Greetings and Salutations, Y'all!
Today's blog post is going to be a somewhat different animal than many of y'all are used to from this simple small-town country writer as it deals with a somewhat interesting topic, followed by another personal tale of my existence that deals with this subject.
When it comes to public displays of nudity, I have a somewhat moderate view on the subject.
Certainly I don't think that people should walk down the street with their private places hanging out for all the see. I am also no voyeur in terms of having any real desire in watching such displays either. To be perfectly honest, I don't think many people look very good naked personally.
Now I do know that people will sometimes engage in private displays of nudity in more secluded places like, oh say, the somewhat aptly named Skinny Dip Falls on the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina. Some are couples who want to be adventurous, and others are people who just do it to be comfortable with themselves in their own bodies, or commune with nature in their own way. Sometimes families, or groups of people will forgo bathing suits in their family pools -- behind hedges and large walls, of course.
There's even an unofficial Hike Naked Day on the summer solstice (June 21st) that some adventurous folks take advantage of yearly.
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| All I have to say is I hope they're wearing skeeter repellent and some really good sunblock. |
Believe it, or not, on some U.S. National Parks and federal-owned land, public nudity is not technically illegal.
Yeah, shocker huh?
Federally owned U.S. Forest Service and BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land doesn’t have any federal law specifically banning public nudity. However each national forest, grassland, and all BLM lands does largely honor state and county laws, which vary widely and can result in public nudity warranting a ticket. Most National Park Rangers and BLM officials will take situations of public nudity on a case-by-case basis and will only ticket naked visitors if their nudity "presents a nuisance or hazard to public land users". While a group of nude hikers may get a few weird glances (for obvious reasons), but as long as the intent of such public nudity is solely to be naked and is not to "incite or satisfy sexual arousal," then such people are totally within the boundaries of federal law.
Yeah, there in lies the big issue here in America and our culture. Most people in America and Western Culture -- particularly in secular cultures -- wrongly consider nudity as specifically sexual in nature. In and of itself, nudity isn't predominately sexual, but for the most part many people view it that way.
Specifically some deeply religious people are offended by the display of nudity outside of private places -- and in some cases even then. Indeed there are certainly some people who specifically engage in public nudity as a form of protest against secular morality, or to engage in public displays of sexual gratification, or voyeurism. An internet search will show you almost at once a number of people engaging in sexual acts, or provocative poses for the sake of self-glorification. This does not make such people the norm in particular, but it does blur the lines a great deal on the subject of the acceptance of public nudity.
Sexual predators almost certainly use public nudity to their advantage. Many would also argue that public nudity could lead to more sexual harassment, or sexual assaults. There are many unfortunate precedents for this. By their own twisted nature, sexual predators view nudity as completely sexual.
I would agree that there are already legally defined places where people can be naked in public (nudist colonies and nude beaches for example), and extending these into all public places would be very problematic and would violate other people's moral codes.
Legalizing public nudity could create, or even deepen, cultural barriers and rifts between peoples. That I would deeply disapprove of. At best I could support the idea of public beaches being top-optional for bikini tops like other countries have with little fanfare. My feeling being that after awhile such displays become common and the novelty would wear off for most people.
Of course, in the case of those who privately engage in public nudity when not specifically flaunting it in front of others, such as the people who go to secluded places and engage in au natural displays for personal comfort, or go skinny dipping, I say screw it -- just be sure to wear lots of sunblock and skeeter repellent.
If you aren't hurting anyone, or setting out to offend people, then such limited public nudity in such cases should not be regarded as either malum in se, or even malum prohibitum -- evil because government, or religious authorities say so. I also don't personally feel that an individual's morality is specifically determined by whether or not a third party can see their private areas.
But that's just my two cents on the subject.
Now in the interest of full disclosure, I have gone skinny dipping myself a few times in my youth (on at least two of these occasions not alone, and never in public) and I have once unfortunately streaked a quarter of a mile around my old neighborhood late one very cold night on a stupid dare when I was 16 and a dumbass, but otherwise, I've never actually hiked, or gone naked in a public place.
Well, except for once, and that is the tale that will be telling y'all today. The story of my one and only amateur naturalism experience.
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| Eastern-facing view from the overlook at Crowders Mountain. It was on that rock that I enjoyed my amateur naturalist moment. |
It was sometime in early August of 2004 that I took what was my second official visit to Crowders Mountain State Park in Gaston County, North Carolina. I was 28 at the time.
