Bare Hiking Interview with Richard Foley and Information on Nude Hiking in the U.S.

Ordinarily he publishes an episode every month, but he fell behind over the summer months.
Episode 73 is all about unclothed hiking. Stephane interviewed Richard Foley, creator of the Naktiv Nook nudist social network and author of the novel, Naked Hiking. The book is a compilation of essays from various naturists and bare hikers, including Mark Storey and Steven Gough.
Foley lives in Germany and has been hiking naked for the last 10 years. Germany is where the naturist movement began, and it is still one of the most unclothed-friendly countries on the planet. So it should come as no real surprise that Foley and his buddies nearly never run into trouble while hiking naked in the wilderness. He says that encounters with clothed hikers are often positive.
Bare hiking
For others thinking about free hiking, as it is frequently called, Foley also offers some common-sense guidance addressing problems like chafing and bra support. For one thing, it would be unwise to attempt hiking fully nude with no shoes or socks, until you're an experienced barefooter. Of course other accessories are useful, including a hat and sunglasses.
Since we do not have an article specifically about unclothed hiking in the U.S., I thought I'd give a brief overview with a few recommended locations and suggestions. But there are places and states where it's legal, including Vermont.
You can legally hike naked and skinny dip in the wilds of Vermont. And I mean wilderness. Strolling naked through a town or location with bunches of dressed individuals isn't recommended and may have legal repercussions. At Vermont's most well-known skinny dipping place, The Ledges, a small part of the trail is designated for naked hiking with indications. At the Ledges, please respect the designated clothing-optional place and don't walk around nude outside of its boundaries.
The indication at The Ledges hiking trail signaling the start of the official naked region.
California is another state with hot national parks that permit free hiking, for example Angeles National Forest. Our FKK Southern California group has done many naked hiking trips to Deep Creek Hot Springs, which can be clothing-optional. (Notice that public nudity is not legal in all of California, just in particular parks and recreation areas.)
There are some other locations where it is legal, but trails are restricted. Many naturist resorts and clubs have hiking trails on their property. Most are flat or not quite strenuous and take 20 - 60 minutes to complete. At some clubs, it is just a nice walk through nature, more so than a "hike" per se.
The Mohonk Preserve in New Paltz, NY, has a brief trail where you can trek nude before you reach their sanctioned skinny dipping place.
Other than that, you are left with going out into the woods in areas where park rangers will not find you. Believe it or not, that is how lots of people try out and enjoy naturism for the first time. It's often free or inexpensive to go into the woods or into a recreational park, it is possible to connect with nature as nature intended, even go camping or skinny dipping at the same time, and there aren't any hassles to get in.
For those that don't live near a club or sand, this can be their only alternative for going naked in the outdoors. You can find many isolated regions of forest in northern states where it is improbable that you will see some other human beings in any way. It does not actually matter if you're nude when there's no one else around to care. The animals surely do not.
Even when you do encounter other folks while hiking, you may be surprised to find that a lot of people don't care that you are nude. But it's still a good idea to bring some type of cover-up just in case, even if you are simply hiking on naturist resort property.

If you get found trekking naked where it is prohibited, take note that there can be serious repercussions beyond just paying a fine. In some states, you are able to visit jail and be charged as a sex offender. Take https://s3.amazonaws.com/x-naturist/nude-in-beach.html and read through to local nudity laws before you venture out Naked and Afraid design.
Hear the complete interview with Foley on the podcast and see relevant links below. In addition to bare hiking, Stephane also briefly talks about a classic movie clip from a nudist beauty pageant (something we will discuss further in an upcoming post). Inside my section, we talk about AANR and Bill Schroer.
http://www.bareoaks.ca/podcast/Nude-Hiking.mp3
Show links:
Preview of the Naked Peacock film
The Naktiv Network (Foley's naturist social network)
The Naked Hiking novel in the Bare Oaks shop (also on Amazon)
Podcast episode 45 on the negative health effects of clothes
Or stream the episode via the Naturist Living Show site.
Readers, what's your experience with naked hiking? Do nude photos on the beach know of other areas where it is legal in the U.S.?
Tags: california, germany, hiking, laws, vermont
Category: Naturist Living Show Podcast, Unclothed Outdoors and Naked In Nature, Nudism and Naturism, Naturist Blog, Public Nudity Laws, Social Nudity Sites
About the Writer (Author Profile)
Author of Nudist Blog. Co-founder of Nudist Portal. 3rd-generation nudie. Avid reader. Feminist. 70% vegan, 30% vegetarian. After https://s3.amazonaws.com/x-naturist/nude-beach-pictures.html 'm not busy eating, I am writing about naturism, censorship, topfree equality, body image and other interesting subjects. I like feedback, so plz leave a comment when you've got something to say!