Conference moira::naturism

    This report is based on a listing in Clothed with the Sun 2.1, and on
    visits during our recent vacation on Vinalhaven.  Please keep in mind
    that three or four visits during a single week do not necessarily
    create an accurate overall impression. 

    Vinalhaven is a large island (about 10x10 miles) in Penobscot Bay, an
    hour or two north of Portland, Maine.  It has a permanent population of
    about 1200 people, and of course it is a fishing town; but it also used
    to be important for its granite quarrying.  Today the quarries are
    mostly full of water.  Several of them are town swimming areas, and are
    shown on the local maps.  The Boom quarry isn't, but it seems to be
    well known and accepted locally.


    DESCRIPTION.

    The quarry itself is fairly large, and completely surrounded by woods.
    I understand that it is 25 to 40 feet deep throughout, except for a few
    shallow ledges and stone blocks that were clearly visible from above.
    The water temperature was quite comfortable for swimming.  (This was
    August of a hot summer, remember, although a few locals said that they
    swim there in April!)

    The name comes from a large log, apparently the boom of an old
    quarrying crane, which is floating in the water.  People enjoy swimming
    out, climbing up, and then jumping, diving, or falling off of it.

    The main sunning area, which you come to first when you reach the
    quarry, consists of some elevated granite blocks sticking out into the
    water. The upper surfaces are flat and almost perfectly smooth (watch
    out -- slippery when wet!) which makes them perfect for sunning.  The
    lower block is about two feet above the water, and the higher one is
    eight or ten feet up.  Both have sides from which there is a sheer drop
    into the water, allowing diving or jumping; there are also terraced
    steps from the lower block down into the water, making it great for
    small children. 

    This area is probably big enough for a couple of dozen people.  There
    are also some other ledges around the quarry.

    When we were there, there were enough people around to be sociable, but
    not enough to make it crowded.  (The ferry ride that is needed to get
    to the island probably helps to keep the island, and this quarry, from
    being overrun with visitors.)  The users appeared to be a mix of
    visitors and local people.  It is really a family site -- there were
    lots of children, ranging from infants up through teenagers.  (The
    favorite activity of the small children was catching ants and throwing
    them in the water for the fish to catch.)  It was also truly clothing-
    optional -- while most users were nude, we saw several clothed family
    groups (especially ones with teenagers), and everyone coexisted
    happily. 

    All in all, the rocks, the water, the diving, the people, the ambience,
    make this one of the pleasantest clothing optional sites I have had the
    pleasure of visiting.

    For directions, please send me (electronic) mail.
    
    	-Neil

    This report is based on a listing in Clothed with the Sun 7.1, and on
    visits during our recent vacation on Mt Desert Island.  Please keep in
    mind that three or four visits during a single week do not necessarily
    create an accurate overall impression.

    Lake Wood is a small fresh-water lake on Mt Desert Island.  Most of the
    lake is contained in Acadia National Park, and it has a public beach at
    one end.  However, a short walk around the lake brings you to a popular
    local nude sunning and swimming area.

    The lake itself is fairly shallow, and warm enough for comfortable
    swimming.  It's small enough that some people swim across it.  There
    are a couple of logs anchored a little ways off the nude area, which
    you can sun on, dive off of, etc.

    The nude area is a collection of rock ledges on the side of the lake.
    They are oriented so that they get the afternoon sun.  You can scramble
    down to get to the water at either end of the ledges, or you can jump
    or dive off.

    			WARNING
			
        You must be careful, since there's quite a bit of rubble in the
        water at the base of the ledges, so you have to dive "far enough"
        out.  I don't know how deep the water is, either.  I wasn't willing
	to try jumping or diving myself, although I did see a number of
	others doing it.  KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING!

    I understand that this is quite a popular spot -- I was told that there
    were 60 people the day before we first visited.  The usage seemed to be
    predominantly "local" (this includes people coming down from Ellsworth,
    half an hour away on the mainland), but there were some visitors as
    well.

    Almost no one was clothed here, and although there were a few couples,
    we didn't see any families with children.  (They were probably at the
    sandy public beach at the end of the lake.)  The users were generally
    friendly; some were ... colorful.

    For directions, please send me (electronic) mail.
    
    	-Neil

    The World Guide lists a site at Drakes Island in Wells, Maine.  Our
    family has been going to the beach there for several years now, and it
    is our favorite beach, regardless of nudity.  Unfortunately, the World
    Guide is many years out of date now, and anyone who goes to Wells
    looking for a nude beach is very likely to be disappointed.  The local
    police have actively been discouraging nudity there for the last few
    years.

    This is a real pity, because the location would be ideal for a nude
    beach -- it's a mile walk from the parking, on the back side of the
    dunes, which makes for excellent seclusion; and there's a shallow
    lagoon with relatively warm water, which is great for families with
    children.

