The Secret Naturist Handbook

[MartinM]

Ok, so I have used that excuse before now but he rather annoys me with the constant concern for excuses, cover etc. My excuse now is simply ‘I’m a naturist’  or ‘I’m always naked when I have the chance’. It’s not as if he lives in a jurisdiction where it would ever be illegal to be naked in your own home....

But then I’m not into the secrecy thing, even though I will show discretion, depending on the situation.

[nuduke]

I agree, Martin.  The 'excuse' thing is not really in the spirit of naturism and it is highly unlikely any random caller will see anything unless you choose to open the door naked.
John

[jbeegoode]

We came across a g birder this weekend i the Huachuca Mountains. He said he wasn't concerned when he saw my starting to unravel my sarong. I said, "it's my birthday."
DF added, "It's his birthday suit."
 He said that he was more worried about the "plaque" and he couldn't be hurt by naked people.
Jbee

[Greenbare Woods]

We don't need an "excuse" to be naked.   The other person needs an excuse to be ashamed of himself or herself. 

[nudewalker]

We came across a g birder this weekend i the Huachuca Mountains. He said he wasn't concerned when he saw my starting to unravel my sarong. I said, "it's my birthday."
DF added, "It's his birthday suit."
 He said that he was more worried about the "plaque" and he couldn't be hurt by naked people.
Jbee

I remember my encounter with a birder. He was more concerned with my encountering  insects and briars than my nakedness. He was dressed with long sleeves, long pants and the pant legs tucked into his socks.

[jbeegoode]

Indoor Locations: From The Secret Naturist Handbook

During the cooler months of the year temperatures are often low and when combined with the wind chill factor, outdoor nudity is almost impossible for more than a few minutes at a time. This is good time to seek out indoor locations suitable for a spot of secret nudity.

When searching for a suitable indoor location there are a few things you need to keep in mind. One is that you obviously need to be able to access the building legitimately and another is that you need to remain undisturbed while you are naked there.
The most obvious indoor location is your own home and that is covered separately in this section. Following on from this are the homes of friends, family or even neighbours. All you need to do is to engineer a way of being alone there and you can then get naked. One way I found of achieving this was to offer to water plants or check the mail during holidays. Another was to do some DIY. You may also be able to make use of gardens and outhouses as well.

Another indoor location is the workplace, although this will depend on individual circumstances. I found one way of achieving this was to go in before anyone else arrived in the office. This way I was able on numerous occasions to explore the entire building naked.

Other locations sometimes require some cunning and careful planning. For example, I was once able to explore a church using the "cover story" that I wanted to photograph the interior after dark using a technique called painting with light. To do this you set up your camera on a tripod and fix the shutter open. You then use a flashgun to light up different parts of the building. In this case I was able to collect a key from a nearby shop and had the whole building to myself for as long as I wanted.

Another way to find indoor locations is to pose as a house buyer. Many houses that are up for sale are empty and depending on the individual estate agent, you may be able to collect the key and view the property on your own. Imagine being able to explore a large country house or factory while naked! Again, areas outside the property might also be explored.

Clothing stores also offer opportunities for the more daring secret naturist. Some years ago a female secret naturist related in an email that she found it quite daring to strip naked inside changing room cubicles. This was something she did during her lunch hour and suggested that the thrill from doing this activity was just enough to keep her going during the winter months when outdoor nudity was not possible. This activity can be further advanced. If you arrive at the shop early enough to get the changing cubicle area to yourself you may find it possible to move naked between cubicles or even explore the area. If I recall correctly she hailed from north west Canada but her name escapes me.

Conservation and historic bodies such as the National Trust may also offer semi-indoor locations for the secret naturist. I have found that at some locations such as ruined castles and country houses there is only one member of staff and they are usually stationed at the kiosk with nobody else inside the actual building. If you arrive first you may find the building empty and might be able to explore while naked, if only for a short while before other visitors arrive. Do check for other people first and also for CCTV cameras.

[jbeegoode]

It seems that any unusual places have a game sense about them. A matter of fact nudity in such places can give over to edginess. Some situations are in the ilk of dares. I’ve experienced this, but also a sense of liberation, an expansion of my territory, or a justice finally rendered, or a sense of the world more fully perfected without so much body oppression.

I used to enjoy expanding my range when feeding the neighbors dogs and watering their plants, simply not dressing before going next door, as if it were usual. Nude house parties by non-landed clubs, sometimes have this effect walking around in someone else’s home. It can also make a sense that one is more welcomed, like “Me casa Su casa” to enjoy social nudity.

Surveillance cameras are often in buildings. Hotels are often loaded with them anymore.

I had a girlfriend sitting in the dark of a museum audiovisual room. We took advantage of the very close to being caught factor. On a very hot summer’s day at the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum in mid-week many years ago, a girlfriend and I did pictures in their cave display and in another indoor exhibit. It was mostly empty back them.

