I first met him and found out he was a member of Blackthorns: “Well, don’t ask me to go there, because I am not going to!” And I meant it!  But now I have a simple plan that all clubs could try out: A Ladies Day.

Think about it: there are already groups that encourage like-minded worriers and strugglers to rally together and gain in confidence by the encouragement they give each other. Alcoholics Anonymous, Weight Watchers, Keep Fit or, rather, Get Fit classes.  The list goes on.  Their success stems from the members helping each other through their emotions and achieving their target together.  So, my simple idea is a day when I shall invite women along to give naturism a try in the company of other women who will be there to support and encourage them to find out why men are so keen to get their kit off!

I will not be closing the club to our members, because it wouldn’t be fair to stop them enjoying the sunshine, but I must admit I am lucky to have suitable grounds at Blackthorns to enable me to meet the hesitant ladies at the gate, direct them to the car parking area and then lead them through the trees to a secluded glade where men will have been asked to avoid, just for that afternoon.

Give your club layout some thought and see if you can do likewise. The ladies won’t need to see a naked man all the way there, or more to the point, a naked man won’t see them!  I am also lucky to have the perfect Spring setting with primroses, violets and bluebells in abundance; I am always thrilled to show off our picturesque grounds, as the reaction is always a good one.

Of course, a good trick would be to ply them with a glass of wine to relax them, as they do at time-share seminars!  However, most of them will be arriving by car, so I can’t do that; I will have to ensure my sparkling, bubbly personality will be intoxicating enough!

Enrol the help of other ladies who are good at conversation, to give advice and relay their initial worries they had to overcome when they first joined; a bit like the “Loose Women” programme on the telly.  If you can include ladies of all ages, shapes and sizes, you will illustrate that we are not all super-models and of catwalk quality but everyday women, just like them.  We will soon put them at ease and laugh together and I hope the self-confidence with our own nakedness, and a little warm sunshine, will encourage them to disrobe and find out what Gok Wan did for his ladies – they always felt heaps better once they had relaxed under the spell of his compliments and camaraderie.  If he can do it for them, then we can do it for ourselves!

Then if they find that it just isn’t for them, they can retrace their steps back to their cars and exit the grounds without having to explain themselves to anyone!  And for those who enjoyed the afternoon’s experience, there would then be the  opportunity to explore the rest of the grounds and maybe even meet other naturists, including males, on our clubhouse patio by the pool and indulge in a swim or sunbathe on the lawn.  For some, that might still be too soon and another visit might be needed before they feel able to mix.

The choice will be theirs with no pressure on them to do anything they don’t wish to, but with lots of encouragement to feel good about themselves.  I am going to make this available on one afternoon in the week and again on a weekend, to cater  or women who go out to work, or have children to care for.  I want no excuses for them not to come!

Of course, I will still be methodical and ask all visitors to contact me to book their visit and to bring ID with them, just as I always do with any prospective member visiting our club.

So what do you think? Is this a simple idea that you could reproduce at your club?  I do hope so.  Give it a try and report back to me how it goes and I will mention your results in my next article, when I am telling you how successful I have been with my Ladies Day!

Now, if you don’t think you need to target the ladies in particular, why not hold a general open day at your club – perhaps to coincide with the Great British Skinny Dip?  I frequently find people want to explore the world of naturism but are beaten by nerves time and again. Some even make an appointment and then chicken out; seasoned naturists don’t always understand why.  They have forgotten, or maybe never experienced, the nervousness that can be the downfall of recruitment. You need to make your club available.

My current form of enquiry usually starts with a phone call or email and I reply promptly to make applicants feel important.  I engage them in friendly chatter whilst answering their questions and finding out about them at the same time, without them even realising I am doing so!  I then book them in for a set time at a weekend when Deane (my husband) and I will escort them round the club, showing them the site and facilities and introducing them to other members along the way, keeping it all very informal.  Of course, I always insist they bring some ID to satisfy me they are who they say they are and I even clarify their appointment by post and ask them to bring the letter with them, to prove their home details are correct.

You could advertise an Open Day which people can attend at set times for a tour or a group meeting in a secluded part of  the club, as I described for my Ladies Day.  By bringing new people together for their first visit, they may well find strength in numbers and their common link might give them confidence to talk about their hopes and fears and discover they are worrying for no good reason. You could hold a question and answer forum and if no one dares to ask anything, suggest a question and supply the answer.

Once you gain their trust, I am sure they will join in. They share the common denominator: a desire to take their clothes off! Again, turn it into a social event with drinks and nibbles or, if you are lucky enough to have some good weather, ice  creams all round!

I always show people round whilst clothed so that they do not feel the odd ones out amongst the naked members on a particularly hot day. I let them undress when and where they feel comfortable and then I do the same.  My aim during their visit is to put them at their ease. I don’t abandon them after the initial tour but keep myself available for the remainder of the day whilst they try out the facilities, so that they know they can come back to me at anytime and always have a friend to hand so that they do not have to summon the confidence to ask a stranger.  They might be grown-ups but we can all feel like a child on our first day at school when put in an alien environment for the first time and we just need a friendly teacher to hold our hand to get through that first day!

By the time you read this, it will be March and, hopefully, the warm weather is almost upon us and you have time to put these ideas into practice.  Place an advert in your local newspaper; contact them as they may wish to run an article for free!  Be prepared to show the reporter and photographer around your club and pose for photos.

Deane and I did this for our local press and it gave us a free half-page advertisement including an article by a reporter who had glimpsed what life in a naturist club was really like.  Why not invite them to give it a try themselves!  Use any free  magazines that are delivered to the door in your neighbourhood and to pubs, shops, libraries, garden centres etc in your area.

The cost of advertisements in these publications vary but the good thing is they reach a wide community of could-be naturists not actively looking for naturist news.  Contact your local radio station as they also love anything involving nudity and a topic that makes people tune in and listen.  And we all have the perfect body for radio, so don’t be shy, conduct the interview in the nude – I always do!

So get organised, get busy and let me know how you get on.]]> Thu, 08 Mar 2012 13:49:32 +0000 3fe78a8acf5fda99de95303940a2420c https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/information/youth/if-you-are-happy-and-you-know-it-you-are-pro-r127 Martin Warrillow meets an inspiring ambassador for ‘new’ naturism.

Most readers of this magazine have, of course, known it for years; naturists are happier than so-called textiles.  We’re happier, more in tune with nature, with a better, more sensible and relaxed attitude to our bodies and the human body generally.

Yet we’ve never been able to prove it, other than by encouraging people to try social nudity for themselves and see what happens.  Well, now we can. For the first time, proper academic research has been done which appears to show that all these things are true.  People have been interviewed under proper research conditions, academic tests have been applied to the data – and it all seems to be true.

The research has been done by Emma Stokes, a psychology student from Keele University; Emma, aged 29 and from Stoke-on-Trent, knew nothing about naturism until she joined a friend who was leading an aquarobics session at our Alton Towers weekend in 2010.  Now, less than two years later, she has become such an ardent naturist that she has changed her field of academic research to look more closely at the subject – and, as readers may have seen, been the subject of recent features in the Daily Express and Love It! magazine.

“It all started when I went to AT in 2010,” explained Emma. “A friend who was leading an aquarobics session asked me to go along to give some moral support and I agreed.  I kept my clothes on all weekend but I was fascinated and when I came away, I started looking for areas in which I could do proper research into naturism. No-one had ever done anything like this before.”

Emma quickly came up with three areas to look into – the positive effects of naturism on body image; measuring the happiness of naturists against the rest  of the population and studying groups of naturists to find out why they had  taken up social nudity.

She returned to the BN Alton Towers weekend in 2011 to carry out research among the members attending and as a result, was able to prove all the hypotheses about the benefits of social nudity.

“I could have fallen flat on my face and at first, the academic staff at Keele  were very against it but my supervisor has been very supportive,” said Emma.  “She did say that she wouldn’t have let a 19-year-old do it and there were some problems about the ethics of doing the interviews in those circumstances – I  had to keep my clothes on, for instance!”

BN members at the weekend were also extremely supportive. “Everyone was really forthcoming and I had more people coming forward to be interviewed than I knew what to do with!” she added.  The results of her research have had such an impact on Emma that she has shaken off her own previous body-image issues and become one of naturism’s most ardent public supporters – and finally decided to take the plunge herself at the end of last year’s AT weekend.

“Why wouldn’t I want to live as a naturist now that I know it’s so beneficial?”  she asked. “Everyone is very respectful and looks you in the eye – no-one’s looking down at you. I’ve felt for years the pressure to look a certain way and now that I don’t, it’s lovely.  If I had  been raised as a naturist, I wouldn’t have had the body-image issues that I did.  It’s the first time in my life that I have felt really happy with my body.

“If I have children, I will be raising them in the naturist lifestyle – I’m not having them having the same body-image issues as I did.

“I’ve realised the most important thing – your body doesn’t have to be perfect, you just have to feel beautiful.”  Now that Emma has become such a public supporter of naturism, she is determined to promote it among younger people and has some strong views on how BN and the movement generally can lower it's worryingly high age profile.

“Some clubs and swims and some naturists generally still don’t like people with piercings and tattoos,” she said, showing me the Japanese design on her stomach – one of four tattoos she wears.