    Anyone who would like more information on the enforcement situation at
    Drakes Island, or directions to what is still a lovely beach, even if
    it isn't clothing optional, should send me mail.

    	-Neil

    The latest NENA _Sun Times_ reports that a member of a Maine
    naturist group has deliberately been arrested at Drakes Island and
    chosen a jury trial in order to test whether the Maine indecent
    exposure law applies to simple relatively secluded nude sunbathing.
    
    I intend to send a contribution toward his legal expenses.  Anyone
    who feels like doing the same may send me mail for more details.
    
    	-Neil

                      46 clothe Drake Island, Maine?

	from _The Event_, Issue 28 (Fall/Winter 1988)
	excerpted from the _Press Herald_ (city and date not specified)
	[bracketed comments are mine - Neil Faiman]

    A petition signed by 456 residents calling for a local ordinance
    banning nude sunbathing was presented to the selectmen during a recent
    York County meeting. 

    The 46 residents said they are offended by the nudists, who usually
    bask in the dune area of the state-owned beach on Drake Island.

    But legal experts said state legislative action may be needed to ban
    nudity on the beach.

    One resident said, "I like to go bird watching down by the dunes and
    the river because that is where the great blue herons are.  Once I was
    out there looking at the birds with my binoculars and one of them came
    after me.  I don't know what he thought I was doing.  I just turned
    around and got out of there."

    Other residents also complained, saying they do not want their children
    to be accosted by the bathers.  [!]

    Police Sgt. Elmer Shepard, who has patrolled Drake Island for the last
    three summers, said nude sunbathers create one of the major police
    problems on the island.  But neither the town nor the state park has
    laws on the books preventing complete exposure, Shepard said.  [I
    imagine that preventing something that isn't illegal would be a major
    problem for the police]

    And because he is the only officer his department has assigned to the
    popular area, Shepard explained he simply does not have time to make
    constant checks on the bathers.  He also mentioned that he is unsure of
    his legal right to patrol the state-owned area.

    "Our hands are tied.  We just ask the people to put their clothes back
    on.  We've never arrested anyone," he said.  [So I the police were
    lying when I heard them give a bunch of people a warning and tell them
    that next time they'd be arrested?]

    Parks Department spokesman Ken Meyer said his office has been
    advertising for a ranger to fill the position.

    Assistant Attorney General Paul Stern, who handles the state Parks and
    Recreation Department's legal affairs, said local police officers might
    have difficulty enforcing a town ordinance on the state land.

    In addition, although state law bans "indecent exposure," Stern said
    the state law is vague and difficult to enforce against nude bathers
    because it specifically prohibits only commission of a sexual act in
    public and "exposure of the genital area in circumstances that would
    cause affront or alarm."

    "The question is whether or not nude sunbathing involves circumstances
    that would cause affront or alarm," Stern said.

    Wendy Koertje, a Biddeford resident, said she likes to sunbathe naked
    at Drake Island because the beach is comparatively secluded.

    "I've never been accosted by anyone.  I try to be unobtrusive.  I just
    want to sit out and let the sun hit all parts of my body.  It feels
    pretty nice," she said.

    "It's hard to find a secluded beach in Maine," she said.

    re: Drake's Island
    
    I don't know, I've been to Drake's Island several times in the past
    few years and have never encountered any c/o activity other than
    some catchy signs in the parking warning people not to do it.
    
    David

I got a letter yesterday from the Maine naturist who had chosen to demand 
a jury trial to challenge the Maine indecent exposure laws (or at least
their application to nude sunbathing at Drakes Island).  (See note 66.6)
He reports that after several attempts to get him to forego a jury trial, 
the District Attorney dismissed the charges half an hour before jury 
selection was to begin.

This means, of course, that there was no opportunity to get a hearing, much
less a decision, on the merits of the case.  Since he had chosen to be 
arrested specifically to test the law, this is a defeat of sorts.  On the
other hand, he points out, at least he isn't in jail.  Meanwhile, he notes
that in such situations (where the prosecutor has chosen to dismiss a case
rather than fight it in court), the DA's office will sometimes suggest
quietly to the local police that they be less aggressive in the future.

	-Neil

    I guess I'll post a spring beach report, too.

    We went up to Drakes Island this Saturday, and had a lovely time.  The
    temperature was just perfect; and since it's still off season, there
    were only a handful of cars in the parking lot.

    There were about a dozen people in the historically nude portion of the
    beach.  All the women were topless; most of the men, and a couple of
    the women, were fully nude.  I don't know whether the police aren't
    interested in the beach this early in the season, or there were so few
    people around that nobody happened on the nude area who felt like being
    offended; but in any case, the police didn't show up all afternoon.

    I still can't recommend Drakes Island for nude sunbathing to anyone
    whose nerves aren't up to having the police appear out of the dunes
    without notice; but it's too nice a beach to give up on completely.

