Was far too chilly at 40f (4.4c) when I got up this morning, but by noon it was a quite pleasant 60F (15.5C), so I went on a 3 1/2 mile walk on the prairie. Quickly got naked as there was nobody else at the trailhead. Alas, I had no sooner started back when I was startled by another hiker. He turned around, and went back the way he came. However, he stood on the trail for a bit and I wondered if he was going to try to gather some photo evidence of my nude state. I took a different fork in the trail and he did not follow. Discretion being the better part of valor for the afternoon, I remained clothed. A good thing, as the trail started to fill up – And this on a weekday. Don’t textiles have to go work someplace on a weekday?
I am thinking I should classify my nude hiking trails like this:
A. Absolutely Safe for Nude Hiking (ASFNH)
B. Sometimes Safe for Nude Hikng (SSFNH)
C. Rarely Safe for Hude Hiking (RSFHH)
The problem is the variables: Weather, Time of Day, Weekend, Weekday, in Season, off Season and any permutation of these.
I once went nude walking on a deserted Gulf of Mexico beach at midnight during a full moon, and almost bumped into a fisherman. Hard to be able to walk naked anywhere these days.
and the title “leave nothing but shadows” is perfect.
An accurate assessment of the risk factors (variables) and sadly the lengths we have to go to in order to avoid being seen when walking alone. The danger being that the one member of the public you happen to meet, just happens to be one of the few who will create a fuss, instead of being mildly amused as most people are.
Post Script: I did pick up some slivers of something in my bare feet, one of which has become mildly infected. I can’t get the sliver out by myself as I can’t see it except by camera or mirror. Taking an antibiotic and hopefully infection will subside enough for my wife to take it out with tweezers. Otherwise a trip to the doc.
Hard to get an allover tan this time of year, with the sun at a low angle for most of the day. So while my shoulders and upper back are brown, lower torso and legs remain quite pale.
I don’t lie down and sunbathe much. Just too busy, and it’s a bit boring. Fell asleep once on Fire Island’s Lighthouse Beach, and peeled dead skin off my butt for weeks afterward. Lesson learned.
Sorry to hear about your foot, I hope it is better now. It is a hazard of not going barefoot all the time, making our feet soft!
As for the all-over tan; no you won’t get that from an hours walking at this time of year, but what you will get is the very start of that tan and if you are able to repeat this at regular intervals your skin will have protected itself from the much stronger Summer sun by the time it arrives. This, after all, is how our bodies evolved to survive.
This is almost black and white in it’s sunshine and shade – an interesting photo!
nice shadow ..nice tanned skin afterwards