“But to young people, these things are perfectly normal and they won’t give that up.  Attitudes to things like that are going to have to change if naturism is going to bring in more young people.”

And she is also opposed to the ‘be naked all the time’ demands of some clubs.  “I love being without clothes at the appropriate time but I also love being a girl and I love my clothes,” she said.   “Saying to people, especially young people, that they can’t get dressed in the evenings can be very offputting.  I think naturism could attract far more young single women if it was more relaxed about that.”

Emma’s visit to the Alton Towers weekend did more than allow her to finally experience the naturist lifestyle. She won the prize draw and is now off to Greece this summer for her first naturist holiday to celebrate her birthday.

“None of my friends want to come, though!” she said.]]> Thu, 08 Mar 2012 13:28:59 +0000 678a1491514b7f1006d605e9161946b1 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/opening-a-new-window-for-naturist-swims-r126 David Ross reports on an experiment which could offer an exciting idea for the future.

A former reservoir, Shaftesbury community pool is managed by enthusiastic firefighter Sarah Wheeler.  She got in touch with BN in 2010, looking for new income streams.  This led to the 2011 Great British Skinny Dip swim and in turn to Shaston Swim, which starts on April 10 (7-9 pm).

If naturism is to grow, then I suggest that swimming is an obvious path to follow. We can rent other people’s assets and since failures won’t cost a lot, we can afford to innovate. Of course, the biggest prize of all would be regular naturist sessions in public swimming baths run by the proprietors. That does happen but is rare, and so this is a major coup for GBSD in its first year.

The GBSD swim was a one-off, of course, receiving support from across the region, but it was a proof of concept for Sarah and we discussed the  economics.  It was not hard to see that there would be enough local support for her to make money on a weekday evening and it was for purely financial considerations that she agreed to go ahead.

This said, the iconic hilltop town in North Dorset is a small place, so we agreed that as part of our support we will provide a “front”.  All the financial risk stays with the pool,  Naked Swim donated the £8 to register “shastonswim.org.uk” (using the ancient name that local newspapers used as shorthand) and to host a web page.  Viv Jupp agreed to be local coordinator.  Swimmers will pay £5 to the pool and 50p to be used for adverts in the local freesheet.

The pool is basic, but delightful, with no exterior windows but a fully glazed roof.  Sadly, this is not thermally efficient so the pool only opens in the summer and the first season runs on every second Tuesdays of the month from April to September.  How can we build on this achievement?  I hope that others will be inspired to seek out community pools across the country.  Older pools,  especially, have few windows and in these straitened times, why not take advantage of the operators’ need for cash?

I hope that the 2012 season will make Shaston Swim a case study for others to follow.

As planning starts for British Naturism’s first National Convention, members of the Online Forum are being asked to contribute to a survey to list the characteristics of pools. I hope the resulting database will be a useful tool to rule out or in potential venues for naturism.

Meanwhile, Naked Swim has been enjoying a successful winter at its temporary home – the Thomas Hardye Leisure Centre in the Dorset county town.  It is another spin-off from GBSD 2010, which I, as proprietor, saw as a one-off farewell to the soon-to-be-closed pool.

When LA Fitness headquarters decided (without consulting friendly local management) that we were “uneconomic”, we were ejected from our home in Poole.  So seeing Dorchester out until the new pool comes into service in Spring 2012 seemed a natural thing – especially as the locals told me how much the swim there had been missed over the last 10 years.

We have just about broken even at £7 a head for a two-hour swim; the recent trend for more couples turning up has mirrored the phenomenon also seen at other local swims.  Some of them have come back to naturist swimming after a break, others are naturists on holiday who haven’t swum nude in the UK before. Considering that I don’t examine ID or even ask for names and I’m recruiting completely new people to naturism, it is gratifying that my gender mix is about the same as that seen in established clubs.]]> Thu, 08 Mar 2012 13:06:44 +0000 ffeed84c7cb1ae7bf4ec4bd78275bb98 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/information/about-bn/could-you-be-a-donate-urist-r125
You don’t have to be giving away your life savings, small donations of £1, £5 and £10 are all very welcome and the more of us that donate – even the small amounts – the more our funds grow. Please make a contribution if you can. You can also make donations over the phone to Head Office by calling 01604 620361, or by sending a cheque.

It’s not something that any of us like to think about, but you can also leave money to British Naturism in your will, passing on your passion and enabling future generations to get the enjoyment from Naturism that you have.  Please contact Head Office for details of how to go about it.]]> Thu, 08 Mar 2012 12:51:14 +0000 c21002f464c5fc5bee3b98ced83963b8 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/information/magazine/british-naturism-magazine-bn191-spring-2012-r124 We have a three-page special on the Channel 4 documentary, My Daughter the Teenage Nudist, which was broadcast in January to an audience of around two million and led to a lot of attention in BN and Naturism; we have three pages of news and action from the Young British Naturists, including full details of all their events throughout the coming year and we meet Emma Stokes, one of the driving forces behind YBN.
With all this positive publicity in mind, both Roni Fine and Chris Lusby-Taylor urge us all, as clubs and individuals, to start thinking more about how we can better promote naturism. Could your club hold a ladies' open day? Could you agree to be interviewed by your local media? Every little helps to show how much fun naturism can be.
Our travel section looks at Spain, with venues such as El Portus, Casa de Cinco Hermanos and the wonderful island of Formentera under the spotlight.
All this and a positively bulging section of reports from our clubs, What's On listings, swim and sauna details and much more

Don't forget that the magazine and recent past issues are also available for BN members to download in the members' area.]]> Thu, 08 Mar 2012 11:07:18 +0000 c7635bfd99248a2cdef8249ef7bfbef4 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/bn-holiday-advisors-r122
Each holiday adviser specialises in a country or group of countries in which they have a particular interest, and will try to answer questions sent to them. As each response needs to meet the requirements of the individual holidaymaker, responses will vary. Information needs may range from those of the experienced traveller wishing to be updated on the latest news and details to those of the first-timer who is unsure of how to go about things, or perhaps concerned about aspects of foreign travel, such as driving on the right-hand side of the road or possible language problems.

The areas of responsibility are as follows:

France, Holland, Belgium and Luxembourg - Marian Damen
Probably offers the widest choice of naturist opportunities. Naturist holiday centres range from very large coastal resorts to small family run camping sites, as well as naturist clubs that can be visited. There are also naturist beaches situated along the various seaboards.
Email: Marian Damen

Spain, Canary Islands, Balearic Islands & Madeira - Sallie and Stuart Holgate
Very popular destination for British holiday makers generally and many opportunities exist for naturism in specialist holiday centres and on naturist beaches.
Email: Sallie and Stuart

Portugal - Mel and Awen Jones
Popular destination for British holiday makers generally.
Email: Mel and Awen

Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Scandinavia - Ron Twining
Where naturism really began, mainly a club orientated scene with a number of specialist resorts, hotel complexes and beaches.
Email: Ron Twining

West Indies and North America - Ian Holland
Primarily a resort based naturist scene with some clubs in the US.
Email: Ian Holland

Italy, Greece (including Islands), Croatia, Turkey, Eastern Europe, Africa, Asia, South America - Christine Wright
Mainly covering an emergent (or re-emergent) naturist scene.
Email: Christine Wright

Australia and New Zealand - Andy and Patti
Andy and Patti have been travelling extensively in New Zealand and Australia during the last seven years. They have visited clubs, beaches and commercial naturist places. Andy and Patti also have good naturist contacts in those countries for information they don’t have themselves. Naturists for the last 30 years, Patti and Andy have also visited clubs and beaches in North America and all over Europe. They have been members of two UK clubs and in between travelling round the world (part-business and part-pleasure) they divide their time between their homes in London and La Menara at Vera Playa
Email: Andy and Patti

British Isles - Derek Brixey
This service is primarily to provide advice for visitors to the UK, but it has also proved popular with British naturists wanting to know what holiday opportunities exist nearer to home.
Email: Derek Brixey]]> Thu, 01 Mar 2012 12:15:51 +0000 3b712de48137572f3849aabd5666a4e3 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/big-days-out/alton-towers/bns-alton-towers-weekend-2012-booking-no-r121 th time for a full weekend (Friday evening to Sunday lunchtime) of nude fun and activities!

9 - 11 November, 2012

• NO NEED FOR CLOTHES ALL WEEKEND!
  
• ACTIVITIES AND EVENTS THROUGHOUT!
  
• HOTEL AND WATERPARK ALL UNDER ONE ROOF!
  
• SHARE WITH FRIENDS AND CUT THE COST!
  
• RATES UNCHANGED FROM 2011!

Tell me more about the weekend…?
Splash Landings Hotel provides superb, up-market accommodation for guests at top UK tourist attraction Alton Towers Resort in Staffordshire. The theme park will be closed for annual maintenance, and Alton Towers have therefore offered the hotel for this one weekend for the seventh year running to members of British Naturism. It’s become one of the biggest and most fun weekends in the naturist calendar!

We will have the entire place to ourselves and nudity will be permitted throughout from 6 p.m. on Friday to midday Sunday. The hotel incorporates the Cariba Creek Waterpark, a restaurant, bar, coffee outlet, shop and games arcade.