    	-Neil

Maybe it's just my luck, but everytime I go to Drake's Island no one is nude/
topless, etc. and the place is full of cops.  Perhaps as you say that the 
time of season was a contributing factor.

David 

	I would like to expand on .4 about Acadia National Park/Mt Desert Isl.

	LAKE WOOD:
	I stopped by Lake Wood.  To get to the Clothing Optional Site park in
	the lot next to the road, not the cirular lot at the end of the road.
	The path to the C/O spot is obvious.  The "beach" is a series of 
	granite slabs which are a lot smoother then the ledges.  Each block is 
	about 6'x6' which means things naturally break up into small groups.
	The water felt about the same as the ledges.  This was at the end of 
	July.  There were about 20 people there when I was there.

	DUCK BROOK:
	Duck Brook is located toward the northeast end of the Carriage Paths.
	The carriage paths are a set of roads that wind through Acadia National
	Park for the use of hikers and bikers.  You can get to Duck Brook by 
	bike from almost anywhere in the park.  The closest parking is at the 
	Duck Brook Carriage Bridge.  From the East take 233 from Bar Harbor 
	past the stone under pass to the first road on the right, or from the
	west take 233 from rt 198 past the ranger station to the next road on 
	the left.  Take the road about 1 mile to a parking lot at the 
	Bridge over Duck Brook.  Walk across the bridge and turn right on the
	other side.  About 1/4 the road veers to the left.  Just before that 
	you should see a path leading down to the brook.  The path is steep 
	but short.  At the bottom is a 25 ft diameter pool that is about 6ft
	deep.  When I was there, there were five people:  myself, a local couple
	and a French-Canadian couple that I meet while hiking that decided to 
	join me.  The water was COLD, there were only enough sunning spots for 
	five people and the rocks were slippery.  Where as LAKE WOOD is more 
	appropriate for making a day of catching sun, DUCK Brook is a great 
	place for a quick dip, especially after a twenty mile power hike(I 
	turned left at the fork and went by way of Jordan Pond House).

	LONG POND:
	The Guide pointed out long pond as a location for nude use, but was not
	very explicit.  I hiked around by long pond and only found 1 good spot,
	but there were no "established Clothing optional areas."  About 1 mile 
	up the trail along long pond is a peninsula that has nice flat rocks 
	and a slightly hidden cove.  I grabed a couple hours of rays here 
	without being disturbed.  In the long pond area are a bunch of trails. 
	If you like to hike au naturel this is a good area to do it.  
	Unfortunately, the trails  do not get much sun.  Park in the Gilley 
	Field or Reservoir Parking lots just southwest of Long Pond.  DO NOT 
	hike au naturel on the East side of the island.  The east side is the 
	more touristy side.  The trails have a tendency to parallel some of 
	the tourist roads, so you could unexpectedly pop up in someones photo 
	album.  Also, the trails are more crowded.  I ran into a couple Boy 
	Scout and 1 Girl Scout Group.  This is kind of unfortunate, because 
	the mountains on the east side are mostly granite and scrube bush, so 
	there is plenty of sun and wide open space.

	If anyone is planning a trip to Acadia National Park in the near future
	I have some trail maps they can borrow.

	Brian

    Has anyone been to Drake's Island/Laudholm beach lately?  what is
    the situation?
    
    Thanks,
    David

We went to Drakes Island last Saturday.

A large part of the historical nude area has been fenced off to protect
tern and plover nesting areas.  (Sound familiar?)  However, there is still
easily enough left to support the number of users the area gets these days,
even at high tide (although if you want to get to or from the lagoon area
at high tide, you'll need to wade about knee deep, since the fencing extends
below the high tide line along the river bank).

There was another couple there part of the time.  My wife and the other woman
chose to sun topless; the other man and I were discreetly nude part of the time
(i.e., nude for sunning, but not for walking around much, and willing to cover 
up when others came into the area).

Still a pleasant area, and a very nice beach, whose status I would describe as
"Questionable:  Traditional, with intermittent use, and uncertain legal 
enforcement."

(They've apparently been expanding the trails in the Rachel Carson Wildlife
Sanctuary -- there's now a lookout on the boardwalk that's directly across
the lagoon from the nude use area.  It's probably several hundred yards away,
but of course most of its users are going to be birdwatchers with binoculars.
I just made a point of not walking around nude when there were people over
there.)

As always, I can provide detailed directions to those who are interested.

	-Neil

    
    	It has been more than a year since anyone's asked. Does anyone know
    the status of Drake's Island? 
    
    
    
    					J.

We visited in the middle of the summer, and things were pretty much as I
described them last year.  If you are hoping for a nude sunning opportunity,
your best bet is probably to try to find a less-than-perfect beach day (or
perhaps a weekday) -- it seems as though on a nice weekend day, some number of
textile families will make their way up to the river, and discretion will then
probably compel you to remain clothed yourself.

	-Neil