The Accidental Nudist

This article in the San Francisco Chronicle may be a little 'tongue-in-cheek' but I felt the author giving an honest appraisal and acceptance of nudity. Most of us have been through the stages he details as he had to face his own nudity at a hot springs and therefore can relate. Though he claims near the end that he is still not a nudist, I don't see the distinctions quite that black and white. I think the author has crossed that line into acceptance and whether he calls himself a nudist or not, he is in our camp now. Rick

The Accidental Nudist
Shedding years of programming in one weekend
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/10/16/CMGM9DDNU91.DTL

Spud Hilton

Sunday, October 16, 2005

The Accidental Nudist. Chronicle illustration by Tom Murray

At the risk of making a sweeping generalization, running into a rattlesnake when you're naked is a bad thing. It's not the being undressed that's particularly bad, nor the chancing upon a reptile going about his business. It's the sum of the equation: Leaping venomous serpent + full-frontal buck-nakedness = bad. Apparently, it's one of those important life lessons you learn when suddenly and without warning you realize you're spending a weekend in a nudist resort.

OK, there was a little warning. My wife wanted to camp on our anniversary and I knew of this popular, New Agey hot springs resort in the hills north of Calistoga that had campgrounds, pools, a spa and a decent restaurant. I'd heard the place was, technically, clothing-optional and that there might be one or two people whose wardrobe for the weekend wouldn't fill a coffee mug. But we thought ourselves open-minded and able to deal with the occasional birthday suit.

Might even be amusing, I said.

We checked in and found a shady spot, set up the tent and ducked inside to change into swimsuits, zipping doors and windows for privacy. My first clue that the place was a little different should have been that the showers at the campground restrooms were on the outside of the building, but I didn't give it much thought.

We hiked the woodsy trail toward the main resort area and, descending a small hill and rounding a bend, found the pool area and 100 or so people sunbathing, swimming, chatting and relaxing in hot tubs.

Ann regained the power of speech before I did.

"Ya think?"

"Probably."

Her unsaid question asked whether we were the only ones at this clothing-optional resort who had checked the box "Yes, please." Our swimsuits were the only wearable items around that didn't require a piercing. I was an ambassador from Earth to Planet Naked.

There's a common perception of nudists. They're out-of-shape hippie types you don't really want to see naked. But that wasn't the case. These were every color, every age and every body type from Lara Flynn Boyle to Shaquille O'Neal. Most were very tan, all over. More than likely, these people were lawyers, meter maids, high school principals and soccer moms -- as well as a few professional hippies -- and a healthy percentage of them looked downright healthy. Some were, ahem, really healthy.

We played it cool, casually dumping our stuff on a bench and wading into the large pool, careful to avoid eye contact and stray appendages. In a new twist on an old nightmare, we were clothed in resort full of naked people, which made me feel, well, naked.

I tried to lie out while Ann read "Harry Potter," but it seemed no matter which direction I looked, I was facing portions of attractive women and men that you can't see on basic cable.

We woke up the next day facing a decision: feel like outsiders or get over the fear and do as the Romans do. I was undecided right up until I walked into the coed locker room by the pool. I stood at a locker, finally resolved to going nude when, as I pulled my shorts down, two young women as naked as Miss May and Miss June walked up and stood on either side of me, each fiddling with a locker. I, like most men, had had fantasies involving locker rooms, but this wasn't it.

I had not been this close to a naked woman who was not my wife since a colleague's bachelor party a few years ago -- even longer since I was also undressed -- and I was suddenly very conscious of where not to look and keeping my arms and hands close my body. I nonchalantly put the same clothes in the locker and took them out three times in hope they would leave so I wouldn't have to squeeze past them.

But the women -- still very naked -- chatted around me, as if comparing stock portfolios. It was not exactly "Girls Gone Wild." They didn't care about my nudity, and they certainly didn't care about their own.

If they didn't care, why should I? I strolled from the locker room jaybird-like, wearing only a towel on my shoulder, and nobody cared. Years of programming lifted and I suddenly got it: It's just skin. Is there really that much difference between bare and a bikini? Is there a powerful underwear lobby? Is it really that wrong to iron naked?

I stood in line for the outdoor shower, soaped up in front of scores of strangers and waded into the hot pool, feeling a little more free. Within 15 minutes, I'd forgotten I wasn't wearing a swimsuit. I didn't consider myself a nudist, but I had crossed a barrier.

It was on the trail back to the campground, after throwing on some shorts, that I ran into the snake, a small rattler I'd spooked -- a reminder that nudity isn't right for all situations and that, sometimes, I really, really like clothes.

The last morning while taking down the tent, we saw a pickup truck full of teenage boys we guessed to be locals. As they drove past a small group of naked people, the two guys in the truck bed yanked down their pants to expose their butts, letting out a hearty "Wooooo-hoooo."

They mooned naked people.

There's just never a rattlesnake around when you need one.

Anthro-Archaic Neanderthal Retrogrades & Transgenic Neo Simians

Well, heck. The American Association for Nude Recreation fans . . . and The Naturist Society fans are at it as usual in the forums; mudslinging back and forth, so I thought I'd offer this stupid analogy . . . to match all the other stupid analogies.

This debate goes on and on. It's no secret that I lean toward the TNS side of the spectrum but I am also a member of AANR because I think these two organizations need to get over their petty influence-squables and get back to supporting us . . . the nudists and naturists.

Anyway, my really innane and stupid analogy . . . Rick

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Image: Chris Wayans

Once upon a time far away the first proto-mammals emerged from the sea and breathed fresh air. They found it was good and the natural thing to do. Time went by and the proto-mammals evolved . . . growing fur and hair to protect their bodies from the vagaries of climate. They stayed close to the ocean and occasionally went back into the water from whence they evolved. Some also stayed on land, moving ever inland into the thick jungles to forever forsake their birthplace.

Eons went by. The warming climates selected for almost hairless, upright walking proto-humans. They became known as Anthro-Archaic Neanderthal Retrogrades (or AANR for short) and organized into colonies for protection from the hairy apes that dominated the earliest times.

(Evidence for the existence of a hairy ape civilization persecuting the naked proto-humans can be found in the first episode of the 'Planet of the Apes', a popular documentary film of the '70s)

Meanwhile, in the far south of the present-day continent of Africa, the proto-humans who had stayed near the sea and lived in harmony with nature, prospered on their free beaches . . . convincing many species that hairless was natural for a water-evolved and delving creature. They pointed to pictures of hairy apes in cave drawings and asked, "How can you possibly swim with all that fur?" "Furless is not lewd," was the byword of the times.

The hairy apes rarely ventured out of their crowded and oppressive jungles but the few that did were welcomed and assimilated into a more gentle lifestyle beside the many hot springs set aside just for the hairy ones. Over time, even they lost the inhibitions of fur and became as hairless as their water-loving cousins. They became known as Transgenic Neo Sapians (or TNS) and soon learned to enjoy the freedom of frolicking about hairless and naked on the beaches and in the water. All was good.

Life was hard in the AANR colonies in the jungles. They felt hemmed in and totally bored with endless games of bridge and gin rummy while the leaders tried to bring new life (and younger hairless apes) into the colonies. But the hairy great apes in power would have none of this!