As usual, we’ll be putting on activities and entertainment - see other articles in this section for reports and more on previous years’ events to get an idea of what goes on. We plan to have a mixture of exercise and dance classes, workshops and presentations, including guest speakers, music and dancing, spa sessions, exhibitions, tours of Alton Towers’ gardens, quizzes, kids activities, and games for everyone. There’s also plenty of opportunity to chill out in the company of like-minded people.

Can I use the Spa at Alton Towers?
Yes. It’s in the other hotel so you need to dress to get there and it’s not a naturist environment. You’ll also get 15% discount on all treatments and products purchased. The Spa contact number is number is 0871 702 7043.

Can I bring my friends?
Yes. However, this is a weekend exclusively for BN members and so they must join us first. There are always people joining to be able to go and making Alton Towers their first BN event, in fact, sometimes their first naturist event – it’s a great way to start – please spread the word.

How much does it cost?
It’s brilliant that Alton Towers have agreed not to increase the rates from 2011!

The majority of rooms are “family” rooms designed for two adults and two children. It is possible for four adults to share a room, but rooms are made up of a double bed and bunk-beds - please bear in mind when booking.

The cost is £285 per room for the weekend (two nights) based on two people sharing or single occupancy. Extra adults (12 years of age and over) can stay in a room for an additional £55 each for the weekend, a child (4–11 years) for £45 each for the weekend. Children up to three years old go free. Prices include bed, breakfast, VAT, entry to the Waterpark and all BN activities. All guests must book for the whole weekend: one night stays or day visits are not possible at this event – sorry!

How do I book?
A dedicated phone line for this weekend has been set up, so please phone 0871 222 9934 to make your reservation. Make it clear you are booking for the BN weekend. You will be asked for your BN membership number before the booking is confirmed.

How can I find someone to share a room with and cut the cost?
Easy. You need to register for the single person sharing service. It’s been a very popular initiative, making the weekend inexpensive and a great way to meet new people! Please call BN head office on 01604-620361 and ask to be added to the list. You will be asked for your credit card details and BN membership number. We will put people on the list together and deal direct with Alton Towers to make the bookings.

For more information on the Alton Towers hotel complex, visit www.altontowers.com.]]> Tue, 28 Feb 2012 12:16:07 +0000 3a15c7d0bbe60300a39f76f8a5ba6896 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/talesofancientbrit/LongSummer
People often ask if I get lonely travelling on my own but I have never found that a problem in the wilderness. On your own you actually talk to people you meet rather than pass them by which usually happens with groups. I find I often spend a few days with another individual or group before going our separate ways. For someone on their own the loneliest place is in a crowd!

In 2001, I split my time between canoe-touring and backpacking. Paddling a Canadian canoe through lake and river systems in uninhabited countryside gives plenty of opportunities for the naturist. It is almost always possible find places to swim and camp without clothes and in remote waters it is possible to paddle naked (provided that water conditions don’t require buoyancy aid to be worn!). In hot weather backpacking in the mountains can also provide plenty of naturist opportunities with bubbling streams with rock pools to cool off in, sandy beaches by distant lakes and wild campsites miles away from the nearest house. There is a tradition of skinny-dipping in the mountains and when both canoeing and mountain walking I find I meet plenty of people who wouldn’t call themselves naturists, but who strip off to swim or sunbathe.

Shortly after Easter I took my Canadian Canoe down to Portugal and spent 12 days canoeing down the Tagus from just west of the Spanish Border to just east of Lisbon. For the first few days the paddling was along reservoirs through wild uninhabited gorges. The seclusion was only broken by an occasional fisherman, from the portages past the dams and from the trains that crawl along the rail-line, which follows the river; rail but no road!
Once past the last dam the river flows freely to the sea. The flow varying from a trickle to a flood depending on the amount of water allowed through the reservoir dams. The first time I had paddled this river I had camped on an island about 3m above the water level and was woken in the night by water flowing through my tent!. Gradually the country became gentler passing through farmland with the occasional small town. As the coast is approached there are increasing signs of industrialisation but the only thing impacting noticeably is the extraction of gravel and sand extraction from the riverbed.

The main canoeing problem can be fighting your way into the prevailing westerly winds but on this trip the winds were light and plenty of sun gave ideal conditions a naturist canoe trip. The power of the river was brought home to me when I found that winter floods had washed almost all of a tree-covered island where thousands of Little Egrets, Cattle Egrets and Spoonbills used to roost away.

Before returning home I spent another week exploring a large reservoir higher up the Tagus in the Extramadura region of Spain. In this remote area I saw at least ten different species of Bird of Prey. On my own you saw a lot more wildlife than I would if I was in a group and the canoe is a particularly good platform for bird watching.

A period at home marking GCSE exams was followed by four weeks in Sweden. Sweden has an extensive system of lakes and rivers, which are ideal for canoe-camping trips. I spent two weeks in the Dalsland area of Sweden close to the Norwegian border. This beautiful area of large lakes and connecting canals is popular with German, Dutch and Danish canoeists. Although there are few official naturist beaches in Sweden there are numerous small beaches and rocky bathing places where naturism seems to thrive. Camping is allowed in the woods along the lakes and on the many small islands dotted around the lakes and many idyllic spots can be found. With long sunny days punctuated by the occasional thunderstorm, air temperatures reached 30°C and water temperatures approached 25°C. It isn’t always like this in Sweden but you get good weather more often than not in mid summer.

My remaining time in Sweden I spent in the area southwest of Stockholm. Here it is possible follow small rivers and lakes which are joined by tracks where it possible to wheel your canoe on a trolley. Because of these portages these routes are less popular than the Dalsland area and few canoeists are met on the water. With the heat wave continuing conditions for swimming were still perfect and I was able to paddle naked most of the time. At the end of this trip I spent a couple of days on an official costumes optional beach on a small island on one of these lakes. Surprisingly this was much less used by naturists than the many unofficial sites I came across.

After a few days back in England I headed off to the Pyrenees where I intended to spend about six weeks walking from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea. There are three main walking routes along the Pyrenees: The GR10 which remains in France and the GR11 in Spain are on well marked and maintained footpaths which generally stay below the highest peaks. I had decided to attempt the High Level Route, which follows the main ridge of the Pyrenees where possible, and remains above 1500m over most of the route. The route scrambles up airy rocky ridges, crosses high-glaciated passes and traverses rocky pathless terrain. In these remote areas it is necessary to camp wild and often to carry a very heavy pack. I spent a few days dropping supplies along the route before starting walking from Hendaye-Plage on the Atlantic Coast near the Spanish border.

Through the Basque country the route mainly follows the border ridge and is a gentle introduction to the walk before reaching the alpine slopes of the High Pyrenees. Lakes and streams along the route provided some rather cold swimming. Tea breaks and camps often provided opportunities to top up on the tan gained earlier in the summer. Eventually Andorra is reached and the route again becomes somewhat gentler but the shorter days meant that I had to keep going and was not able to spend as much time lounging around in the sun. On the last day as I approached the Mediterranean Sea near Banyuls-sur-Mer the generally good weather I had enjoyed for most of the summer ended with storm force winds blowing me off my feet and making progress very difficult and dangerous.

Please feel free to contact the author at ancientbritbrian@btinternet.com]]> Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:50:10 +0000 c6036a69be21cb660499b75718a3ef24 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/talesofancientbrit/CanoeingInSweden2003 along the beach and have a final swim before setting off for the ferry from Frederikshavn to Gothenburg.

Sweden is a land of lakes and rivers. Most of these lakes have small sandy public beaches, often with swimming jetties and some with diving platforms. In addition to these official “Bad”, when canoeing there were many places where you could swim. The laws in Sweden allow you to camp, for one night, almost anywhere away from houses, as long as you do not damage crops or cause disturbance.

The weather during my stay in Sweden was not as good as I have become accustomed to in Sweden, but the lakes were still warm enough for swimming and as it warmed up towards the end of my stay the water temperature was approaching 25ºC. Despite swimming several times most days, I didn’t need to use a swimming costume at any time. The beaches were usually deserted in the mornings and in the changeable weather only became busy during the
afternoons. When there were only a few people around, I always asked if they minded me swimming naked, and I as only refused 3 times in 6 weeks. In the early morning or in the evenings it was common to see others swimming without costumes.

My first canoe tour was in the area of lakes near Linkoping to the SW of Stockholm. This was a 200 km round trip. I set off up a stormy Lake Sommen and had a hard struggle as I paddled into wind and waves. I was pleased to reach the Svartan, a small river, which I was to follow to Linkoping. I now faced a 6 km portage as the river dropped down impassable rapids. Portages along roads are easy as I can pull the canoe on a trolley. For the next few days I followed the Svartan down towards Linkoping. The paddling was easy, but there were a number of portages past dams, which were difficult as the paths were overgrown and often muddy and appeared not to have been this early in the summer. Despite the changeable weather with frequent storms, there were enough sunny periods for me to do plenty of swimming. In better weather these bathing places might have be too busy to use naked in the afternoons, but
in this weather it was always possible.

At Linkoping I entered the Kinda Kanal. I had expected easy paddling in this deep wide canal, but I found I had to paddle against quite a strong current. I had a number of sets of locks to portage, but this is made easy for canoeists who were provided with low jetties to lift their canoes and relaunch. At one lock I was allowed through free with a motor yacht. Unlike in England, I would
have been able to use all the locks on payment of the lockkeeper’s fee. At one time this canal would have been busy with commercial traffic, but now it was only used by pleasure craft. The canal joined up a series of small lakes, again with numerous bathing places, all of which I managed to use.