Daring nudity in restaurants, like the private rooms of Japanese Sushi Bars, especially after sake has been done up properly.
This reminds me of having sex in unusual places, close to being caught, added excitement.
Jbee

[jbeegoode]

Nature Reserves: From The Secret Naturist Handbook

For the secret naturist, nature reserves offer plenty of opportunities for outdoor nudity. Where else can you find large areas devoted to wildlife, with footpaths and trails to follow, birds and other animals to watch and even the occasional hide to provide shelter. You may even find ponds for skinny dipping. The only downside is that other people go there as well! However, this need not be a problem if you plan your trips accordingly.

I've visited a number of nature reserves with secret nudity in mind and have enjoyed many an hour exploring the reserve while naked. As with most locations, arriving in the early morning will usually give you the place to yourself but you should keep an eye open for other early morning visitors such as birders and the like.

Nature reserves are very much a special environment and as such have special problems for the budding secret naturist. Here are a few things you need to be aware of:

•   They tend to attract people with binoculars and telescopes.
•   CCTV and video cameras are common at popular locations.
•   Check hides carefully for people before stripping off.
•   Reserves near to housing are a magnet for dog walkers.
•   Wardens may be about at all hours.
 
Don't let the above put you off. Just be aware of these points and take heed of them during your planning phase. For example, there's an island known as the Bass Rock in the Firth of Forth near Edinburgh. The island is essentially a seabird colony and there are also old buildings that could be explored. I had thought about getting hold of a kayak and paddling out to explore the island naked. However, a visit to the Scottish Seabird Centre at North Berwick revealed that there are remote control cameras on the island, with viewable screen on display in the centre. Perhaps not the best place for secret naturism!

[jbeegoode]

I've noticed that many trails are used in the morning and empty by afternoon.
Often because of the heat of the day. Nude, the heat doesn't bother me as much.
People tend to go less far, if they leave later in the day.
The trailheads are where most activity is.
The Forest Service isn't as concerned with disruptions of nudity if it is kept away from the trailhead where those people are. It is not likely that an authority will chase a naked walker any distance from the trailhead, or wait for hours for them to maybe come back to the trailhead dressed.
Sunday afternoon toward evening, people go walking after a long day, etc. Most people have left, however.
Sometimes, you know that the odds are that nobody is coming out.
Weekdays are significantly less busy.

The odds are approximately 97 to 3 that a person will object to nudity, or be offended out on the trail. Odds of trouble are even less.

CCTV, game cameras, people with binocs and telescopes, hunting hides, are stealth. There can be no claim for exhibitionism, if you are minding your own business and they sneak up on you. Nudity isn't illegal, being seen is illegal, if you are reckless about it, and then just a small area of the body, usually. There can be a claim for voyeurism, or spying on the others account. Nature isn't a public space like urban locations are. One has a certain expectation of privacy, especially when odds are that one will not encounter anyone else.

I gather that preserves, or reserves are smaller in Europe. Lookee was in Scotland, where there are bigger less touched, remote areas than south. I miss Milfmog's posts...and then, you over there, you don't have the legal inhibitions to free range action.

What do you do when you happen upon an off duty cop, or an authority in uniform out on a trail? Does he/she have a badge, ability to subdue, have backup, have a desire for hassle, have something better to do than enforce laws in the middle of nowhere.
Most cops don't even know the law well enough to know if they are in their jurisdiction, or not, in Federal lands.
The only arrest out on the trail, or say in the tooleys, has been frequented hot springs, or a beach that some hoohah wants to "clean up."

The other day, we backpacked two miles and camped in paradise. Sunday afternoon. I wore a kilt, she a short dress. Once we got into it, we didn't need cover, because it was remote and very few people were out there. A coupe of young guys walked by as we were pitching the tent and smirked. A dog walker and a birder the next day, neither had any issues with naked people and stopped to talk a bit. We took a mile walk from there, no backup clothing, no need, just act natural...but then, saw no one. Around the trailhead, there were encounters every few minutes. There were people with kids, teenagers, who knows what kind of kook's attitudes. Who needs the hassle?...I wasn't significantly uncomfortable in a kilt, unlike pants. The backpack and rocks in the trail were occupying my attentions. Still, it felt so much better to be nude in paradise. Nude belongs in nature.
Jbee

[ric]

in this part of somerset we have quite a few nature reserves, the rspb bird reserves tend to have visitors in camo with cameras with long telephoto lenses so i tend to avoid them.   most counties have a county wildlife trust which manage reserves , often wooded, then theres the woodland trust, forestry commision, even the county council.   close to home we have a green burial ground which also has about 12 acres of rough pasture in two paddocks that is termed a nature reserve , a local farmer mows it for hay mid summer , theres a scattering of trees around the edges and a couple of benches, open to public but rarely see anyone there on weekdays.
national trust also owns bits of countryside which are public access.
trick is finding spots that are rarely visited by others , in normal times daytime midweek is usually good if you pick your spots.

lot easier now we can just stick "somerset nature reserves " (or whatever) into google and see what gems pop up.

