| Trip Report: Navarre Beach
Memorial Weekend, 1994
My SO and I visited Navarre Beach this weekend. We had a nice time but
did not do much nuding.
Apparently some local ordinances have been passed prohibiting nudity.
During all this, the military has asked that they not be involved, so the
nudists were all on the legal side of the Air Force Base property. However,
the local police are still giving $35 tickets for being nude. One person we
talked to had gotten a ticket the previous weekend. No one got a ticket
over the three days we were there (as far as I know).
There were 40-50 people there Saturday and Sunday - it rained Monday, so
there were only a few people there that day. They are a friendly bunch
and invited everyone to play volleyball with them, even the gawkers :-).
Everyone was also very wary. One guy there ("Pappy") had a whistle that
he would blow to warn people when someone suspicious approached the group.
The few people who were nude/semi-nude would all throw their clothes on
until he blew the "all clear". Everyone agreed that it was a drag to
be so paranoid, and really very few people went nude at all (for one thing,
I think that they didn't want to cause trouble if they were about to
fight a legal battle).
Some folks talked about their hopes that now that Cape Canaveral has
won its legal battle, the national nuding organizations can turn their
attentions to Navarre. Personally, I think it is probably a just matter
of time before nuding is made legal in this section of beach. One of
the days we were there, a long letter was printed in the Navarre paper
about how the locals are not interested in fighting a battle with the
nudists, and that it just seems to be an issue that the county commission
is forcing.
One guy who was an officer in Panhandle Free Beaches gave us some cards
that said "I visited the clothing optional beach at Navarre" to give to
businesses where we spent money. A nice idea, but we felt too much like
religious zealots leaving these little notices for our waitpersons, maids,
and such and only left a few cards.
When the sun started to set, my SO and I suddenly noticed that the nude
folks had cleared out and there were two guys sitting on each beach towel.
I suppose that since the nudists are generally interested in sun and the
gays just take over later, there won't be any conflict. Some nudists
complained that although they had no problems with gay folks, having them
around will make winning over the locals/commissioners all that much harder.
As far as the surroundings: we saw pelicans, terns, herons, black skimmers,
sea gulls, and big schools of fish. The sand is white as sugar and so fine
it squeaks when you walk on it. The water was a clear emerald green. We got
a few minor jellyfish stings while swimming in the mild to moderate surf. It
sure is a beautiful beach!
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