After the canal I entered a series of big lakes. One of these, Asunden, had an island with an official naturist beach. I took a rest day there, but spent most of it in my tent in thundery weather with very few visitors. In the evening a motorboat appeared being paddled onto the beach. The boat had broken down and I had to give the owner a lift to the mainland in the canoe. Not as easy as it sounds in a one man canoe!

From here I had a number of long portages between small lakes to get back to Sommen. The poor weather deteriorated further and I had an enforced rest day because of heavy rain and gale-force winds. A long day’s paddle across Sommen got me back to my starting point at Blavik. I later learnt that this area, normally one of the driest and warmest parts of Sweden, had received one third of the annual rainfall in 4 days!

I took a couple of days off, by which time the weather had started to improve and then set off on an even longer canoe tour on the rivers and lakes to the north of the industrial town of  Karlskoga. Karlskoga is well known as the home of Alfred Nobel who made his fortune manufacturing explosives, munitions and armaments, but is now better known for the prestigious Nobel Prizes for Peace, Science and literature.

I started up the Svartalven, about 100km to the north of Karlskoga in hot sunny weather. The water warmed up rapidly and the main beaches on the route started becoming crowded in the afternoons. Fortunately there were plenty of smaller beaches, often only accessible by boat, which were suitable for the naturist and most of the time I was able to paddle naked. In this weather naked bodies were a common sight away from the main beaches. After I left the
Svartalven I linked up a number of medium size lakes with long portages, before following a big lake system south towards Karlskoga. This was an area popular with motorboats and the wilderness was rather spoilt by the number of holiday homes bordering some of the lakes. It took me about 9 long days to reach Karskoga. I was caught in the big (Lake) Mokeln by a torrential thunderstorm, not surprising after a week of hot sunny weather. I now had to paddle up the Svartalven back to my van. I was surprised how strong the current was in the first few kilometres and I found that in places I had to get out of the canoe and pull it upstream against the current. There were then three difficult portages along rough forest paths until I reached the point where the normal canoe-tours along the Svartalven start.

Several canoe hire firms operate on this river so it was popular with canoeists. The river was now controlled by small dams, which meant paddling was easy. Fortunately, there were very few holiday homes to spoil the wilderness. The river was broken up with a number of small lakes. The weather continued hot
and sunny with the occasional thunderstorm and I got back to my starting point after 16 days of hard paddling.

I then had a few days on another short tour, before heading for a couple of days on the Danish beaches and then the ferry back to England.

Please feel free to contact the author at ancientbritbrian@btinternet.com]]> Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:47:23 +0000 8597a6cfa74defcbde3047c891d78f90 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/talesofancientbrit/CanoeingInSweden1997
My small Canadian canoe is light enough to handle easily on the land but big enough to carry camping gear and provisions for a 2 week trip. It took quite a long time to organise the canoe as I was carrying most of my food for the trip as there were few places to re-provision en-route.

The pattern for the trip was set as I stripped off for a swim from the small beach where I launched the canoe and didn’t need to dress again until the sun set. I was delighted to find that the water was already above 20°C and by the end of my trip some of the lakes had got up to 25°C. As it was already early evening I just paddled for an hour before camping in the woods beside the river.

The next 2 days were spent paddling down 2 long narrow lakes separated by a short stretch of river with three small dams. At the dams the canoe had to be “portaged” which was not as bad as it sounds as I was able to pull the canoe along on small trolley. With the continuous sunshine in these remote waters the only time clothing was needed during these land portages.

The third night was spent at a beautiful little beach with a jetty to allow diving into deep water. This was surprisingly deserted most of the time despite being at the weekend. I stayed there most of the next day as well waiting for a strong southerly breeze to die down as it usually does in the evening. With the weather so hot I often just paddled in the early morning and evening and found a nice bathing place to spend the bulk of the day.

The next few days were spent on a section of small meandering river, joining up many small lakes. The sixth night was spent at one of their bigger beaches with a 3 level diving platform. This was about the only time during the trip apart from at the land portages, and the occasional afternoon cloudy interlude, when I had to wear any clothes.

The second half of the trip was through a series of much bigger lakes. At times quite large waves can develop on these lakes, making the canoeing rather exciting, but on this trip the conditions remained tranquil and I was able to enjoy the sun. One afternoon it clouded over and there was a viscous thunderstorm but fortunately I watched this from one of the shelters scattered along the route. I did have to bale about 8 gallons of water from my canoe after only about 20 minutes rain! Most nights I camped on sandy beaches. I was surprised how few canoeists there were on this part of the trip. It seems to be mainly Danes and Germans on the water.

For the ornithologist there is plenty to see. The black-throated diver is common and among the many birds I saw were osprey, crane and 4 species of woodpecker. Moose and beaver were also seen but they tend to be shy at this time of year. I am told there are wolves and bears in this part of Sweden but I think you would be very lucky (unlucky?) to see any.

I was expecting to reach Karlskoga but a leak in one of the dams in the final section of river meant that the water levels were too low and I had to complete my journey by road.  Karlskoga is best known as the home of Alfred Nobel and the industry of the town is still dominated by the chemical works he founded. The problem of getting back to my car was easily solved, as one of the canoe hire firms will transport you and your canoe back to your starting point for a very reasonable price. I went on from here to follow other canoe trails but it would only be about a 4-hour drive to Gothenburg for those needing to rush home.

In the good weather I had for this trip, which is not unusual at this time of year, it is difficult to imagine a better holiday. Although there are always some youngsters trying to disprove it, Canadian canoeing is a leisurely activity, and is within the physical capability of most age groups. The canoes you can hire are big enough to take younger children as passengers and, unlike kayaks, it is very difficult to capsize a Canadian canoe.

Please feel free to contact the author at ancientbritbrian@btinternet.com]]> Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:44:20 +0000 c60d060b946d6dd6145dcbad5c4ccf6f https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/talesofancientbrit/ExploringSwedenLakesAndRivers
The best way to explore the countryside is by open canoe. Sweden is covered with ‘kanotleden’, canoe trails ranging in length from a few kilometres to several hundred kilometres. On the kanotleden, occasional sections of track where you can pull your canoe on a trolley link lakes and rivers. The trails often have designated campsites with shelters and barbecues, but you can camp virtually anywhere beside the lake or river.
There are countless spots where it is possible to swim and by July the water temperature will be 20-25°C. In addition there are many official bathing places with sandy beaches and usually pontoons out to deep water, often with diving platforms. Although these are ‘textile’ they tend to be deserted in the mornings and available for unofficial naturist use. As these kanotleden are in remote countryside and surprisingly little used by the Swedes it is possible for the naturist to spend most of their time canoeing, swimming or sunbathing without clothes. Towards the end of July and in August, with the Swedish holidays ending, the main users of the canoe trails are German and Dutch.

The kanotleden are designed for family use. Canadian canoes are so stable that trips would be suitable for beginners. The canoes are designed to take two or three adults with camping gear and would be big enough for two adults and two younger children. There are plenty of firms, which hire all the canoeing equipment (and also camping equipment) that is needed and who would be able to give tuition. Tourist information offices have details of canoe trails and canoe hire companies.

Please feel free to contact the author at ancientbritbrian@btinternet.com]]> Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:40:38 +0000 0eec27c419d0fe24e53c90338cdc8bc6 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/talesofancientbrit/Canuding
My canoe is so stable that, as an experienced canoeist, I don’t need to wear a buoyancy aid unless I’m in white water or rough conditions. This means that in calm conditions, when it is warm enough, I am able to paddle completely naked.

It is possible to use canoes for day trips, but they are ideally designed for longer trips as you can accommodate plenty of camping gear. I also carry a small trolley making it easy when I have to portage the canoe between lakes or round obstacles such as locks, dams or weirs.

In Britain there aren’t a lot of rivers suitable for a long distance canoe tour, the Wye, Severn and Thames possibly being the best. The extensive canal system is usable as long as you don’t mind fairly frequent portages of the locks. The best canal tour in Britain is the Caledonian Canal, taking you through the heart of Scotland from Fort William to Inverness. This canal, with few locks, includes the well-known Loch Ness as you paddle through the magnificent scenery of the Scottish Highlands.

Canudists who want a high chance of warm weather should head south to France, Spain or Portugal. The Dordogne in France is an extremely popular river for canoeists with many companies offering canoe tours for those who don’t own their own canoe. The Tagus reaches the sea near Lisbon and the Portuguese section is free-flowing, except for two dams near the Spanish border. There is relatively little activity on the Tagus and it only passes through a few towns, so in good weather, you can paddle naked throughout its length. It is also possible to paddle on the Tagus in Spain, but here the river is largely dam controlled and you will be paddling on reservoirs.

However the Mecca for canudists is Sweden. Most of my canoe tours have been in Sweden. Here there is open access to all the rivers and lakes, canoes are readily available for hire for day trips or long tours and portages are generally organised so that they can be easily performed using a trolley, rather than having to carry the canoe. Nudity is generally accepted in the wilderness in Sweden, so there is no problem paddling naked, or remaining naked at the small bathing places that you come to on the waterways. In Sweden it is legal to camp on any wilderness land (without asking permission) so you can always find somewhere to camp. Because of the long hours of daylight in summer, if the weather is good you will find the temperature of the lakes can reach 25°C and it is warm enough to be naked for most of the day. Obviously you aren’t guaranteed good weather, but in summer the weather does tend to be more reliable than in Britain. I have certainly done tours where I have been naked for 90% of the time.

