Monday, March 29, 2010

An Enjoyable Nature Walk

It has been an especially cold winter and thus far spring has been cool and unusually rainy with more cloudy days than sunny ones. I have eagerly been anticipating warmer weather and the chance to get back outdoors to enjoy nature in the natural. There is a nudist bed & breakfast not far from my home and I have been looking for nice weather that will permit a visit there during my time off from work but so far at least, I haven't had any luck.

While I haven't had chances for outdoor nude time, I have been spending time outdoors regularly in conjunction with my recent decision to get fitter and lose some weight. As a part of that I have been faithfully following the American Heart Associations recommendation for getting at least 30 minutes of exercise, five days a week. There is a park nearby with an all purpose fitness trail that I have been using for walking and jogging. This past Thursday, was a scheduled walk day for me and despite the fact that it was a little chilly out, with a stiff March breeze, I dutifully donned a pair of shorts, walking shoes and light fleece jacket and headed for the park. The park is quite popular especially for walkers and so I was surprised to find it almost deserted. Other than a young mother allowing her two small children to enjoy the playground equipment near the entrance and another walker who was finishing up as I arrived, I had the whole park to myself.

This particular park has a circular fitness trail the follows the entire perimeter and then there is a shorter connecting loop that runs down from a small ridge towards the river off the main trail. I especially enjoy that portion of the trail because it circles a dense stand of trees and really forms an oasis of nature in the center of an urban environment. Typically the area has lots of birds and small wildlife like squirrels in evidence. As I was starting back up hill towards the main loop, I noticed for the first time that the smaller loop is completely shielded from the view of anyone else in the park unless they happen to been on the main fitness trail near the point where the smaller trail connects. Suddenly an idea was born.

Rather than continuing on to the main trail, I turned back on the smaller loop and slipped off my shorts before continuing my walk. While it didn't seem wise to remove my jacket and get completely naked, it was very enjoyable to at least be partially nude as I continued my exercise. It certainly made my scheduled exercise period much more enjoyable and less of a chore than usual. Once the scheduled 30 minutes were up, I decided to continue walking off the fitness trail down along the river bank through the green belt area that joins the park. After a few minutes I knew I was completely shielded from view by the trees and brush and so at that point felt comfortable removing my jacket too. It has always interested me that the feeling of exhilaration and freedom one experiences while naked in nature never gets old and at least for me never seems routine. Each time I think is as enjoyable as the very first time I experienced it. The sun had popped out after I ventured off trail and the trees effectively cut the wind and so it was actually quite pleasant to be outdoors naked. I hiked and explored for another half hour, surprised that I hadn't discovered this area before which offered a very nice venue for naked walking without much real risk of running into anyone. In all I enjoyed almost of full hour outdoors naked and it was much appreciated leaving me feeling rejuvenated and relaxed.

Finally it was time to head back home so I walked back towards the fitness trail, stopping to dress just short of it and made my way back home. It is always enjoyable visiting the local resorts but my Thursday experience made me stop and think that there are likely lots of places where nudists can enjoy some naked time in nature that we never take the time to notice.

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