The AANRs were forced to bargain and bribe with their hairy cousins to remain a colony apart from the 'greater-jungle'. Every AANR was expected to divvy up his or her fair share to help defend against abrogation by the hairy ones. The bribes slowly began to influence a few of the Bureaucratic Underhanded Simian has-beens, or BUSHs, among the Hairy Great Apes then in power. The BUSHs hated the hairless ones and wished they would leave their colonies in the jungles and go elsewhere. AANRs (suitable adorned in fake fur called Giant Ape Troglydites, or GATs) fanned out across the jungle but had little success other than finding other isolated colonies in the deep jungle. AANR, because of the GATs, pulled all these colonies together into a tighter noose with the excuse of a them-or-us mentality.

The Transgenic Neo Sapians embraced and accepted everyone for they recognized that we were all born hairless and evolved from the sea . . . where hairless was natural. After all, look at the shape of our nostrils. We are a diving species, unlike the furred apes with their flat noses. Un-furred is natural.

On the sunny, warm beaches one could meet hairless dolphins in the shallows or share a fur-optional soak in a hot spring nearby. The beaches belonged to everybody and everybody pitched in together to keep the unruly BUSHs and GATs from organizing the beaches and hot springs into a greater AANR co-prosperity sphere of colonies. Transgenic Neo Sapians hated playing gin rummy . . . they'd rather play sand volleyball and stay in shape; or hike the stark mountains nearby in search of more hot springs. They had no use for colonies in the jungles and dues that represented nothing of value to them. The beachs and hot springs were a gift of nature and they revered them. They had their own local organizations and a larger umbrella called Naked Apes and Chimpanzees, or NAC for short, that mediated with the much larger Hairy Apes to reach a consensus on the behalf of all TNS and non-TNS (including AANR-escapees) alike.

The Anthro-Archaic Neanderthal Retrogrades were desperate. Their colonies were shrinking because of an aging membership and a mandatory levy on their income (the head AANRs called them dues because it was 'due' them if a member wanted to stay within the safety of the colony instead of being forced to grow fur and hair). AANRs grew weary of endless gin rummy games while listening to the monotonous staccato of jungle drums. The jungle grew thicker and jungle rot encroached ever tighter around them. The Great Furless Diaspora began as word from returning Giant Ape Troglydites opened visions of wide open spaces . . . beaches and oceans . . . mountains and natural hot springs (without the irritating chlorine of their own hot spa tubs as mandated by the Hairy Apes who especially loved to bleach their own fur silver . . . the Great Silver-Backed Apes in power).

"Why do we have to stay here behind these fortified walls?" many lamented. "Why do we have to give and give to be locked up like this?"

Many volunteered for GAT training and traveled out of the jungles to the more enlightened beaches and mountains of the Transgenic Neo Sapians. All were welcomed with open arms. Few returned but sent word of a new approach to cooperation where furred and furless lived in harmony with each other.

The remaining AANRs, seeing their power base and riches hemmoraging out, responded viperously, attacking the neo sapians in jungle-drum ads as irresponsible and with being free-loaders. The TNSers stuck their tongues out. "Come on down and enjoy the free beach. No dues forced on you," they responded.

Eons later, the AANRs were extinct while the Trans Neo Sapians evolved into our modern-day humans and never grew fur again. We know this because of the finding in the remotest of jungles of a rather age-worn trophy known as the Ilsley trophy that was found in the cave remains of a BUSH politician known from historical records for collecting memorabilia of defunct organizations. Even in present times, you can still make out the outlines of those long-ago colonies on sat. imagery . . . and there are a few who say the places are haunted by the remains of the last gin rummy players . . . frozen in place by the glaciation that covered most of the worlds landmasses except for the beaches and coastlines of the TNSers. There is even a rumor that the AANRs claimed to once be the 'Credible Voice of Reason for Hairlessness', a cliche that continues to puzzle scholars."

Cariboo Nudist Society Holding Nude Swim Nights (Kamloops, BC)

" . . . whereas nude swimming is out of the question for McCorkell, he doesn't rule out making swimsuits optional in the distant future.

That is a provincial jurisdiction," he says.

I would go along with whatever the province is saying."

Encouraging words from the Kamloops Director of Parks and Recreation on the beginning of nude swim nights at the city's Canada Games Pool. The swims are being organized by the Cariboo Nudist Society, an AANR-provisional club and self-described as 'fledgling' but growing. Anybody is welcome and the price for the two-hour swim session is $10 CAN with children free.

Once more members join, the club plans to hold house parties, travel to other nude clubs in North America and visit clothing-optional beaches and hot springs.

For more information, contact cariboonudistsociety@yahoo.ca

Kamloops Canada Games Pool MapQuest It!

Wreck Beach: Battle Lines Are Drawn

The battle lines are drawn, as Howard aptly notes below. Tower #1 (the burgandy tower in the images) has been completed and despite assurances from the university and promises made to the Greater Vancouver Recreation District (GVRD), which oversees activity in this area, the upper floors of the tower can be plainly seen from areas of Wreck Beach (see the images here).

The GVRD has forcibly insisted that the next phase of construction would not impose any undue impact on the beach, including sight lines of the towers to impinge on the beauty of the area. However, these two towers will have an even greater unobstructed view of the beach below. (These two towers are the purple and pink buildings in the images, buildings 4 & 5).

The university is ignoring everyone, including the GVRD, in the hopes they can just ramrod this through as fate accompli' before the November elections. Now they have tipped off another goal . . . to do away with the clothing-optional beach entirely. We need to keep pushing back and let them know our voices will not be silenced. We need to prod and shame the GVRD into action. Write those emails and get everyone else you know involved. Do it now!

These two images were created in Google Earth using the information available in the university's student-tower site plans. If you have Google Earth installed on your computer, you can download the KMZ file that depicts these buildings here. Google Earth is free, though to do the 'tilting' of images you would need to upgrade to Google Earth Plus for a real reasonable annual subscription of $20. Rick

"Seems never ending, but we MUST make our voice heard. This is the first time that UBC has actually come out publically and said they do not like the nudity on Wreck Beach. Read the following and you can see their long term goals - to denude the cliffs below their residential towers, and then push for a re-interpretation of nudity on Wreck Beach by the Attorney General. So, the battle lines are drawn. Get those letters in to Judy as she requests . . .

. . . right now - the MOST important goal - is to stop UBC from building the next towers. While the UBC seems to be in a steam-roller mode, sooner or later, they must yield to public pressure. That pressure must stay focused on maintaining the established and agreed to viewscape for Wreck Beach, as well as the potential environmental damage to the cliffs and the forests on those cliffs.

While most of us may be primarily concerned about saving Wreck Beach as a legal clothing optional beach, the first step is to stop UBC dead in its tracks. And we should avoid even the mention of the nude use of Wreck Beach.

So, let's take heed of Judy's advice, get those letters to Judy, and keep focused on the goal - and refrain from the mention of nude use.

Howard (NWNaturist Group Posting)

URGENT MESSAGE TO ALL WRECK BEACH SUPPORTERS

Judy Williams, CHAIR, WBPS

October 12, 2005

The Wreck Beach Preservation Society (WBPS) thanks Naturists everywhere for their generous and whole-hearted support of our battle of the towers here at Wreck Beach for the past 19 months.

We thank naturists and individual supporters (FCN, FQN, INF, TNS, NAC, SLUGS, W-CANR, AANR) from around the world, who wrote or sent donations orboth. Altogether, the unity of naturists helped us raise thousands of dollars. However, once again, our coffers are low.

Those of us in the vanguard in Vancouver, B.C., thank you all with gratitude, but we must ask you to step up to the plate one final time with either pen or computer in hand. We are launching a FINAL letter writing and petition signing campaign in our battle to preserve the beauty of Wreck Beach. In just three days, earlier this month, we got 50 + letters before the October 5 public meeting. WE ESPECIALLY THANK ALL THE SLUGS WHO WROTE RECENTLY AND/OR WHO SENT DONATIONS. BLESS YOU.