Canoeing is much easier for the novice than kayaking, both in terms of required skills and physical demands so you don’t need to be an expert to do a canoe tour. Most of the canoes that you can hire are designed to be paddled by two people. They are often big enough to take two young children as well as their parents, and teenagers should have little problem paddling a canoe, so they are ideal for a family holiday.

Please feel free to contact the author at ancientbritbrian@btinternet.com]]> Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:38:10 +0000 dd77279f7d325eec933f05b1672f6a1f https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/talesofancientbrit/AncientBritOnTheGR11
After caching some supplies along the route, I arrived at the French border town of Hendaye on the evening of 8^th August 2003 and walked to the far end of the beach where I knew it would be possible to bivouac overnight. I should have made an early start in the morning, but I spent the morning on the beach. This was the naturist end of the beach and by the time I left at 12am there were hundreds of naked bodies enjoying the sun. It was already 36ºC (100ºF) in the shade by the time I reached the Spanish border.

During the first week the hills in the Basque country gradually increased in altitude. It was excessively hot and I had to carry many litres of water on these normally wet misty hills. There were very few walkers on the trail, but I did spend time with a number of Basques and a German couple who were also attempting to walk to the Mediterranean. The hills are a mixture of woodland and rough pasture, often overgrazed by sheep and horses. As well as the large flocks of griffon vultures, I also sighted black and red Kites, honey buzzard, golden eagle and the rare lammergeyer.

In this hot weather I took every opportunity to strip off whenever I stopped and didn’t need to wear any clothing around camp. In these quiet hills it was possible to walk naked much of the time.

As the hills started to give way to the mountains, I came across the first significant streams. At the end of a long hot day I was delighted to camp beside a stream with a swimming hole. Two Basque families were at the swimming hole, but they invited me to join them and were happy for me to strip off to swim and wash all my clothing.

The weather now turned thundery as I reached the steep limestone mountains at the eastern end of the Basque Country. It was still unusually hot, but at least I was able to cool down in the streams and mountain tarns. After two weeks meeting very few walkers I arrived in the Ordesa National Park, which is one of the “honeypot” areas of the Pyrenees and is overrun with tourists. This is not surprising since the Ordesa Canyon is magnificent, rather like a miniature Grand Canyon, with the added attraction of spectacular waterfalls. I had a 10-hour day since you are not allowed to camp below 2100m in the National Park.

I had now reached the High Pyrenees with peaks over 3000m high and the GR11 followed some extremely steep ascents and descents over high passes. The trail dropped down to isolated mountain villages with old dilapidated stone houses. Many of these were deserted, but in recent years roads had been bulldozed up to many of them and the houses restored mainly as holiday and retirement homes. Throughout the high mountains the weather was thundery with some terrific storms. Fortunately a lot of the storms were at night and I was able to stay warm and dry in my small tent.

The trail entered Andorra for a few days. Andorra can be a bit of a shock after the unspoilt mountains of Spain. The lower valleys in Andorra seem to be a mixture of building site, with many new hotels and apartments, and duty-free supermarkets attracting far more traffic than the roads can cope with. Most of the higher valleys are despoiled by ski resorts. The only compensation was the improved quality of the paths. The trail in Spain got very little maintenance and was frequently difficult to follow or overgrown.

On leaving Andorra I entered Catalonia. The weather started to improve at last after the disappointing weather in the high mountains. Catalonia, like the Basque Country used to be an independent Kingdom and the people still use their own language and are campaigning for independence from Spain. I walked up the spectacular Nuria Gorge on the Catalan National Day, accompanied by thousands of tourists and pilgrims to the old monastery, which was now a tourist centre and ski complex, only accessible on foot or by mountain railway. Surprisingly, on my last day above the 2000m contour, having left the highest mountains behind, I now climbed to the highest point on the GR11 as I passed over the Pic Superior de la Vaca at 2824m. I was met by a strong gusting wind blowing from France and was soon having problems staying on my feet.

It was hot again as I traversed the lower hills as I approached the coast, but fortunately there were a number of swimming holes in the streams for refreshing swims. The paths were still steep, with several days of steep limestone terrain. I was walking at this time with a couple of girls from Barcelona University and a couple of Dutchmen. On the last night we camped at an old disused monastery and were surprised to find a proper swimming pool, fed by spring water. It didn’t take long for the men to be stripped off and in the pool, but unfortunately the girls had included swimming costumes in their heavy packs.

To make it easier to get home, I finished at Banyuls-sur-Mer in France, rather than continue to Cabo de Creus in Spain.

While this was not primarily a naturist holiday, walking and camping in these wild mountains gives the naturist plenty of opportunities and is practised by many walkers who would not think of themselves as naturists.

Please feel free to contact the author at ancientbritbrian@btinternet.com]]> Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:35:25 +0000 e19347e1c3ca0c0b97de5fb3b690855a https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/talesofancientbrit/ThePacificCrestTrail2009
I’d through-hiked the PCT in 2002 and 2006 and was back for a third time in 2009 to check the content of a guidebook of the trail I had written for Cicerone Press.

In April and May, most days, I was able to hike naked for a few hours in the 700 miles of arid hills and mountains of Southern California. I often hiked in a 'breach-clout' (loin cloth) which I could fold up when I was on my own and pull down when meeting other hikers. I was usually able to naked at breaks and when camping.

For a naturist the highlight of this section is the popular Deep Creek hot springs which is possibly the best wilderness hot springs in the USA. Hot springs in the wilderness are traditionally costumes optional and you can expect about half the visitors to follow this tradition.

I reached the Sierra Nevada in unseasonally cold weather, and a combination of snow storms and mosquitoes discouraged nude hiking, although I did manage a couple of hours of naked hiking on Mid-summers Day, America’s unofficial Nude Hiking Day.

The Sierra Nevada is majestic with snow-covered peaks in a lake-studded landscape. The granite of the Sierra Nevada gives way to the volcanic rocks of the Cascade Mountains with a succession of towering volcanoes above the forests of northern California, Oregon and Washington.

I occasionally hiked naked in northern California, Oregon and Washington as I was little reluctant to hike naked on a well-used trail during the holiday season but I was usually able to strip off during breaks and at the multitude of lakes along the trail where skinny-dipping is traditional.

I reached Canada at the beginning of October as the first snows of winter buried the trail.

Although 200-300 through-hikers complete the PCT in a single year, the majority of hikers only attempt a short section each year.  A lot of snow falls in these mountains in the winter, but the summer is the dry season and you can expect the long periods of the warm sunny weather appreciated on a naturist holiday.

Please feel free to contact the author at ancientbritbrian@btinternet.com

The author has now had a guide published by Cicerone Press to the 2650-mile Pacific Crest Trail which stretches from the Mexican border to the Canadian border through California, Oregon and Washington. See http://www.cicerone....fic-crest-trail for details.]]> Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:30:58 +0000 d6ef5f7fa914c19931a55bb262ec879c https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/talesofancientbrit/ThePacificCrestTrail2006
Part 1: Southern California

I landed at Los Angeles International on 11th April and picked up a hire car. After collecting the supplies I had pre-ordered from REI and buying food to last me from Campo to Walker Pass, I drove out to the ‘Hiker Haven’ at Agua Dulce where I spent three days sorting out food and equipment, and caching supplies between Agua Dulce and Walker Pass. I then headed south and dropped supplies between Agua Dulce and the Mexican border. I had a day to spare so I did my first training session for the hike. I hiked 6 miles to Deep Creek Hot Springs, spent the night there and hiked back to the car in the morning.

On Sunday I drove down to Escondido to stay with Greg and Irene High and did my second training session for the hike when I walked around San Diego Zoo with them. On Easter Monday, I dropped my car off in San Diego and got a lift to Campo with Ladybug. She had contacted me by email as she wanted someone to ‘hold her hand’ near the border.

It was pleasantly warm when we set off and there was plenty of water in the streams so it was a much easier start than in 2002. Heavy rains in March had filled the streams and springs were running well but this also meant a record snowfall through the Sierra Nevada and Northern California. After a couple of days Ladybug went on ahead and I did very well swapping a married middle-aged lady for a single 22 year-old girl who became known as Ladybird!

The weather was such that Ladybird even put water into a water cache rather than taking it out! At Barrel Spring, Warner Springs Monte gave Ladybird a can of Diet Soda which she started drinking and then said “Why am I drinking this, it’s got no calories”. We were meeting a lot of hikers until we reached Warner Springs, which Ladybird described as a ‘Blackhole’ as hikers seemed to go in but couldn’t get out. By now many hikers were already injured through doing too much mileage at the beginning of the hike, but many where using any excuse to delay reaching the snow.