Unlike my first trip, the second one was my first solo journey up the mountain. The trails to the top are easy enough for a single hiker. I don't remember why I decided to take the 35 mile trip from my home to the mountain that particular day, just a whim on my part. That and a desire to enjoy one of my days off from work.
One thing I did not anticipate that day was one of those quick hit-and-run summer thunderstorms that the South is famous for. Then again it didn't really start getting cloudy till I got to the parking lot at the access near the mountain, nor did I start hearing thunder until I was part of the way up the mountain. I did notice that lots of people were hurrying down the mountain and going back to their cars, some of them already wearing emergency ponchos -- which I didn't have at the time. I did have a couple of plastic bags in my backpack, but I just had time to put my food and supplies in them and seal them when the first drops fell through the canopy of trees.
Now I could have turned back and gone to my car. I would still have gotten soaked in the process, but your favorite blogger isn't the sort to quit over a little rain. So I soldiered on with raindrops pouring down the brim of my wide-brim hat. There was only a few streaks of lightning in the distance, and a lot of thunder, but none of it came close.
The fact that there is a damn large lightning rod in the form of a transmission tower at the top of the mountain did kind-of concern me. I wasn't planning to go anywhere near that end though, just the overlook facing Charlotte, North Carolina in the distance. I judged the risk to be a minor one -- it probably wasn't, but then again I was resolved to get to the top.
When I got to the top, it was still raining, but no longer thundering, or lightning. It was a simple downpour with the more dangerous stuff having moved off to the east. From the overlook I could see the lightning and darker clouds off in the distance over Charlotte 30 miles away.
Not surprisingly, I found that I was the only person there. I had the whole top of Crowders Mountain all to myself. Except for God's beauty all around me, I was alone up there; the usual tourists and visitors having run off and sheltered at the bottom in the rain. My inner introvert was jumping up and down for joy. I closed my eyes and smiled lifting my head to the rainy sky overhead through the trees.
Then a somewhat risque thought came to me and I almost laughed out loud. Since I had the whole mountain to myself, I thought: why not? Again I made certain I was in fact alone up there....and then I stripped out of my rain-soaked clothes and hiking boots and set them out on one of the larger boulders.
I removed my beach towel from my backpack and set it on the boulder and then sat cross-legged on it wearing nothing but my wide-brim, which was still dripping water from the rain. I sat there with my eyes closed just listening to the wind and rain, letting myself feel the rain wash over me. I remember praying to God and thanking Him for the rain and the empty mountain.
Did I feel any more "liberated" being sans clothes? Did I commune with nature in any significant way with my display?
No, not really.
I mean I wouldn't exactly describe the experience as unpleasant, it actually wasn't. But I didn't experience anything different, aside from the fact I was sitting nude in a summer downpour on top of a boulder overlooking 35 miles of North Carolina. I didn't feel weird -- at least no weirder than I usual do. For me the experience was just different.
I remained that way for about half an hour as the rain eventually slacked off to a small drizzle and then stop. I sat there letting my mind wander most of the time, and ate the small lunch that I packed. Eventually I got down and pulled out my (thankfully dry) spare underwear, shorts, t-shirt and socks from my backpack. My boots were still wet, but that didn't matter.
I was again dressed, packed up and just about to pick up my hiking stick and start back down when I heard people coming up the nearby stairway. The tourists were back now that the rain was gone. I almost laughed at the close call, then I greeted the first ones as they came arrived.
And there you have it folks, the story of my one -- and so far only -- amateur naturalism experience. My display of public nudity, even though nobody (aside from God) was a witness to it as far as I am aware. Would I ever do it again? Probably not.
While it was pretty good to let loose, it wasn't a huge deal. Even if someone had popped in during the rain and seen me sitting there on that overlook boulder in all my 6 foot, 2 inch 215 lb (at the time) glory, I likely wouldn't have made it any bigger a deal. I wasn't excited, and it didn't give me any particular thrill. I didn't consider the moment to be all that wild, or crazy.
It was just another moment in my life, another unique experience. Another tale of my existence.
Have any of y'all ever done anything similar that was wild, or crazy? Let me know in the comments section below. Also let me know what y'all think of this story, or ask me about any particular experience in my life that I might be willing to share y'all might be interested in.
Until next time have a wonderful Dixie Day and y'all come back now, ya hear?
