The new Naturist Ramblers group just held its first walk, and since I’m in England now, I had to go along. For those in need of an explanation, over the winter the Singles Outdoor Club underwent a split, and the former walking interest group of that organization decided to re-form as the Naturist Ramblers. We’ve been invited not to debate this, but the issues seem to have been that the SOC is nationally based and spread out, while the walkers are concentrated in London and southeast England, and few of them had strong links with the larger group.
As an aside, the British like the word “Rambler”. The 18th century writer Samuel Johnson produced a magazine called “The Rambler”, there has been a “Ramblers’ Association” since the 1930s, and of course the body-freedom activist Steve Gough is known as the “Naked Rambler” (though he disavows being a naturist). You can also look up the quasi- folk song “The Manchester Rambler”.
So, we walked. You’d have to be lucky to get a day of really naturist-friendly weather in England in April, and the weather gods weren’t especially kind. We had an hour or so of sunshine before clouds moved in, and it was cool and often breezy. At least there was no rain! Nevertheless, some participants wore their naturist uniforms with joy and pride. We had a group of 20, 100% of us being middle-aged men, but if anyone else had come along, they would have been highly welcome. We went about 10 miles, and as always it's remarkable to see how it's possible to have a significant walk so close to London while passing only a few isolated houses. The Naturist Ramblers aren't activists in the sense of brazenly going nude in public, but we didn't have many calls to cover up.
We gathered in the Wotton Hatch, a nice pub/restaurant about 15 miles south of London. Here are John, Peter and Keith, the three founders and officers of the Naturist Ramblers, doing their paperwork:
http://i.imgur.com/fA6TgAz.jpgPeter was walk leader, and here we are outside receiving a briefing (while we still had briefs on):
http://i.imgur.com/WvWcIrh.jpgSoon some people felt that briefs were superfluous, but not everyone agreed:
http://i.imgur.com/w0wnBGd.jpgThis is the top of Leith Hill, the highest point in southeast England, with a tower that makes it a giddy 1000 feet high. It’s a well-known landmark, and we covered up while we were there:
http://i.imgur.com/HZHOovW.jpgPeter can do a group photo with his eyes closed!
http://i.imgur.com/Vlj5pAW.jpg
