Naked Activities in Europe

see also EZF (the English E-Book)

Winter walk along the Inn

...If Man were Meant to be Naked, he would have been Born Naked

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This month (January 2006) has been particularly cold here in Bavaria, with many days a minus 10 degrees centigrade. It has been so cold, with early morning mists keeping the suns head down until later in the day , that any thoughts of outdoor nudism have been quietly shelved until spring, until last Sunday.
The day dawned bright and sunny again, still cold, but as the morning wore on, the temperature rose steadily until it must have been near or just below zero C. Cold it certainly was, but a healthy, fresh and crisp cold. I decided to check out the air temperature and drove south to a spot on the river Inn which I thought might be ideal for a short naked walk. Parking at the end of the tarmac, I set off along the rough track, wearing shorts and shirt, hat, gloves and boots. The air was cool, but the temperature was quite amenable and after several hundred yards, I removed everything except my boots.
Now naked, and carrying my clothes in case of a sudden drop in temperature, I continued along the trail stepping over the broken snow, ice and frozen earth. I passed alongside a smaller river, where the water was frozen for about a third of it's width on both sides. The main channel still moving, with a couple of swans maintaining a seemingly effortless position in the current. Snow lay all around amidst the trees and I walked perhaps a kilometre without seeing anyone.

The Inn is a constrained river running more or less directly North-South. It looks much like a canal with parallel embankments on both sides for much of it's length, but moving quite quickly all the same. It is possible to walk along the embankment itself, in full sunshine, but also in full view of the people on the the other side of the perhaps 100m wide river, a popular walking destination for short flat ambles, with a fine view of the Alps to the south. Because each embankment had a parallel track running alongside, which was crucially lower than the river, and partially screened by ranks of trees on the further side, it was also a bit of a suntrap, so I chose to walk along the base of the embankment.
The only sounds were the crisp crunching of my boots on the thin surface of snow atop the ice of the wide track, and the crowing of occossional birds in the trees. I walked for a couple of kilometres along the river, enjoying the fresh air on all of my skin, the slightest breeze generated by my motion giving a refreshing coolness to the experience. I was on my way back when I met a couple with a teenager and their dog walking in the opposite direction. They were all well dressed for winter, with thick coats, hats, scarves and gloves. Even the dog looked fluffy. I guess they were a bit surprised to meet a naked man walking along the icy trail past the snow covered trees, but each one returned my friendly greeting in like manner, and with a smile. Returning to the car, lightly refreshed after a very pleasant walk, I felt that the warmth of summer was not so far away after all.

Let's not forget Steve Gough, Vincent Bethell, and Terri Sue Webb, for their singular battles against ignorance and prejudice in our allegedly enlightened Europe of the 21st century.