We reached the San Jacinto Mountains together but Ladybird had to drop down to Idyllwild to resupply and have a day off with her sister. We arranged to meet up again at Deep Creek hot springs. The San Jacinto Mountains were covered in snow and any footsteps had melted away so I had to make tracks in the soft snow as well as cope with some very difficult navigation. It took me 13 hours and 2 days to cover 13 miles! The trail then dropped down to 1000ft and the temperature reached 100°F for the first time. I was mostly on my own as I hiked to Deep Creek hot springs. I had scheduled a rest-day and when Ladybird didn’t turn up I decided to give it another day. In fact she had missed the post in Big Bear City and had to wait for the Post Office to open on the Monday morning.

Deep Creek Hot Springs is one of highlights of Southern California with several hot pools to soak in and a pool which is warm enough to swim in. Traditionally the springs were used naked, but nowadays they are clothing-optional and it is a pity more through-hikers don’t stick to the traditions. I spent my second rest day with a group of locals and had an interesting time. They arranged a pipe from the top hot pool to produce a powerful stream of hot water into the swimming hole. One lady, a retired professional masseur, gave me a water massage. Later in the day she covered me all over with the fine mud from just below the pools and when the mud had dried she washed it off with another water massage.

I had arranged with Ladybird that we would meet at Walker Pass after my supply break if she didn’t reach the hot springs, so I set off the next morning. I reached Silverwood Lake in the afternoon and found a secluded sandy beach for a break and this was the first lake I had been able to swim in. As I did throughout the hike I went skinny-dipping whenever I went swimming.

I had a car booked at Ridgecrest for when I reached Walker Pass and I was going to need to maintain about 20 miles/day from Deep Creek to get there on time. The weather was generally hot and I often walked in a breach-clout (loin cloth), a garment formerly worn by American Indians and Ancient Egyptians. A short cool spell saw me through the Mohave Desert with little problem and I reached Walker Pass after 38 days of hiking.
I hitched down to Ridgecrest where hired a car for a week, resupplied and dropped supplies off as far as the California/Oregon border. On my return to Walker Pass I learnt that Ladybird had been bitten by a Brown Recluse Spider and would be off the trail for several weeks, so I was walking on my own again. I heard the injury described as “Looking like a gunshot wound” and the bite of a Brown Recluse Spider as being “Worse than a Black Widow” and “Like a rattlesnake bite, except ten times worse”. I later learnt that she had got going again and completed the trail in late October.

I left Kennedy Meadows on June 6th. My back weighed about 65lb, including at least 10 days food. I was equipped for mountaineering rather than trail walking. I had decided to use a combination of walking poles and crampons. The first significant snow was met at Trail Pass and by Cottonwood Pass the snow-pack was almost 100%. This is a good indicator of the conditions ahead. “If there is snow on Cottonwood Pass, you will be on Snowpack until you reach Donner Pass.” The hiking was relatively easy until I reached Mount Whitney. I was walking with a loose group of about 8 youngsters from the east coast of USA. They were discovering that they hadn’t got the equipment or the skills to cope with the conditions and I don’t think any of them made it beyond Lone Pine or Independence. At that time I was also meeting an experienced Kiwi, ‘Roaring thunder’, the Basque, Ynaki , both of whom were carrying walking poles, ice-axe, snow shoes and crampons, and ‘Three Gallon’ who got his trail name because he left Campo with three gallons of water despite the fact the streams were running and it was raining. These three were revelling in the conditions.

They left me as they were heading for the Vermillion Valley Resort (VVR) without resupply. I was on my own as I headed up towards the 13,000ft Forester Pass and camped in the snow above 12,00ft, so that I could go over the pass when the snow was hard frozen in the morning. The descents from Forester Pass, where ‘Gidiup’ passed me and Glen Pass are dangerous in snow conditions and inexperienced or ill-equipped hikers have died here in the past.

Scott Williamson passed me in his attempt to complete hike to Canada and back to Mexico. I later learnt he had lost about 20lb in weight in the High Sierra and was physically drained. He did manage to keep going and I saw him again on his way south in Washington.

After resupplying in the Onion Valley, over the Kearsarge Pass, I was again carrying 10 days food when I rejoined the trail. The only through-hikers I met in the next two weeks were ‘Atomic’ and ‘Subatomic’. They first passed me when I had camped at 3pm one afternoon, by which time the snow was much too soft for me to make meaningful progress. I would then set off at 5.30 am, when the snow was frozen hard, and pass them while they were still in their sleeping bags. They weren’t carrying crampons and had to wait for the snow to soften before they could safely move out. I lost them after an 11 hour day in which I only covered 11 miles. I went on that long so I could use their footprints over Mather Pass, the ascent of which, in snow, is the most difficult on the trail. However it is relatively safe as even a 500ft fall down the concave snow-slope wasn’t likely to lead to more than damage to the pride. It wasn’t a fall that damaged me but the loss of my sunhat which was blown off and away by a gust of wind and I ended with sunburn on my ears, nose and lips by the time I managed to buy a replacement.

On the descent from Muir Pass I was to be confronted with the first really serious stream crossing, Evolution Creek. This had been waist high in 2002 and I wasn’t sure I would be able to cross it at all in 2006, so I didn’t! I avoided the crossing by climbing down the crags on the south side of the river (looking back I had found the only line of weakness down the crags) and descending through the avalanche debris on the south bank of the river to rejoin the PCT after the dangerous crossing. By now it was getting warmer at day and night and the rivers were beginning to rise dangerously from the increased snowmelt. I avoided the even more dangerous crossing of Bear Creek by crossing its main tributaries high up the mountain on slippery logs. I had discovered that walking poles and crampons were a good combination crossing rivers on fallen trees. I later met four through-hikers who had involuntary swims in Bear Creek, including ‘Heike’ who was washed down more than 200m.

I resupplied at the Vermillion Valley Resort but didn’t stay long as there were no through-hikers there and it is very expensive! I took a variation over Goodale Pass, instead of Silver Pass. From the total absence of tracks I would think this was the first crossing of the pass in 2006. I approached Red’s Meadow down Cascade Valley (Fish Creek). On the top river crossing I got about a third of the way across before turning back with the water already well above waist deep and getting deeper. Again I had to descend the river on the wrong side. The bottom crossing looked totally impassable to me and I later learnt that EricD had managed the top crossing, but taken one look at the bottom crossing and turned round and headed back upstream.

With daytime temperatures over 85°F and night-time temperatures at 11,000ft well above freezing, the creek levels were rising even more as I approached Tuolumne and even creeks too small to mark on the map were becoming difficult to cross. When I reached Tuolumne the road had only just opened and the store, post office, campsite and lodge were all still closed. The Ranger office was open and I had a chat with the Rangers. They guessed the supply I had sent to the post office would be in Yosemite Valley and they said through-hikers had been turning back at the first unbridged river crossing in Virginia Canyon. I had got my shorts wet crossing this rocky stream in 2002 and wasn’t at all surprised it was uncrossable and this was just the first of a series of difficult stream crossings. I came to the conclusion that the Tuolumne-Sonora Pass section was unjustifiable in these conditions, so rather than wait for the river levels to drop I hitched round to the Sonora Pass.

Part 2: Northern California

At Sonora Pass I met EricD, ‘Scarecrow’ and ‘Bluegrass’ with whom I was to walk sections until Donner Pass. They left Sonora Pass before me. They had met up with Tony, an English section hiker, and were approaching Sonora Peak when he slipped on the hard snow, done a few summersaults and dislocated his shoulder in stopping himself on the rocks below the snow-slope. EricD was running down the hill like a maniac and soon reached the US Marine Base at the foot of the pass, from where the Marines quickly organized a helicopter rescue. I must admit I would have been scared on the steep traverses if I hadn’t been wearing crampons. From Sonora Pass to Donner Pass was mainly on snowpack, but at least we were now getting below the snowline for some sections of trail-walking. Navigation was much more difficult in this section as it was important to follow the trail, even when it was buried, whereas in the High Sierra I had taken little notice of the actual line of the trail.

At Echo Lake I met Trail Angel, Meadow Mary, with whom I had spent a lot of time in 2002.

She took me into South Lake Tahoe where I failed to find a suitable replacement camera for mine which had packed up because of condensation problems over Muir Pass. I reached Donner Pass on July 4th in time to join ‘Pooh Bear’ in his Independence Day celebrations in his lakeside house on Donner Lake. He keeps open house to both through-hikers and friends and following an excellent meal we watched the firework display on the beach at the end of the lake. Fortunately we ran out of snow-pack after another twenty miles and it was back to normal hiking.

I consider Northern California to be the least interesting bit of the trail. However one day stood out: I was woken at 4am by noises outside my tent. I shone my headlight out and picked up a pair of eyes about 30 metres away. They could only belong to a mountain lion (cougar). I quickly grabbed my walking poles and got dressed. By now the Lion was about 10 metres away and clearly visible in the torchlight. Thinking about defence, I lit my stove and boiled some water. Eventually the lion wandered off, so I used the water to make a cup of tea, then packed up and was on the trail by 5am, while it was still dark. I don’t suppose the lion was really dangerous, it was just curious. After all, it is just a “big pussy”. At 6am I saw a lovely ‘Cinnamon’ Black Bear, which, being a proper wild bear took one look at me and ran. Rattlesnakes, mosquitoes and Poison Oak were also encountered during the day. By mid-morning I reached a notice saying that the PCT was closed due to fire at the Middle Fork Feather River and giving a totally impractical 56-mile detour. I had met a southbound hiker who had told me that the fire was basically out and I should ignore the closure. He had been through the fire on the Friday, on Saturday EricD, who had also ignored the closure arrived at the fire to see helicopters dropping water and planes dropping fire retardant on the fire and the fire service were burning a fire-line down the switchbacks of the PCT! Surprisingly the senior fire officers had a meeting and decided to escort through-hikers through the fire. By the time I arrived there were still 120 firemen working on the fire. I spent a couple of hours with the fire safety officer on the far side of the fire. He said the fire had been started by hikers, later identified as a pair of Israelis who were using a leaking home-made ‘Pepsi-can’ alcohol stove. The fire service had burnt a fire-line either side of the fire and had it contained, but trees were still blazing at the heart of the fire.

