Nudity at gatherings

Dear gang,

As I think I've mentioned here before, I'm planning -- for the tenth or eleventh straight year -- to attend my very first Rainbow Family gathering. As some of you may know from the Bare It forum, I'm also a bit of a nudist. I wouldn't call myself a direhard or a fanatic, but I've never been one to keep my clothes on when I get a green light to strip them off.

From what I understand, Rainbow gatherins are nude-friendly, at least in principle. In every Rainbow photo album, I've seen at least one picture of a naked guy or gal. But something tells me there are rules of protocol that limit where and when to strip off. Rainbows being rainbows, the rules are probably unwritten and subject to dispute. So I'm asking you all now: what tips would you give a would-be sun worshipper on how to enjoy himself at a gathering without offending anyone?

 

you can be nude anytime anywhere there really are no unwritten rules about it i've been going to national gatherings for 18 years and never heard of anything like that. you might wanna carry something around cause sometimes the feds give tickets to people who are nude

 

umm kid villiage & the jusus kitchens frown on nudity its all about respect
ya dont go dancin wavin anything in any1's face like look at me im naked..lol ya dont go nude around folks unconfy with it (the more religios kitchens or kid villiage..which are sorta like saftey zones for kids & umm i guess u could say those whove been taught shame) other then that its no big deal & ya dont rewa;llly notice whos dressed & whos nude..i guess thats it just keep it confy & respectful

 

Excellent point about the kids. It can't be easy keeping gatherings both child- and adult-friendly, so I'm very eager to do my share.

 

you wont have a problem with the rainbows....its the LEOs you have to watch out for....

 

good point about the forest rangers. the leos do often give naked people tickets. there is definately WAY more nudists at nationals than regional gatherings.
one point i would like to make is nude people are not allowed to use my drum without putting a blanket or some other cloth between them and my drum. its a pretty standard expectation.

 

It's also pretty expected, and often enforced by both LEOs and rainbowers, that nude people cover up genitals to help in kitchen areas. Tying back your hair and observing all the other hygenic safety protocol is of course wise and IMO necessary.

Breasts alone, incidentally, are not really part of being nude. Going topless is welcomed without comment anywhere, including kid village. Even the Jesus camps, because they don't want to alienate anyone.

You will get a different vibe going around nude or topless than you would clothed. Rainbow gatherings are a different environment than a nudist camp or nude beach. People are people and still make judgements based on appearance, so be prepared to be hit on, stared at, etc. There's also a lot of celebretory vibes at gatherings and to be totally exposed to it is almost too "high" of a sensory experience. Something worth doing at least once, though, IMO, like some drugs or cliff diving.

I tend to view the nude as either creepy or wonderfully open people. I try not to judge immediately but of course have to protect the youth from the creepy so be prepared to have people feel the need to classify your heart's direction before hugging you or inviting you in their circles. There is no desire to curb your enthusiasm for experience, just a desire to protect all. For example, there was a guy who used to come to gatherings and he would wear these extremely short cutoff shorts (and naught else) that exposed half his penis and butt cheeks to the world. I didn't give that guy much of a chance I must say and avoided him as the creepy nude type. He was actively trying to get hugs, too.

 

heed that warning!....we seen a few nudists in colorado that looked like boiled shrimp after they had been out all day in the sun....

 

haha I saw a brother in only a cowboy hat and cowboy boots. he was lobster red at maincircle on July 4th. I just don't understand why people frown on our natural form. I'm a little iffy on going nude after I had some dude almost follow me at a festie (non-rainbow).

 

Why is that men like to go nude with nothing but a fanny-pack and tevas? Funny Image that I remember...

Sun burns of tender places....

where is the common sense?

Becca I think I remember that fella you were talking about with the shortie shorts...I think I saw him out in the world someplace.

 

Thanks for the thorough response, Bobbin Becca. You answered the very question I was really asking: How can I get naked without being taken for a bigger flake or creep than I really am? I'd heard that rainbows were laid-back about nudity, but even so, I couldn't help noticing that naked people in the pictures were 1) few in number, 2) usually alone, and 3) generally skeevy-looking. That told me that even rainbows have standards of dress -- which, of course, is their right.

If it comes down to a simple choice of making friends or getting naked, I'll take the human fellowship every time. But, hey, it'll be nice if once or twice during the gathering, for an hour or so, I'll be able to withdraw to a tasteful distance, strip down, and have myself an over-the-top celebratory experience.

 

Well the pictures do not even tell the whole story, the ones in the pics are the ones running around the whole area naked or at main circle they are kinda the **cough** attention whores **cough** variaty ...alot of people are camp nudist so say, they stay in camp or close by. In colorado my girlfriend and i were next to/ in a camp like that, the area was hidden and off the main trails away from all the people with snappy cameras

and alot of the time the bigger freeks are just as freeky with there clothes on

 

i believe this man is an archetype

 

also alot of people do not like having there photo taken especially if they are nude

 

cameras are no fun .......fun is fun , and the best kinda fun is a no camera kinna fun .........and the woods are the wrong place to be nakid in ie ,sun bugs poisonnthorny plants ect .....and another thing ...its one thing for someone severely good looking like sister shaina to be running aroound nakid , but its always someone ancient n scarred whats doin such .

 

i think its beautiful when people are comfortable enough to go around naked. i myself don't do it but i know alot of people who do.

 

I think that the people who check out chicks (or even dudes, for that matter) like they are sexual objects is the REAL creepy thing. Drool & all. Those people are the real creepos to me. Bodies are beautiful & naked is not necessarily sexual. If I see a naked dude I'm not going to be picking my jaw off the floor & snappin' pictures of his wang on my camera phone. I just think, "that rocks man, rock the freedom" & I MOVE ON.

Remember creepo disambiguition people. Hit those people with sticks.

 

yeah i agree turquoiserose

 

I was arrested, with 5 others, at the Kentucky half of the '93 Kentalatuckabamma Screw-up for skinnydipping in Lake Cumberland! They took us by boat to a boat ramp where there were cop cars waiting, and then off to jail. I think that cop was just jealous 'cause my pistol was (and and still is, for that matter) bigger than both of his...