Tower #1 now shows at low tide from out along the Breakwater and UBC in its arrogance says no one likes to go out there anyway. The tower lights blaze at night enticing migrating birds off course. Visitors from around the world come just to admire the view from near the mouth of the Fraser River so that they may look back across the vast tidal flats to admire the unbroken skyline where verdant, forested cliffs touch the blueness of the skies, and where the eagles train their young to hunt and glide the thermals.At the October 5, 2005 Open House and Public Hearings, UBC unveiled plansfor the last two 18-storey towers which will be visible from low to hightide areas in contravention of a GVRD July 29, 2005 resolution.

We need new letters NOW of support against the heights and locations of those remaining two towers, even if you have written before. UBC must understand that the public will be heard. We appreciate that the architects dropped the height of the original 20-storey tower closest to the cliff edge, terracing it from 5 to 7 storeys leading eastward away from the cliff edge toward Lower Mall Avenue. We have 45,000 signatures on petitions, but WE NOW NEED YOUR E-MAILED or FAXED LETTERS AS WELL. If you have not yet signed our petition, go to “Towers” on the www.wreckbeach.org website and add your name, address and e-mail or phone number to the petition also.

In the winter months when there are less leaves on the deciduous trees, one will see Tower #1 from many many points along the beach. And, unfortunately, the proposed two towers will show even more than Tower #1 from various points along the beach because of increased visibility at the gully heads since they lie south of Tower #1. Bottom line is that simply because UBC continued building Tower #1 throughout our organized protests, that need not become the precedent for their forging ahead with the construction of Towers #4 and #5!

Bioengineering has already been suggested on the cliffs in order toprotect buildings that should never have been built there in the first place. Plus a consultant has already called for interceptor ditches paralleling the cliff edge that would kill the trees for lack of water. And, that would lead to opened-up views and a possible re-interpretation of the Attorney General toward nudity on the beach.

On June 20, UBC said at a Joint Committee meeting that they did not approve of the nudist lifestyle and behaviour at Wreck Beach. This was the first time in years where they openly criticized the nudity!

On October 8, in a Globe and Mail article, UBC Properties Trust announced that they would be “moving forward” with Phase II of the project … BEFORE all public and agency feedback is due by October 31, and before the GVRD Board has had a chance to vote on the issue. On October 6, one day after the public hearing, the Advisory Urban Design Panel voted unanimously to accept the designs presented on October 5. Puzzling indeed.

We thus have our work cut out for us, and with your support through letters, e-mails, and donations, we can continue to stand up for our Naturist rights and beliefs.

However, we do not have time for posted letters. You must send e-mails to ensure you make the October 31 deadline for public input. You can use your own words, or you can adapt the wording below to which you may add your own reasons for wanting the views preserved. You may want to talk about the importance of Wreck Beach and its drawing power for tourists from around the world. You may want to tell them that you visit the beach regularly and spend your tourist dollars locally, nationally and internationally to come here. You may want to talk about the healing nature of the beach and the benefits of getting away from urban concrete, glass and steel. That , of course, will be up to you. But, bottom line is that the Phase II towers must be lowered from 18 storeys.

SAMPLE WORDING AND FORMAT OF LETTER TO BE FAXED OR E-MAILED TO JUDY WILLIAMS AND PAULETTE VETLESON (YOU DO NOT NEED TO FAX OR E-MAIL TO ALL THOSE LISTED IN THE SALUTATIONS).

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Your Return Address:

The Date:

Mr. Denis Pavlich, VP of External and Legal Affairs, UBC;
Mr. Johnny Carline, CAO, the Greater Vancouver Regional District;
Mr. Hugh Kellas, Manager, GVRD Policy and Planning;
Members, the GVRD-UBC Joint Committee;
Members, the GVRD Board of Directors;
Members, the UBC Board of Governors;
Mr. Ed Andrusiak, Manager GVRD Parks;
Mr. Mitch Sokalski, Manager, West Area Parks, and
GVRD Policy and Planning Department

Via e-mail,
c/o: paulette.vetleson@gvrd.bc.ca and
Via e-mail to: judyw@wreckbeach.org
Via Fax to Judy: 604-(604) 856-9598


Dear Decision Makers and Stewards of UBC and GVRD:

Re: Marine Residential Towers.

I strongly oppose the current proposal for this development. The level of housing is far too dense for the site and the towers will have a profoundly negative impact on viewscapes from the beach and Park, as well as on other Park values. I strongly recommend that UBC use an alternative location or design to reduce the impact of this development on the park and beach. The two 18-storey Phase II towers must be lowered on this site. These towers must not show from the beach because:







Signature and Phone Number/E-Mail:

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Thank you again for all the previous donations and letters. The online petition is slightly different than the one you may have signed last year. You can access it online at www.wreckbeach.org or we can fax it to you. Each sheet has six lines. . . . Donations can be sent to:

28616 Haverman Road,
Bradner,
B.C. V4X 2P3

but make them out to WBPS. CANADA


Bless you and thank you for standing united against oppression and greed.

THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE TO COMMENT. WRITTEN COMMENTS WILL BE ACCEPTED UNTIL OCT. 31, BUT PLEASE E-MAIL AS THERE IS NOT ENOUGH TIME TO MAIL.

Please copy us FOR EACH LETTER! We need a show of solidarity as never before. For additional details, call or e-mail Judy Williams at 604-856-9598 or at judyw@wreckbeach.org .

Please pass this message and form letter on to all your naturist and environmental e-mail contacts across North America, Europe and elsewhere in the world.

Thank you!

"VIRTUES OF NAKEDNESS Physical & Psychological Health"

CLOTHED WITH THE SUN 7.3, p. 25

Reprinted (to rec.nude) by permission of Dr. Conrad Manning, MD.

Whether we admit it consciously or not, our basic core considerationsrevolve directly or indirectly around our own physical bodies. Manyconventions and taboos about our bodies have become artificiallyestablished in our culture through the centuries, some good, some bad.

I would like to examine this core concern of all of us: our ownphysical body. What should it be or not be surrounded by in order tobring out its full potential in function and ability?

If the world were totally safe, always comfortably warm and fullyloving without reservation and without exploitation, perhaps most people would spend a lot of time naked. Even now many people spend moretime in the naked state than is commonly realized. Certainly most people bathe naked; many sleep naked; and many private activities besides sexual ones are performed naked. Housework, for example, is frequently done in the nude when no one else is around.

We were all born totally naked. No one had little scuba outfits when in the uterus. Naked is the way we come and naked is the way we really are now. The clothes we wear are not part of us--we're stark naked under there. Nearly everyone has those anatomic parts we seem to try so hard to hide on a conscious level while on a subconscious one we frequently overemphasize and flaunt with clothing styles and apparel devices. If you're a normal adult you have either a penis and scrotum or vulva and developed breasts. Nearly everyone has an anus too. We all know what's there but in our society we still usually want to hide it from others. Let's look at why we do this because all of the reasons are not obvious nor are they all valid.

FIRST OF ALL LET'S REMIND OURSELVES again that we were all born naked and in fact the natural state throughout life is to be naked. If we can set aside a number of considerations temporarily such as modesty, need to keep warm, etc. and if we can be honest with ourselves, we will admit that being nude is very comfortable. Take the case of any young children. Toddlers would rather be nude. They don't want to wear diapers and keeping them in clothes requires some adult effort. Most parents have made the observation of how free, active and joyful a young child becomes when undressed. You, my dear friend, are still the same in this regard as you were as a young child if you look at your innermost feelings.