[Greenbare Woods]

Smile!  You're on Candid Camera.

My reaction to people with long lens cameras has always been to smile and wave.   Sometimes they get embarrassed and leave.

[nuduke]

My reaction to people with long lens cameras has always been to smile and wave.   Sometimes they get embarrassed and leave.

Haha!  Just like you, Bob.  Independently minded as ever.  It's a double edge, I think, to take camera-wielding snoopers or other encounters face on.  On the one hand as you have implied, Bob, it asserts and communicates your independence, confidence and right to be there naked (probably completely private but for the distant camera!).  On the other hand standing up for your right to be nude in this way might be interpreted as defiant or provocative.  I would like to think that the odds are 99.9% for the former and 0.1% (or less!) the latter!
John

[ric]

with a keen photographer in a bird reserve you probably wont even notice its there.    actually its probably out of date thinking to be wary of them. keen photographers tend to be aware of responsibilities and legalities... now your far more likely to appear on internet from a chance encounter with an idiot with a smart phone.

[jbeegoode]

PARKS: From The Secret Naturist Handbook

Most urban areas will have public parks and gardens that can be used by the secret naturist, although usually only at night or either very late in the evening or in the wee small hours of the morning. Even then extreme caution is advised as people can be around at any hour. Their very convenience makes them both a blessing and a risk, in that they are both easily accessible from secret naturism and also to members of the public. Depending on the location and size of the park, their usefulness will vary greatly from place to place and only thorough reconnaissance during the time you would wish to go there will provide the answer if nudity is possible.

My local park it typical of urban parks open to the public. It consists of playing fields, scattered mature trees, a river with a bridge and direct access to the countryside. A number of surfaced footpaths offer some good opportunities for nude cycling and there are also about 8 entrances and exits, giving plenty of options for escape routes.

So, what to look for when checking out a park for a potential secret naturist outing. Firstly, you need to get to know every entrance and follow every footpath to see where it leads or does not lead! Hiding places are also important, look out for clumps of bushes that would offer concealment if required. It is also important to scan the surrounding area to see what properties overlook the area and what an occupant might see of the park, even at night.

Public gardens differ slightly from parks in that they are generally separated from the surrounding area by a fence or wall which is often locked out of hours. These offer the ideal location for an outing, for the secret naturist willing to take the time to gain entry by scaling the wall or whatever. Such gardens are abundant in Edinburgh and can offer an interesting challenge.
Recent investigations into urban nudity have shown that public parks are ideal for high speed secret nudity using a mountain bike. The open spaces, flat grass surfaces and footpaths are custom designed for the secret naturist who wants to move fast at night. As usual, a thorough daylight preliminary recon is advisable to identify escape & evasion routes and obstacles such as benches, litter bins, etc.

One final important point. The secret naturist using a public park runs the risk of being taken for a flasher or similar, if seen, There is an association of parks with flashers and this is not going to help the secret naturist who is seen walking naked in the small hours. More than likely the police would be called and questions asked.

[jbeegoode]

Funny, we're going to a park tonight. A couple or three weeks ago, we went for a walk, which went on further than expected and ended up discovering a previously unknown park. I got nude, as I was just dressed in a kilt and shoes. DF a little here and there in her more tight sundress.

I wrote a post for the website, but it was spontaneous and no pics. Tonight we'll revisit a couple of spots just to make illustrations.

I expect that we'll not wander too far, it is snake season and the moonlight is not adequate. Probably just drive, stop and pop a few after sushi.

I think it can depend on how well lit the park is and what you are doing. For example are you just sitting eating under a tree, or walking around, at night.

They can be as Lookee says, dangerous in the daytime, with the flasher projection out there.

A less frequented park is safer, if there is a quick coverup. If seen covering, then someone knows that you have been walking nude (if not in denial), but there is no exposure and you are within legal boundaries. It does however create two lessons. People walk nude for whatever reason and two, they cover up. The reason that they coverup is interpreted by the observer. The observer may project something like, covering because it is illegal, because it is wrong, because of shame, anything. If someone, stops to comment, then honesty is the best message. Perhaps discussion, but I haven't had the occasion.

There are miles of river park here. Bicycle police patrol them on the bike/walking paths. Wearing a headlamp and riding a bike and blinding any passersby, may create the freedom one seeks, at a price. Late at night in the relative calm is probably a good ride. Bike shorts of paint is an optional tool.

At your own risk. I rarely get to parks and if I do, it is daylight and for a social function, clothed.