I found the best bits of northern California to be the Klamath Mountains and the much maligned Hat Creek Rim. I was lucky to get through the Klamath Mountains as there were fires all around, but they didn’t affect the trail, apart from some smoke, until I was safely through. These fires had been started by lightning.

Part 3: Oregon and Washington

I reached Ashland in Oregon after 62 days without a zero day (rest day) and again took a week off, hired a car and dropped supplies up the remainder of the trail. On the way south I had time to visit the costumes optional Terwilliger hot springs and McCredie hot springs, where another lady gave me a mud bath!

In Oregon I diverted away from the PCT on many occasions to follow the old Oregon Skyline Trail. This route is more scenic than the PCT and goes past a lot more lakes and does not have so many long sections without water. The beach at the western end of the large Crescent Lake would have been top of my PCT beach guide if it had been on the PCT rather than a variation. The highlight of Oregon and a candidate for a place in the “Seven Wonders of the Natural World” is Crater Lake, the remains of a volcano that exploded about 7000 years ago. Soon after Crater Lake I lost a fight with a granola (cereal) bar and broke one of my front teeth. I hitched out from trail and discovered that dentists don’t work on Fridays because they can enough money working 3-4 days/week and they prefer to play golf or go fishing on Fridays. Eventually I found a dentist who would see me 100 miles from where I left the trail. He confirmed that the tooth couldn’t be saved and pulled half of it leaving the root to be dealt with when I got home. He confirmed my view that dentists don’t need to earn money on a Friday by not charging me fee!

Oregon is the fastest section of the PCT and even I was managing 3mph. I was slowed down a bit by finding lots of Lakes for swimming (mainly in the variations). I soon reached Mount Washington which was closed due to a fire. Two Forest Service trail workers (“I didn’t tell you this but….”) told me that the fire was more or less out and I should go through at night to avoid meeting Fire or Forest service workers as it is illegal to go into a closed area. I followed their advice and climbed the volcanic lava of Belknap Crater in the dark and started the descent. I soon ran into a wall of flames about a mile from where I had been informed was the boundary of the fire. I’d have carried on in daylight, but navigating through an area of active fire and hotspots with a LED head-torch didn’t seem to be a good idea so I turned back and bivouacked about midnight.
The next day I got a lift round to Big Lake Youth Camp to pick up my supply bag and immediately ran into the Puzzle Fire on Mount Jefferson. I spoke to some Fire Service personal and was told to rejoin the PCT by the Whiteriver Road and the Jefferson Park Trail. The road and the trail were in fact the northern border of the closure and were included in the closure. I hitched round to the Whiteriver Road, ignored the road closed sign and headed up towards Mount Jefferson. I was taking a tea-break when a Forest Service Ranger drove up the road. He asked me what I was doing on the closed road. (Technically I wasn’t in the closed area since I was sitting about 2 yards north of the road!) After a long chat, rather than giving me a citation he actually gave me a lift to the trailhead and said he would try and get his bosses to get something sensible sorted out. (I don’t think the Fire Service and Forest Service are good at talking to each other.)

The next day I took a long break at a lovely little sandy beach on Scout Lake, dominated by the view of the glaciers on Mount Jefferson. I was ahead of schedule because of the section missed round the fire so I took my time as I headed to the Washington border. The superb weather I had been having was interrupted briefly by a little snow and rain as I traversed the slopes of Mount Hood.By now I was at last beginning to meet a lot more through-hikers, mainly higher mileage hikers who had left Kennedy Meadows in late June or early July. The hot dry weather resumed as I headed into Washington. I was still in no rush and actually spent 5 hours at Bear Lake. I’ve put this top of my best beach guide. It’s a lovely little lake with good beaches and swimming. I’m sure I wasn’t influenced by the two young ladies who joined me in skinny-dipping!

I was much fitter than in 2002 and was only needing to do relatively short days to keep up with my schedule of about 18 miles/day. The weather suddenly changed and I got 9 days of wet, cloudy conditions with the temperature barely above freezing point. The rare glimpses of the big volcanoes showed that they were covered in new snow. One morning I woke up with an inch of rain under the bottom half of my tent. I’m certainly glad I had a good tent and I stayed dry inside. Over 9 days all clothing and equipment will get a little damp and I was delighted when the hot sunny weather returned for the final 10 days.

Northern Washington has a lot of steep ascents and descents and these were added to because of the diversion round the eastern side of Glacier Peak. Heavy rains in October 2003 had washed away all the bridges and some of the trail on the official route and it was still closed while it was being repaired. This didn’t stop a lot of hikers attempting the official route rather than the detour. With the rivers now exceptionally low and a fallen tree across the ‘impassable’ River Suiattle the official route was feasible. In 2002 I hadn’t realized just how spectacular Northern Washington was, but now with the superb weather I was seeing Washington at its best.

I reached the border late on Sunday 1st October, camping in Canada and then made the easy descent to Manning Park on Monday morning. I stayed with Canadian cousins for a few days before flying back to England.

A much more difficult hike than in 2002 and not a pure through-hike because of sections missed because of floods and fires, but very satisfying to have completed it in a year that so many hikers had to give up in Southern California or the High Sierra.

Please feel free to contact the author at ancientbritbrian@btinternet.com

The author has now had a guide published by Cicerone Press to the 2650-mile Pacific Crest Trail which stretches from the Mexican border to the Canadian border through California, Oregon and Washington. See http://www.cicerone....fic-crest-trail for details.]]> Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:27:00 +0000 9c3b1830513cc3b8fc4b76635d32e692 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/talesofancientbrit/ThePacificCrestTrail2002
Being a wilderness walk, with only occasional visits to small mountain villages or mountain stores, it was necessary to carry up to 6 days food in addition to camping gear. This made the pack heavy but with temperatures up to 100°F and the drought in Southern California meant that I was often also carrying 6 litres of water.

The guidebook warns against the dangers of the rattlesnakes, bears and mountain lions but without doubt the most dangerous animal I would meet en route would be man. At times it seemed like every trail sign in Southern California had bullet holes in it and the border area was well used by smugglers taking illegal Mexicans or drugs across the border.

In these remote areas I saw very few people and was often able to walk naked. I was able to strip off at all breaks and for the overnight camp.

I was struggling with a number of minor foot injuries in the early weeks of walking through arid mountains in unseasonally hot weather and was relieved to reach Deep Creek Hot Springs. I had decided to take a couple of days off at this oasis in the desert. These hot pools alongside a swimming hole in the creek were well known as a skinny-dipping site and nudity was normal among the visitors. I stripped off as soon as I arrived and didn’t need any clothes throughout my visit. Despite the hour walk from the nearest road the springs were well frequented by the locals and a number of other thru-hikers also rested here. As well as allowing laundry to be done the hot water was great for sore muscles. After spending much of the early part of the walk on my own it was good to have people to talk to.

Reluctantly leaving the springs I walked along the ranges of hills separating Los Angeles from the Mojave Desert before heading across the desert and heading north towards the High Sierra. Over this section I often walked with two veteran hikers: “Billy Goat” and “Cloudwalker”. “Billy Goat” was a legend in US walking circles having hiked the Appalachian Trail, the Continental Divide Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail. Most of the thru-hikers on the trail were known by trail names and I acquired the name “Ancient Brit”.

The trail cut across the Mojave Desert, where the only water was at a trough fed from the underground aqueduct carrying water from the Sierra Nevada Mountains to Los Angeles and then followed the dry hills bounding the desert where the only water was at the infrequent springs often 25 miles apart.

After 700 miles, before heading into the High Sierra I took a week off to drop supplies ahead on the route and allow some of the snow in the high mountains to melt. During this break I visited some of the hot springs close to the Mammoth Lakes Resort.   Although these pools were reachable by car, they were still clothing-optional and were ideal for relaxing with magnificent views of the snow-covered mountains.

Forester Pass, at 13,200ft, the highest of the 10 snow-covered passes to be crossed soon followed. With the trail under snow melting rapidly in the hot sun walking became hard work. When I had walked this section of the trail ago in July and August two years earlier, I was able to swim naked in the many small mountain tarns and streams along the route. But now many of these lakes were still covered in ice and the streams were very cold.

I deviated off the route to visit Fish Creek Hot Springs and had a rest day during which I managed to get all my clothing washed in the small pools.

The route now passed through the Yosemite National Park and reached a section with many unbridged creeks to cross. The crossing of these waist-deep snowmelt streams was both unpleasant and dangerous. I tended to strip off for these crossings to keep my clothing dry, but had to wear boots for increased safety.