There is a commonly held opinion that clothing, covering and otherwise hiding the human body has something to do with morality. Somehow, it is felt, that by covering the body, especially (currently) the genitalia, buttocks and female breasts, sexual activity will tend to be limited to that which the society or culture generally condones. However, studies of various cultures characterized by different degrees of dress from total nakedness to complete or almost complete covering of the entire body show no clear correlation between sexual promiscuity and undress. In fact, there is no established, intact culture or society in the world now or in history that has had the incidence of venereal disease that modern western society has. Venereal disease may be taken as a measure of a society's level of sexual promiscuity. Western society is able to survive the effects of venereal diseases of epidemic proportions due to rampant sexual immorality only through the intervention of extensive medical treatments, which, by the way, are far from adequate.

Clothing is not the key to increasing public morality. To be sure, we must recognize that there is commonly a perceived association between nakedness and immorality. That is, if a society (like our own generally) does not permit nonsexual mixed social nudity, then nudity almost by definition has a significant sexual connotation. --can we be surprised at this? We need to recognize that this is of our own making; it need not be so by the nature of things.


Most of us are taught as children over and over by parents, relatives, teachers and others that nakedness is bad, although it's usually made relative in various ways. It's all right to be naked for the doctor, for example. Sometimes for young children at least, nakedness may be tolerated before family members or even for some recreational activities such as at the seashore. But as we grow up, nakedness in front of others becomes less and less acceptable except perhaps in private in the context of sexuality.

Ancient writings often reveal interesting insight. For example, in the Biblical account of the garden of Eden, it is only after sin began that concern over being naked became an issue. It was only man's guilt and shame over breaking God's commandment that resulted in his (not God's) institution of clothes. Nowhere in the Bible is nudity directly prohibited. The situation is similar today. Clothes frequently represent guilt and an attempt to deny the sexual thoughts and desires every normal person has. Except to the extent that expectation produces its own effect, clothes have no significant value in controlling sexuality. In fact, there is considerable evidence that sexual aberrations are stimulated by clothing practices.

In our society, nakedness is associated with two basic activities, namely: hygienic functions such as bathing, changing clothes, etc. and sexuality. If we were naked at other times as for sunbathing, sports, exercising and even just relaxing, the strong association with sexuality would be weakened. But now if a person were to take off his or her clothes in public, it would probably be interpreted as criminally or psychologically deviant. One could not just disrobe
because of the heat or because one's clothes were too tight or otherwise uncomfortable. This would not be accepted as just the matter-of-fact thing it might have otherwise been.

Sociological studies of ethnic groups in which nudity is common have demonstrated that there is no cause and effect relationship between being naked and immorality. Social nudists also exhibit this lack of association. Still, it is clear that many people perceive an association between nudity and overt sexuality. From the standpoint of scientific psychology it can be demonstrated that this connotation of nudity is no more than a learned sexual fetish. It is not an innate [human] characteristic.

Merely mentioning nudity and nakedness in our society generally brings forth connotations of sexuality and pornography. We MUST recognize that these associations are not fixed or universal by any means. Nudity in some circles and some societies is completely divorced from sexual overtones. It may have no significant meaning in itself or it may indicate such diverse conditions as poverty, humility and, perhaps surprisingly to some, commonly even a state of sacredness and holiness.

THERE IS VALUE IN UNLEARNING the sexual connotation of nudity because nude activities provide many physical and health benefits not fully obtainable otherwise, among which are: greater freedom of movement which is important in exercise and work; greater appreciation of the beauty of the human body even with faults and defects; regular and controlled nude sunbathing enhances resistance to disease, provides more effective and natural vitamin D and calcium balance, reduces the effect of stress, decreases blood pressure, decreases resting heart rate, decreases blood cholesterol, decreases excessive blood sugar, increases muscular strength and endurance, improves many skin diseases such as psoriasis, reduces depression, reduces risk of internal cancer as well as heart and blood vessel disease. Because of more natural testicular function produced by a cooler scrotum, nudity reduces male infertility, impotence, nodular prostatic enlargement with resultant urinary tract obstruction, as well as reducing the risk of testicular and probably prostatic cancer. Nakedness provides relief from the harmful effects of clothing and shoes such as mechanical constriction which may cause deformities, poor lymphatic and blood circulation, inadequate breathing, compromised digestion, hernias, fibrocystic disease of the breast (as well as possibly breast cancer), varicose veins, formation of blood clots and interference with the ability to relax. The occlusive effects of clothing include increased risk of infections of the vagina, bladder, perianal skin, feet and so forth. Lack of natural circulation causes increased body and foot odors. Increased risk of falls can be traced to slippery shoe soles as well as shoes interfering with feelings and tactile perception. The risk of communicable diseases is reduced because skin rashes, open sores, etc. are not hidden by clothing and inappropriate associations can thereby be avoided.

If the thought comes to mind that NEARLY nude would pretty much accomplish the same thing, remember that there are important reasons to particularly expose the very body parts that "modesty" might want covered. It is precisely the skin of the genitalia, buttocks, perianal areas and breasts which benefits most from the drying and cooling effect of free air flow as well as the drying antimicrobial and other desirable attributes of sunlight itself. Logically if any parts should be covered at all it would make more sense to cover the face and hands since the skin of these parts is already liable to more that its share of sunlight, etc. by ordinary daily activities in the clothed state. TOTALLY nude at appropriate times is really the only way the full benefits can be obtained.

Sociological studies have shown that social nudists generally have higher moral values than the general population. In addition, nudist families are more stable than average. Children exposed to the social nudist lifestyle grow up with [FAR] fewer sexual hangups and aberrations than control groups. This should not be surprising since much sexually deviant behavior has a significant component of exhibitionism or voyeurism, the point of which is largely lost in a totally nude group of people. By making nakedness an ordinary, matter-of-fact, common experience, unassociated with sexuality, the unhealthy prurient interest in pornography would be considerably lessened.

The prospect of non-sexual nudity could generally be expected to generate at least a limited increased concern for our own body appearances. This is a highly desirable aspect to the extent that it encourages appropriate attention to diet, exercise and other lifestyle considerations.

Of course it's not practical to be totally nude at all times. Clothing often is very functional and is desirable to protect against excessive heat or cold. Clothes may guard against too much sun or ultraviolet exposure, rain, snow, trauma and other injury particularly in the work place, and so forth. Pockets are useful. Uniforms may be necessary for identification and other purposes. There are useful sanitary functions of clothing. No one could reasonably deny these important and legitimate purposes of clothing but this is not to say that nudity does not also present important and legitimate purposes at appropriate times and in appropriate places.

Clothes serve many useful functions even though successfully improving morality is not one of them. In fact clothes are frequently overtly designed to be particularly sexually provocative and often, if not usually, are more sexually arousing than total nudity might be. It would be a step toward better psychological and physical health if we could accept public nudity in a matter-of-fact way at least to a limited extent. Certainly no one would be harmed by such a practice in designated areas and at designated times for specific legitimate purposes as sunbathing, exercising and for various sports. Many people have enjoyed nude jogging, swimming, sunbathing and other similar activities in secluded places for years. Not everyone has convenient access to isolated places where this can be done privately without possible offense to others. It would be an appropriate use of public areas such as parks to have designated, clothes-optional, areas and times when legitimate nude activities are permitted. Actually, it could be argued that it's even more appropriate to turn the situation around and designate times and places where clothes must be worn (textile areas) so that those who are offended by the natural body state and who are unable or unwilling to separate nudity and sexuality, can assemble together without fear of having to deal with nature and the truth.

