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At its heart, SCNA is a "travel club", which means our members visit a lot of places each year putting their lifestyle to practice. The purpose of this Travel page is to be a source of information regarding current events in and around Southern California regarding nudity at local beaches, hiking trails, and hot springs. We make every effort to keep the news up to date and accurate. If you visit any othese beaches and wish to add your experiences to our web site, please give us a telephone call (number is above) or drop us an email (see above).
We are also including the experiences and observations made by many of our members. We encourage you to submit articles about your trips to various naturist resorts or locations around the world.
 Map Courtesy of Digital Map Store |
By Allen Baylis, Attorney at Law
Many of you have asked questions about the possible consequences of being cited for nudity at a California State Beach or at a hot springs, or when hiking on State Park land. Here's what you need to know:
The California Code of Regulations Title 14 contains the rules that the public must follow within the California State Parks. CCR section 4322 regulates nudity within the State Parks. It states following:
“Nudity. No person shall appear nude while in any unit except in authorized areas set aside for that purpose by the Department. The word nude as used herein means unclothed or in such a state of undress as to expose any part or portion of the pubic or anal region or genitalia of any person or any portion of the breast at or below the areola thereof of any female person.”
Section 4322 is a public nudity regulation and should not be confused with indecent exposure or lewd conduct. Since it only addresses the issue of simple nudity such as sunbathing or skinny-dipping, it is not a registerable sex offense.
Section 4322 can be cited as either an infraction, or a misdemeanor. The fine for an infraction is about $200 and about $400 for a misdemeanor. These fines are about the same as for littering or excessive noise in the park.
The San Diego District Attorney will be in charge of prosecuting any cases. If handled properly, it likely that the case could be dismissed. So I encourage people to not just pay the fine.
Being cited for nudity at the beach is actually quite minor, especially if you are dedicated to fighting for what you believe in. I believe we should stand our ground, and not succumb government oppression.
If a person is cited, I strongly encourage them to contact me immediately. If possible, get the officer's name and badge number. I can explain the legal options and may be able to help someone handle the situation. I can be reached at: 714-962-0915 or rab@baylislaw.com
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PART A. CURRENT STATUS OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CLOTHING-OPTIONAL BEACHES
In geographical order (north to south)
Whales Cave Conservancy
Central Coast Naturists |
SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY
Avila Beach (aka Pirate's Cove)
Current Status: Pirate's Cove at Avila Beach - nude section remains open despite its recent sale to the County. Avila is a tough climb both down and up the cliff, but well worth it. No tickets, no deputies, just a few college-age voyeurs who will leave if confronted.
- Directions and Map
City of San Luis Obispo |
Friends of Gaviota P.O. Box 351 Lompoc, CA 93438 Voice: 805-733-4950 Email: denbar@sbceo.org This is a non-profit group promoting nude use of Gaviota State Park
Nude Beach Alliance |
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY
Gaviota State Beach
Current Status: Gaviota State Beach - Nudists should exercise caution. Be sure to take our more trash than you brought. If you see any lewd behavior please shoo these idiots away as they have jeopardized our relationship with the Parks Department and been the excuse for unprovoked and unwarrented police sweeps of the nude section of the beach.
Sept 1, 2011 - Our meeting with State Parks Suyperintendent Richard Rozelle and Dan Falat, chief deputy in charge of the northern half of the county did not go well. Falat had always has a live-and-let-live attititude at previous meetings, but not this time. The State Parks Department has decided they want to shut down all the nude beaches in the state and are going after them one by one rather than all at once (Black's Beach is still okay as of this writing).
A week after this meeting deputies swept Gaviota beach and issued 3 citations. SCNA helped get them legal representation and all 3 tickets were dismissed in December. The DA refiled the case under a different ordinance, then offered to reduce the charges to "public nuisance" for a $500 fine. All 3 defendents took the deal, which is there legal right, but we missed the chance to win the case in court (which we thought we had a good chance to do.)
Since January 2012 we have heard of no new police sweeps of the beach, but then the nude populatio has dwindled significantly since word of these citations spread through the local nudist community.