Leaving behind the magnificent alpine mountains of the High Sierra, Northern California provided easier walking through wooded hills passing the massive volcanoes of Mt.Lassen and Mt. Shasta and eventually I reached the Californian border after 1700 miles.

I took another week off before heading for the Cascade Mountains of Oregon and Washington. Forest fires in southern Oregon covered more than 500,000 acres and although they didn’t directly affect the PCT we were walking through smoke for a couple of weeks. The highlight of Oregon was Crater Lake, which I fortunately got to when the smoke was being blown away from the trail. Crater Lake was formed when a huge volcano blew up about 6000 years ago and the resulting crater has filled with water. As I progressed north the trail crossed lava fields which were only a few hundred years old and passed volcanoes which had been active in recent years.
So far the weather had been good with only the occasional storm and plenty of sun so I was still able to strip off during my rest periods. The biggest storm produced hailstones the size of golf-balls and covered the ground with a few inches of hail.  It was September by the time I reached Washington and the autumn weather meant the end of naturist interludes but the magnificent alpine scenery of the Washington Cascades compensated this for. A week before the end of the walk I detoured to Kennedy Hot Springs. Unfortunately it was during poor weather and I was there alone. This spring was not as hot as the springs further south but it was bubbling vigorously and was rather like being in a Jacuzzi.

I reached Canada by the end of September. On the day I finished at least 15 other hikers completed the thru-hike including “Billy-Goat”. About a third of the hikers attempting the route manage to complete it. This is an amazing success rate, probably explained by the fact that over half the thru-hikers have previously walked the 1800-mile Appalachian Trail.

This trip was a fantastic experience. By the end I had lost a couple of inches around the waist and was getting up the hills like someone half my age. I was still getting a few aches and pains but this is inevitable on a trip such as this. The mountains the PCT traverses have unusually good weather so they give good opportunities for naturists. The hot springs on or close to the trail are all clothing-optional. In July and August the lakes are generally warm enough to swim in and in the wilderness costumes are not needed.

Please feel free to contact the author at ancientbritbrian@btinternet.com

The author has now had a guide published by Cicerone Press to the 2650-mile Pacific Crest Trail which stretches from the Mexican border to the Canadian border through California, Oregon and Washington. See http://www.cicerone....fic-crest-trail for details.]]> Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:19:51 +0000 20d135f0f28185b84a4cf7aa51f29500 https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/talesofancientbrit/ThePacificCrestTrail2000
That was four years ago; now I was about to set out on a 600-mile walk over the highest mountains, outside Alaska, in the USA. Was I as foolhardy as my family and friends thought I was?

My only real exercise in the past 7 years had been canoeing and my first mountain climb, actually a small 1,000ft hill, had been in April. Succeeding in this was all I needed to plan a major expedition. I had survived, only just, two short trips to the Scottish Highlands in May.
I was walking on my own for two reasons: firstly, with my foot condition I didn’t want to let my companions down or feel obliged to continue when I needed rest and, secondly, if any of my friends were crazy enough to come with me I’m not sure they would still be friends by the end of the trip. Have you ever shared a small tent with someone for 7 weeks?

The Pacific Crest Trail is a footpath going from the Mexican to the Canadian border keeping to the high mountains and uninhabited forests. 8 years previously I had walked the highest section over the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California, and decided to repeat this trip and also include a week in the Yosemite National Park. This is a region of granite mountains scattered with sparkling blue lakes and tumbling streams rising above deep forested valleys. Despite altitudes up to 15,000ft  I was expecting hot sunny weather, only interrupted by the occasional afternoon thunderstorm.  Although this wasn’t primarily a naturist holiday, this trip provided ideal conditions for a naturist wilderness experience.

I spent my first week in California dropping supplies at the few road crossings on the route and walking supplies into the mountains. This included hanging supplies high in the trees to prevent bears getting at them. Even so I still had to look forward to up to 9 days between supply points which meant a pack weighing up to 50 pounds.

I started in the evening from Walker Pass on the edge of the Mojave Desert with the thermometer reading about 100°F in the shade. Unfortunately there wasn’t much shade and, despite carrying about 12 pints of water, I was pretty dehydrated by the time I reached the first almost dried up spring 24 hours later. The first week of the walk was totally deserted and clothes were only needed as protection against the sun. Camping and resting in the shade was fully naturist. Many of the streams and springs that had been running 8 years earlier were now dried up and a heavy pack was made even heavier with the weight of water carried.

After 10 days I reached the higher mountains and frequent lakes tarns and streams were a relief. Even lakes up to 11,500ft were warm enough for a chilly swim and lakes and streams lower down were positively warm. One advantage for the naturist of the permit system in U.S national parks is that even the most popular areas don’t get overcrowded and swimming and sunbathing naked was no problem. Not that anyone seemed to mind and most backpackers are too sensible to carry swimsuits because of the unnecessary weight! Looking back I saw some smoke in the area I had passed through 2 days earlier, the start of a fire destroying 100 square miles of forest and still burning 6 weeks later.

The route now went for 250 miles without meeting a road, crossing a series of high rocky passes and dropping down to wooded valleys full of streams and Lakes. The expected afternoon storms didn’t materialise and the cooler weather (70-85°F) in the High Sierra was ideal. A couple of rest days were taken at naturally occurring hot springs feeding pools at about 100°F. Even in conservative US there is a tradition of skinny-dipping at these hot springs.

Eventually I reached Yosemite where I had my first encounter with a bear. It was 3am and I was woken by a bear close to my tent. It climbed the tree my rubbish bag was hanging from and scattered the rubbish, but fortunately didn’t find my food bag.

I detoured off the Pacific Crest Trail to spend a week in Yosemite, a fantastic region of granite domes and cliffs 1000s of metres high. One night was spent bivouacking on the summit of Half Dome, a peak only reachable by climbing cables put up its easiest face.

Another couple of weeks saw me approaching Carson Pass near Lake Tahoe. After 7 weeks of almost uninterrupted sun the weather changed and I finished my walk with 4 days of rain followed by snow and a blizzard leaving me wet and cold. I certainly wasn’t equipped for this unseasonable weather.

Despite a scare or two my foot had survived the trip. When I got back home I found I had lost 1.5 stone and weighed the same as I did as a fit young man 30 years ago. Any naturist willing to rough it in the wilderness would find it hard to find a better place for a holiday. There can’t be a more spectacular mountain region where there is the expectation of warm sunny weather.

Please feel free to contact the author at ancientbritbrian@btinternet.com

The author has now had a guide published by Cicerone Press to the 2650-mile Pacific Crest Trail which stretches from the Mexican border to the Canadian border through California, Oregon and Washington. See http://www.cicerone....fic-crest-trail for details.]]> Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:16:16 +0000 b59c67bf196a4758191e42f76670ceba https://www.bn.org.uk/articles.php/_/activities/travel-and-holidays/talesofancientbrit/NakedMunros
I was basing myself in a small motor home from which I would start by day-hiking some of the summits closer to the road, but I expected to backpack most of the peaks. It may sound a bit ambitious to climb 284 peaks in one summer, but many of the peaks were grouped together and several could be climbed on one day.

I can remember lots of hot sunny days in the Scottish Highlands and I hoped to walk naked much of the time in these largely deserted mountains. I set myself the challenge of getting naked photos on as many Munro summits as I could manage.

I set off for my first summit in mid April and got wonderful weather and even wondered whether I could get naked photos on all of the summits. Then the May Bank Holiday brought me back to reality. As I was climbing Beinn a’ Beithir in Glen Coe it started snowing and by the time I reached the exposed summit the snow was blowing horizontally and I was taking such a buffeting that it was difficult to stand. No thought of a naked photo, I didn’t even manage any sort of summit photo!

This was effectively the end of summer! For the next few months I hardly saw the sun; in fact I hardly saw anything at all as the peaks were blanketed in cloud for weeks at a time. It wasn’t actually that wet, the rain was falling in England producing the worst summer floods for over 600 years, but it was cold and windy. I was often walking in four layers of clothing and there was no thought of naked hiking. I managed to get a surprising number of naked summit photos as I stripped off in the shelter of summit cairns, to dress up again immediately I had taken the photos.

I was waiting for the first spell of good weather to go to Skye. The rocky ridges of the Cuillin hills require continuous, often difficult, scrambling to reach any of the summits. Inaccessible Pinnacle, the summit of Sgurr Dearg, even requires a rock climb to reach the summit of the pinnacle followed by an abseil to get off. They aren’t peaks to climb in wet windy weather and navigation is very difficult in thick mist. May, June and July went by without a spell of settled weather and by mid August I decided I had to head for Skye anyway and I did get a few days of reasonable weather, intermingled with days of rain and wind when I was cowering in my van.

Perhaps it was fitting that my final Munro, Carn Aosda, was completed in a blizzard on 20^th September. I had completed the Munros and tops and I’d even managed to get naked pictures on about 140 Munros. My hopes of naked hiking and living naked in the wilderness were dashed by the weather, but I felt I had achieved something completing my challenge in one of the coldest, dullest and windiest summers on record.

I hope I haven’t given you the impression that the Scottish Highlands haven’t anything to offer the naturist. I can remember long periods of living and hiking naked in this magnificent wilderness. I just picked the wrong year!

Please feel free to contact the author at ancientbritbrian@btinternet.com]]> Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:11:01 +0000 2cbca44843a864533ec05b321ae1f9d1