Let us look forward to the day when the vision of society will be cured of its crippling moral myopia. Certainly standards of morality are essential to the efficient functioning of a society and as a framework for dedicated, potentially vulnerable inter-personal relationships. No one could reasonably deny this. The problem here is that society now confuses morality with fashion and convention Let's clearly focus on the true issues.

IT SHOULD BE RECOGNIZED the most beautiful creation, God's crowning glory, is the human body--yes, genitalia and all! Stop for a moment to contemplate your hand for example (or any other body part for that matter). What an absolutely amazing creation it is! Think of the complex structure and design; consider the engineering involved, the complicated physical and chemical reactions constantly occurring; and most of all now realize how beautiful it is and how beautiful your whole body is! We can be so bold as to declare that it is still so even with imagined faults and defects such as asymmetry, congenital deformity, warts, scars, traumatic and surgical amputations, skin rashes and what-have-you. It is only made more interesting in its variety. The genuine love and concern of others will transcend what you think you look like and what deficiencies you may think you have. However you appear in the naked state, you should realize that your body IS BEAUTIFUL. Actually you need to realize that you, yourself, are the most beautiful thing ever created. And to add glory upon glory, you can make yourself even more beautiful through application of the optimal lifestyle, including specific attention to the five keys to optimal health:

1. Diet with vitamin and mineral supplementation.

2. Exercise and work, physical and mental.

3. Environmental factors such as sunlight, fresh clean air and appropriate clothing (or lack of it).

4. Personal interactions emphasizing love, affection, and play--all within the framework of psychological and physical disease prevention.

5. Attitudinal attunement, which is the development of an unfettered view of reality and which is essential to personal inward peace and equanimity.

As glorious as the human body may be as an object of beauty, it is even more astoundingly exquisite when fulfilling its functional potential--that is, when it is being properly used. For example, as beautiful as a woman's breasts may be, they are never lovelier than when nursing her infant.

EVEN MORE IMPORTANT than the numerous physical health benefits associated with nudity are the psychological and attitudinal advantages induced by the realization of the moral neutrality and simple innocence of nudity per se. When we realize that the coverings we have placed on our bodies have nothing to do with desirable moral attributes, the way is open to the startling revelation that our psychological envelopes, attitudes and opinions may also constitute undesirable armor shielding us from otherwise attainable beauty and truth.

Psychological shells or envelopes, like clothing, can protect and insulate against undesirable environmental forces and situations. Such envelopes, again like clothing, can also have adverse consequences, such as mental illness, inability to reach out to others across the barriers of differentness, and may also be the cause for mankind's most serious illness -- the inability to love others.

It's time to be able to assume psychological nudity of which physical nudity is symbolic. Let us shed the silly and harmful apparel of hate, sloth and the desire to exploit. Let us truly be naked, inwardly as well as externally. Let us be free to soar in pure love and delight. Free to learn and be open to creativity. Free again to be the real person, the simple child we all really are. Free to love and play.

Sauvie Island: Last Gasp of Summer Warmth

(Collins Beach near the volleybal courts, Entrance #2)
The beach is beautiful, serene and stunning in its' own right . . . but it needs its' happy, sun-loving children to warm the subdued colors, golden. I can hardly wait until next summer!

Sunday was supposed to be a break in the rain showers and miserable weather we've been having these past several weeks . . . our typical autumn weather. So I drove down to Portland hoping to find like-minded friends enjoying that last gasp of sunshine on the beach. As one person put it, '. . . even if it means hunkering down in a foxhole in the sand for a few hours.' My kind of dedication . . . or insanity!

Well I didn't see anyone out there a'hunkering down, though I did see what looked like a poor excuse for a foxhole near the v-ball courts and a whole lot of fire pits that looked recent. Channel 12 (the Beach Radio channel for ORCOBA) was remarkably silent. Had the entire beach all to myself except for several textile couples out walking their dogs. A cabin cruiser came inbound up the river and I heard the surprised voice of some guy bouncing across the water (the voice, not the guy) saying 'hey, there's a nude guy on the beach!', so I 'mooned' them and sent them on their way.

A float plane came in and buzzed the beach REAL LOW. Sorry, only me and I ain't much to look at . . . LOL Guess that's why he didn't come back around for a second pass.

Toward late afternoon, by which time I figured no one else was going to show up and keep me company (or at least bring me a Grande Latte with 1/2 a pump of vanilla), the sun came out from behind the clouds, the sky cleared and a few other brave souls showed up for the last of the sunshine . . . so warm on the skin. There we stood, facing the sinking western sun like priests ready to begin a ritual sacrifice . . . ever taking one more step backward toward the water's edge; staying out of the lengthening shadows to absorb one or two more ergs of solar radiation. A trio of bundled-up gawkers on the textile beach stared at us as if we were crazy. Shoulda mooned them as well . . .

Cleaned two trash bags of bottles, bottle caps (Corona is the beach favorite, hands down), beer cans, assorted other trash and fifteen billion cigarette butts (them damn smokers) but all in all the beach was pretty clean. So unless someone's going to get a cool-weather beach activity going, I guess this is my last visit for this season.

Amy's Behavioural Index for Men on Nudist Beaches

Posted to Cat's Message Board at FreeBodyZone

---

Presenting: Amy's Behavioural Index for Men on Nudist Beaches

man looks up from his book and sees pretty girl nude on beach:
1 - man thinks nothing, goes back to his book.
2 - man thinks, "what a pretty girl," goes back to his book.
3 - man thinks, "what a pretty girl, i wouldn't say no to that if it was offered!" and goes back to his book.
4 - man thinks, "what a pretty girl, i wouldn't say no etc" and looks at girl appreciatively for a bit before going back to his book.
5 - man thinks, "pretty girl, i wouldn't say no etc" and stares unashamedly for ages, even when girl notices him staring and obviosly becomes uncomfortable.
6 - man thinks, "pretty girl, i want a bit of that" and moves over to start chatting girl up, because if she's naked already she's bound to be up for it, right?
7 - man thinks, "pretty girl, i desperately need a bit of that! oh yeah, baby, work it!", gets erection at sight of girl and openly displays it to her.
8 - man thinks, "pretty girl etc, work it! etc" and begins openly masturbating himself.

---

if you think you'd fit into the first category, you've either been a nudist for so long that the naked female form offers no surprises for you, or you should consider the priesthood. or you're gay, in which case you should have replaced the word "girl" with "boy" in the chart anyway.

category two and three are, to my mind, totally acceptable thoughts and behaviour and i would have no problem associating with you at nudist events or stopping for a chat on the beach or something.

category four is also totally acceptable so long as you're not making a habit of it (i.e. moving on to category five). if i saw you looking and you looked away embarassed, i wouldn't think badly of you for it - you're only human!

category five is moving on to less acceptable. if you're aware that your behaviour is not appreciated but carry on anyway, you're not appearing as a nice, harmless guy any more and i may no longer feel comfortable staying in close proximity to you (this is the worst i have actually experienced myself btw). however, you're probably not a pervert, just someone who is yet to recognise women as more than objects for your titilation.

category six is stuff that you may be asked to leave the beach for if you do it on every girl there, and would almost certainly get in trouble with management at a resort. you haven't been invited and yet you assume the girl will welcome and maybe even respond to your attentions. she's probably not there to pick up guys (i never was!) and so won't really want you coming over. and if you don't take the hint and leave, well that's even worse. again, it doesn't necessarily make you a pervert, but you aren't seperating nudity and sex in the context and you probably need to learn even more than the category five guys about how to deal with women in a nudist setting. and generally, too.

category seven and eight are unhealthy sexual displays. seven is a bit less bad than eight because it shows you still have some notion of keeping things private, but it is still unacceptable. both will get you thrown out of a club i am sure, and would probably get you confronted by a gang of rather more appropriately-minded and protective male nudists at a beach. both are also criminal offences. if you think you'd be unable to stop yourself from doing either seven or eight, congratulations, you're a pervert. stay the hell off my beach!

but if you think you'd be able to keep it in the top 3, or at least the top 4, then you're perfectly normal and unlikely to upset anyone at the beach, because no matter your thoughts, you aren't transferring them into actions.