- Directions and Map
Current Status: Exercise Caution.
3/10/2012 - Seven people received a public nudity citation on More Mesa beach today. They had 3 cops there 2 were Sheriffs and 1 was a City of Goleta officer. They walked the cliff above and then came down and took drivers licenses and made everyone walk up to the top and meet at the street by there cars. Several of the people cited were clothed but the officers said they saw them nude from the cliff above. The officers said that they were getting more complaints so that we're forced to issue citations.
This follows an incident 2/4/2012 when we had a report of police taking nine men off the beach who were sitting near the cliff stairway. That night the local news had a story about of abandoned Panga boats being found at several nearby beaches, with evidence of both marijuana bales and abandoned life vests from what is assumed to be boatloads of illegal aliens being smuggled ashore. This, in turn, was prompted increased surveillance at our beaches by county deputies and the feds.
Because there had been little police activity at More Mesa over the past 20 years, we theorized this was one of those drug busts, since the nudists sitting nearby were not ticketed nor botherd by the police.
Guess we were wrong, or the police decided to make a return visit to try to bully us off the beach. (It won't work!)
SCNA is in the process of directing those ticketed to legal representation if they want it. Unfortunately most beachgiers decide just to pay the fine and never come back. This is what the police count on, and why we lose nude beaches! Our attorneys say there are plenty of legal precedents for successfully fighting the tickets if people will simply stand up for their rights.
So if you witness something, or talk to someone who DID actually see something themselves, please get the name of the person so we can offer some legal advice. There is much we can do, but only if everyone starts helping!
Perhaps if we can get a volunteer to stay on the cliff above and cellphone the beachgoers when they see police approaching?
- Directions and Map
Current Status: Summerland is no longer safe for nudity as the local deputies vigorously enforce the anti-nudity laws here.
- Directions and Map
Current Status: Local nudists are currently working to restore Bates for nude use. At present it is not considered safe for nudity, but deputies only come down periodically. Go as far north as possible away north of the concrete barrier to be reasonably safe. Read the "Current Bates News" link below for the latest information. Use the beach at your own risk.
- Directions and Map
- For the Record: Our 6-Point Proposal for Bates Beach
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VENTURA COUNTY
There are no nude beaches in this county.
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LOS ANGELES COUNTY
There are no nude beaches in this county.
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ORANGE COUNTY
There are no nude beaches (or hiking trails) in this county.
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FRIENDS OF SAN ONOFRE BEACH
BLACK'S BEACH BARES ASSOC. |
SAN DIEGO COUNTY
San Onofre State Beach
- Directions and Map
"Black's Beach"
Current Status: Open for nude use north of the San Diego City Limits (the cliff trail) without any legal hassles. Don't sit too close to the cliffs (falling rocks) nor the water (tides will sweep away your belongings.)
- Directions and Map
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PART B. TRIP REPORTS ABOUT NUDIST PARKS AND RESORTS IN CALIFORNIA
The articles below were submitted by various club members who visited the parks. Not all parks are included because we have not yet received trip reports from those places. The opinions expressed are those of the writer and not necessarily those of SCNA. Return to Top
PART C. CLOTHING-OPTIONAL HOT SPRINGS
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INYO COUNTY
Saline Warm Springs, Inyo County No problems with nudity at this remote oasis near Death Valley. Best visited in Spring and Fall as the area gets extreme heat during summer and snow frequenntly blocks the only road in/out during the winter. No amenities! You must bring in everything you will use and remove it when you leave. - Directions to Saline Warm Springs - Sonya and Marc Visit Saline Warm Springs - "Nude Sign" at Saline Warm Springs Removed by Rangers
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
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PART D. HIKING TRAILS AND PUBLIC LANDS
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Hiking
Nude Sailing and Houseboating
Burning Man Festival
Bare to Breakers 5k Race World Naked Bike Ride Streaks Through Several U.S. Cities
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PART E. NUDE PLACES IN OTHER STATES
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- 2/2003: California Dreamin' Nude Cruise to Mexico |
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