University of BC has a Nude Beach?

It’s official. We should all move to Vancouver.

The ‘glass city’ (so-called because of the mirror-windowed towering skyscrapers) has been voted the “best place in the world to live”, says the Independent.

Not sure how ‘independent’ this study is, since the first line of the article is “the university has a nudist beach”.

Not that we’re complaining. In fact, any city in the world which has flashing freshers would get our vote.

Well, so goes the rationale for Vancouver, BC being voted the Best City to Live as reported in the Independent Online Edition on Oct 5th .

What boils my blood, and more than a few others who love this 'nude beach' . . . they are referring, of course, to Wreck Beach . . . is that the beach DOES NOT belong to the University of BC . . . they are just real close to each other. What makes us head for the tranquilizer pills is that this same university is the one that is destroying the beauty and natural setting of Wreck Beach with it's insistence on raising student domitory towers high over the forested bluffs overlooking the beach.

And then the sleeze e-zine MegaStars gets in on the action with a unnaturalist clique to "Whip 'em off, ladies!' An image accompanies the article . . . a link to a slideshow (MegaBabes) of scantily-clad young ladies that an uninformed reader might be convinced was taken at Wreck Beach when in fact it was not taken anywhere in the area. The images are at best, cheesecake, at worst, the wrong image of a nudism/naturist beach.

Wreck Beach Update: UBC Towers Violate GVRD Resolution

The above image is mine . . . constructed from Google Earth images to give some idea of a 'peeping Tom's' bonanza that these towers would provide over the clothing-optional beach below. Looking back up from the beach, where one would have seen pristine treed bluffs, the UBC will now poke student dormitory towers into the view of the beach-goers as it has already done with the completed Tower #1.

I am awaiting the just-released locations of the new towers so that I can plot the line of sights from them. Rick

Media Release
For Immediate Release


UBC Towers Violate GVRD Resolution
Proposed Next Phase of Towers More Visible from Beach

VANCOUVER, B.C. -- October 6, 2005 -- UBC held public meetings yesterday, to inform the public of its plans to build yet more high rises adjacent to Pacific Spirit Regional Park. At the Open House meeting, UBC released images showing the impact of these new towers on the view from Wreck Beach.

The images show that the proposed towers will be even more visible from the Beach than the existing tower. Worse yet, the proposed towers will violate a GVRD Board resolution of July 29, 2005, which dictated that any new towers not be more visible than the first tower.

The GVRD, which has authority over planning on campus, resolved that UBC will only be allowed to build more towers visible from the beach if UBC meets certain conditions. First, UBC must prove that it has explored all reasonable alternative designs and alternative locations for student housing. Second, UBC must prove that any other alterative design or location would cause unreasonable financial hardship on its student housing program. And no matter what, the GVRD resolution prohibits UBC from building any tower that would impact the view from that part of the beach
which is currently unscathed by the existing tower.

"The two towers will loom over much more of the beach than we feared," said James Loewen, vice-chair of the Wreck Beach Preservation Society. "They will ruin the natural back drop of Wreck Beach. UBC promised not to expose any more of the beach to views of towers, but clearly if these towers are built as proposed it's a broken promise. Shame on UBC," continued Loewen.

The public meetings were a 4 pm Open House that was immediately followed by a Town Hall meeting at 7 pm where UBC presented it's Phase Two plans to build two more 18 storey towers, in addition to the Phase One 18 storey tower already built.

At the Town Hall meeting, members of the public, including students, alumni, faculty, and members of the Wreck Beach Preservation Society and Pacific Spirit Park Society, almost unanimously opposed UBC's new development plan. Speaker after speaker urged UBC not to build the new high-rises, charging that they will further impact the beautiful views enjoyed by beach visitors. Despite this near-universal opposition, UBC Properties Trust intends to submit its plans to the UBC Advisory Urban Design Panel today, October 6, without amending them in any way to reflect public concern.

"We are extremely skeptical about UBC's willingness to actually incorporate public feedback and input into its design," said Judy Williams, chair of the Wreck Beach Preservation Society. "The public comment period extends to October 31, 2005. Yet UBC is pushing to have its building design approved immediately, before the public has had a full opportunity to comment," Williams' continued.

At the Town Hall meeting, UBC was unable to demonstrate that it had truly considered alternative locations and site designs. WBPS has presented alternative locations, and alternative building designs, to both the GVRD and UBC; however UBC appears not to have considered these alternatives. WBPS has provided an alternative architectural design, demonstrating how UBC could easily lower the proposed 18 story towers, while maintaining virtually the same number of student beds in the original design.

Many at the Town Hall meeting said there is much underutilized space at UBC that could be used for student housing, making up any shortfall that would result if the towers were lowered.

Wreck Beach is part of Pacific Spirit Regional Park, which is protected from development impacts by its Regional Park Management Plan and by the Official Community Plan (OCP), a bylaw of the GVRD. Any towers built higher than the GVRD line-of-sight analysis are not in compliance with the OCP. The OCP requires all new development by UBC to protect and preserve Park values.


For more information, please contact:

Judy Williams, Chair, WBPS, 604-308-6336, judyw@wreckbeach.org
James Loewen, Vice-Chair, WBPS, 604-689-9697, james3d@shaw.ca
Kim Siren, Director, PSPS, 604-738-5233, siren1@telus.net

Questions

1. What does GVRD plan to do now that UBC's latest Phase Two plan does not follow GVRD's July 29 resolution?
2. Will UBC incorporate public feedback and input into its design?

Backgrounder

In February 2004, UBC announced plans to build towers on the bluffs above Pacific Spirit Park's Wreck Beach.

On April 10, 2004, WBPS retained a professional firm to help conduct a visual impact study by raising a blimp to the exact height of the towers closest and farthest from the cliff, at the towers' exact location. Only those two towers were measured because of the expense and the Society's limited budget. The height of the blimp is clearly shown in the top right hand corner of the photo that was later used to illustrate the view of the towers from Wreck Beach. On May 3, 2004, WBPS released an illustration produced by an architectural grad student who took UBC's own plans and measurements and superimposed the closest and farthest towers onto a photograph taken April 10, 2004. The illustration accurately portrayed UBC's original plan of the tower now built (Phase One) and towers yet to be built (Phase Two).

On or before May 17, 2004, Dennis Pavlich, VP of External and Legal Affairs for UBC, said that the tower farthest from the cliff edge (the Phase One tower now built) would not be visible from Wreck Beach and UBC would proceed to build the towers despite widespread community opposition and no public hearing.

On November 22, 2004, UBC announced plans to drop the height of the Phase One tower. UBC was forced to lower that rear tower to 18 storeys when it was discovered that their original plan did not comply with the Official Community Plan for Electoral Area A, a bylaw of the GVRD adopted on July 25, 1997. UBC is part of Electoral District A, which is administered by the GVRD. The GVRD has the authority to regulate building guidelines on the UBC site in relation to their impact on the adjacent park and beach.

Petitions were launched by the WBPS where, to date, over 40,000 people have signed calling on UBC to find another way. Visitors from all provinces in Canada except PEI, 45 communities within BC but outside the Lower Mainland, 30 states in the US, and 18 foreign countries in addition to thousands of Lower Mainland residents, have supported preservation of Wreck's magnificent vistas. In less than 54 hours this summer, over 3000(?) persons have signed a petition calling for comprehensive public consultation and supporting the GVRD Staff line-of-sight which would preserve the remaining panorama viewscape from Wreck Beach toward the forested cliff tops.

On July 6, 2005, Tourism Vancouver issued a letter asking the GVRD to preserve the viewscapes near the tip of Point Grey, at Wreck Beach, and including portions of Pacific Spirit Park. Many international and local guidebooks refer visitors and tourists to Wreck Beach, as do six Tourism Vancouver information centres, describing Wreck as "one of the worlds' great beaches", "very beautiful", "undeveloped (and unspoiled)", and "pristine".

The GVRD has echoed the concerns of the public about the impact on the pristine, natural views of the cliffs from the beach, on the privacy of beach visitors, and on cliff stability and erosion. On October 29, 2004, the GVRD passed three resolutions regarding the development. The first expressed opposition to any development that compromises the historical viewscape and the privacy of Wreck Beach from all areas of exposed beach at low tide. The second advocated that UBC release its background reports to the public, and the third requiring UBC to conduct a full public review, including consultation with the Musqueam, regarding the impact of the development on Pacific Spirit Regional Park.

Unfortunately, UBC still wasn't listening -- prompting the GVRD, at its full Board meeting on July 29, 2005, to pass a motion directing UBC to improve its public consultation process and not build towers visible during the spring/summer foliage season from the beach -- or demonstrate that UBC has explored all reasonable locations and site design alternatives, and prove that there is no alternative that can be achieved without unreasonable hardship to UBC's student housing program. The full resolution passed July 29 is:

" That the GVRD Board:

a) Advise UBC that the Board recommends that the Marine Student Residences-Phase Two not be visible during spring/summer foliage season from Beach Zones 'A', 'B' and 'C' as illustrated in Attachment 1 [of the report dated July 8, 2005, titled 'Pacific Spirit Regional Park and UBC's Marine Drive Student Residences-Phase Two'];
b) Advise UBC that the Board recommends relaxation of recommendation (a) to no visibility of the Marine Student Residences-Phase Two during spring/summer foliage season from Beach Zones 'A' and 'B' and a maximum height limit of 53 meters including appurtenances be considered if UBC can demonstrate that:
i) they have explored all reasonable locations and site design alternatives to minimize the visual impact from Beach Zone 'C';
ii) there is no alternative that can be achieved without unreasonable hardship on the UBC student housing program;
iii) the absence of any visual impact on Phase Two buildings on Beach Zones 'A' and 'B' has been proven by a verifiable study acceptable to GVRD and UBC staff; and
iv) if any issues cannot be resolved by GVRD and UBC staff, that the
matter be referred to the GVRD-UBC Joint Committee co-Chairs;
c) Direct staff to review the GVRD-UBC Memorandum of Understanding regarding the process for institutional development that may have an impact on Pacific Spirit Regional Park; and
d) Reconfirm UBC develop consultation guidelines that includes broad consultation, sufficient advance notice, and a process for incorporating suggestions into any final outcome. "

Option (b) means the GVRD has the final say where UBC has to come back to the GVRD Board if they can't adhere to (a) or (c).

At the July 29 GVRD meeting, the WBPS presented alternate locations for student housing, as well as alternative building designs for the Phase Two towers site. A full range of locations and design alternatives now exist, including a redesign of the Phase Two site where WBPS's architectural consultant demonstrated how UBC could lower the towers significantly, while maintaining virtually the same number of student beds as originally intended at the Phase Two site. The WBPS's design lowers the tower's height and adds floors to the lower connective building.

-end-

Nude Night Hike (Windy Peak, east side)

Oh, that I wish the trail had been as illuminated as when the picture was taken.

I try to avoid hiking in the dark, even though I have a great hiking headlamp that clearly shows the trail in front of me . . . or in whatever direction I'm am looking.

Nevertheless, I bit off more than I could chew and misjudged the amount of time to complete an relatively obscure trail near the Windy Peak area (the peak responsible for the Wellington Snow Avalanche of 1910 that killed scores on the Great Northern tracks west of Steven Pass). Fortunately, I try to always hike prepared.

It was cool out . . . close to cold (the peak and a few nearby peaks already have a dusting of snow on them). The hike in was nude . . . and I stayed nude with the one exception of pulling a teeshirt over my back to ward of the worst of the chills.

It's an unusual experience, hiking nude in almost total darkness. I have this slight claustrophobia to begin with (guess that's why I like the outdoors) and in pitch-black darkness that phobia comes edging in only held in check by the boundaries of my headlamp and the sharp wedge of light tht shines forth.

But it's kind of a test and challenge, as well. I know there are bears and cougars up here and my senses are that much more attuned to every little sound around me. I never did reach a point of panic (or even anxiety) but, to tell you the truth, the moment I got back to the metal-enclosed cage of my car and shut the door (locks engaging), a great big load sloughed off me as the adrenalin-rush gave way to . . . gee, I don't believe I just did that. I sat there in my car for another half hour just staring out at the darkness I just come in from while warming myself with a cup of coffee from the thermos.

The night hike is also getting me acclimated to the colder weather approaching. Some of my favorite nude hiking is in increment weather and snow storms (even a blizzard once, though I didn't remain unclothed for long). Funny, I can never seem to fine anyone else willing to brave the elements like myself.

I am still afraid of the dark . . . which means I'll be out there doing it again. LOL

September's Poll Results: Nudist Affliliation

Wreck Beach Petition Deadline

Everybody who comes to my blog right now, STOP and PLEASE Take a Moment to send off an email to the University of British Columbia requesting they keep the students towers from intruding over the Clothing Optional Wreck Beach.

Take a moment now! Forget about the rest of my blog . . . it will still be there after you petition UBC. This is important! The future of one of the finest clothing-optional beaches IN THE WORLD is at stake.

Dear Lovers of Wreck Beach,

Here is the note to attach to the form letter that folks can complete and e-mail directly to me at judyw@wreckbeach.org They do not have to bother sending to all the names at the bottom, but please leave the cc's at the bottom for continuity's sake. Thanks, Judy



Dear Wreck Beach Friend/ Supporter:

We will not only be showing what a petition with 40,000-strong signatures looks like, at the public hearing of October 5, we will also be binding all your letters and submitting them. Please, please, please take just a couple of moments out of your busy schedule to fill in your own reasons why you do not want to see three 18-storey towers looming over Wreck Beach, and then e-mail it just to me, Judy Williams at judyw@wreckbeach.org You will not have to send to any of the names cc'd below the form letter because the WBPS will bind these for presentation and they will be entitled: "Wreck Beach Love Letters," October 5, 2005." The hitch is that I need your letters ASAP, by 5 a.m. on Wednesday, October 5 at which point, I will be taking them into Kinko's to bind FOR PRESENTATION THE SAME EVENING.. Please take the time to make this one gesture for the freedom and preservation of our precious beach. Thank you so very, very much.

United we stand. Divided we fall.

Judy Williams, Chair, WBPS

604-856-9598 for additional information or

604-689-9697

---

Here is the text of the email you should send. Highlight it and copy it to an new message in your email program; then add you own personalized thoughts where indicated. Don't forget to keep the cc's at the bottom in your message.

Remember to e-mail directly to Judy at judyw@wreckbeach.org
Rick




YOUR RETURN ADDRESS:







DATE:__________________



Mr. Johnny Carline, Chief Administrative Officer,
(CAO) The Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD);
c/o Paulette Vetleson,
Corporate Secretary to the Joint GVRD-UBC Committee
4330 Kingsway,
Burnaby, BC CANADA V5H 4G8
paulette.vetleson@gvrd.bc.ca



Dear Mr. Carline:



At the July 29, 2005 GVRD Board of Directors meeting, the WBPS presented alternate locations and building designs for student housing to the UBC Marine Towers Phase II site. I urge the GVRD to support your staff recommendations for preserving the viewscape from low-low tide at Wreck Beach toward the cliff tops as originally envisioned. I also urge you to insist that UBC prove "hardship" if they continue with ill-conceived plans to build three (3) more towers to 53 m. in the current location overlookingWreck Beach. In addition, a proper public consultation process must beengaged in Fall 2005. Surely, over 37,000 petition signatures must emphasize public concern and the necessity for the GVRD to steward this most beautiful beach. If built, these four towers will symbolize UBC shame, mockery of due public process, and unwillingness to be a better neighbour to Pacific Spirit Regional Park.



Please persuade UBC to relocate and lower the three (3) Phase II towers to preserve our viewscapes and cliff habitat because:

"Add your thoughts as to why these towers should not be there, here."

Most sincerely yours,


YOUR PHONE OR E-MAIL CONTACT
INFORMATION:______________________________________________________________________

Cc:

Mr. Ed Andrusiak, Parks Manager
(edandrusiak@gvrd.bc.ca);

Mr. Hugh Kellas, Properties and Planning
(Hugh.Kellas@gvrd.bc.ca)

Mr. Kris Nichols, Properties and
Planning(kristian.nichols@gvrd.bc.ca)

Ms. Judy Higginbotham, Chairman of the Parks Committee
(jehigginbotham@city.surrey.bc.ca);

Ms. Barbara Sharp, Co-Chair, GVRD-UBC Joint Committee
(bsharp@cnv.org);

Ms. Anne Roberts, Member, GVRD-UBC Joint Committee
(clrroberts@city.vancouver.bc.ca);

Mr. Gary Gibson, GVRD-UBC Joint Committee
(gbgibson@telus.net);

Mr. Mitch Sokalski, Manager, West Area Parks
((mitch.sokalski@gvrd.bc.ca);

Ms. Judy Williams, Chair, WBPS: (judyw@wreckbeach.org )

Scenic Hot Springs Work Party

There will be a Scenic Hot Springs Work Party on October the 15th. For those wishing to participate we are looking at clearing some more brush from the trails and in the area just west of the present pool. We would also like to do some proactive clearing of culverts on the BPA road and, if possible, installation of water bars on the trail to control erosion that spring snow melt and rains will likely bring.

This is a volunteer effort with the knowledge and blessings of Mike, the owner, who will also be present. We will meet at the gate on FS 850 at 9-9:30AM and for those vehicles capable, proceed on up to the BPA clearcut area to park. A limited number of high-clearance, 4WD vehicles will be able to drive all the way to the trailhead but parking is limited up there.

After the work party we will, of course, head up to the springs to enjoy a much-earned soak . . . and if we are lucky, a gourmet meal from Robert (NG).

Note that cold, wet weather is here and snow is not far behind. I saw a dusting of snow on Windy Peak and Cowboy Mountain last Saturday. Dress appropriately. I recommend:

• A complete set of dry clothes in your car should you get soaked.
• Wear lightweight thermals if appropriate. The weather can turn cold very fast up there.
• Avoid cotton jeans . . . if they get wet they will not dry and will sap the heat right out of you body. Cotton Kills. Wear a water resistant outer shell (rain suit) and dress in layers so that you can remove or add as appropriate.
• Sturdy, water-resistant work boots or hiking boots with two pairs of socks (the inner preferably a polypro wicking pair). Lightweight hiking shoes or sneakers are inappropriate on the wet and often muddy slopes. Keep your feet warm.
• A good pair of work gloves to protect your hands. This is wet weather so I also recommend you tuck a small towel in your waistband to dry you hands; and that you carry another pair of gloves to warm your hands.
• Carry extra socks, a wool sweater and a few other comfort items in a knapsack. I stuff a trash bag as well to protect the knapsack from the elements.
• A towel for after enjoying the hot springs.
• Water

RSVP me personally if you intend to attend

Moss Man

From Perry's Ramble Blog: http://perrysramble.blogspot.com/2005/09/moss-man.html

Sounds like something that might have happened at Scenic Hot Springs in the past - Rick



There is an annual ceremony in the Wood River Valley of Idaho, which celebrates one man's journey into a spriritual and physical union with nature. The cermony celebrates a man known best as Moss Man, and his unique outdoor experience. It all started when he hiked out to a wilderness hot springs one cold winter day, saw that other people were in the hot springs drinking wine, so he jumped in, clothes and all. He noticed that he didn't need clothes in the hot spring, so he took them off and tossed them up on the snow to dry. He then partook of all that life and the wine bottle had to offer, and dozed off to a drunken and drug induced nap.

When he woke up, he was the only one in the hot springs, and his clothes were up on the snow, frozen solid. No problem, he was warm, and he still had a nice buzz going. However, when the buzz wore off and hunger set in, he had second thoughts on his situation. Try as he might, he really couldn't see a way out, but it wasn't like he was freezing either.

To get water, he had to venture to the main stream, drink some water, then scramble back to the warmth of his hot spring. The days started to roll by, and he drank water, and soaked in the hot water. He saw a deer killed by a wolf on the snow, and he thought about going over and getting some meat, but the lack of clothes thing still was a problem. He sat in the hot springs and watched winter storms, the stars and the moon. At one point, some cross country skiiers came by and asked if he was OK. Being a little stubborn, and holding out hope of thinking of a way of rescuing himself, he said he was OK.

A few days later, some other skiers came by and asked if he was OK. By then he thought that if he was not rescued he might die, so he asked for help getting to town. They observed that his skin was severely cracked and peeling, and he had moss growing on his back and hair. He had been in the hot springs 28 days.

The Wood River Journal, March 15, 1984, reported it this way:
"A 20-year-old Hailey man was found soaking in a hot mineral pool at Frenchman’s Bend last Saturday after having apparently lived there for several weeks. "Moss Man" [name withheld to protect the innocent] was discovered by two cross-country skiers, according to a Blaine County Sheriff's Department report. The skiers observed that some of "Moss Man's" skin was peeling and that moss was growing on his back. The semi-conscious victim was taken to Moritz Community Hospital, according to the report. His clothes lay frozen on the ground nearby. A Moritz physician estimated that the victim may have lost 60 pounds while living in the pool. [Moss' sister-in-law said that] the man stood six-two and weighed 210 pounds prior to leaving for Frenchman’s Bend, and that he took a lot of amphetamines. ‘His brains are really scrambled’, she said."

The annual festival to commemorate the event is the Moss Man Commemoration and Pagan Fun Fest, and is held at the same hot springs, and utilizes the same stimulants that got Slim into his predicament.