It is that time of year again and lets be honest, for many naturists winter is a difficult time of year. We don't all live in sunny Florida or a Caribbean island so there are going to have to be some sacrifices. We have had to turn the heat on in our home, and the fireplace has been lit a few times already this autumn. Sadly no more trips to Port Burwell, or Hanlans Point until spring. Worst of all, my wonderful all over tan that reached a healthy glow over the summer thanks to frequent doses of natural vitamin D, has already started to fade. We are entering into the "dire straits" of naturism. I have blogged about the perils of being a northern nudie in winter before but rather than just repost those I thought I would have another look at what we do to get through the sub-zero season and look at options others might find useful, a sort of Winter Naturist Survival Guide if you will.
Surviving At Home
Staying home is likely the easiest and therefore best option for naturists in winter, even if it means a little less nature. We spend a fair majority of our time naked at home already so it makes a good place to start. One of the best decisions you can make is to invest in a smart thermostat. It was not something I considered previously, Tara has had
one for a year or two and now that I have moved in I don't know how I lived without one. Even a basic model lets you control the current settings, or schedule changes right from an app on your phone. This means we turn the heat off almost completely during the day when we are at work, and it is scheduled to be nice and warm when we arrive home. Should you somehow mange to be going home early, you just make the change from your phone and in the time it takes to make the journey, I am always clothes free within minutes of arriving home. We also keep the temperature very low after we go to bed. A heavy blanket and each other more than does the job of keeping us comfortable while we sleep. We have the heat kick back up about an hour before our alarm goes off. It's our hope that by turning the thermostat low during the times we don't need it, it will recoup some of the added cost of keeping the house at a slightly warmer temperature when we are actually there and wanting to be as clothes free as possible. Ours is an Ecobee and we love it, it came with added remote sensors and connection to Alexa (Amazon) but there are plenty of options out there, and I have done no other research other than using the one we have, so I wont make any recommendations.
Turning up the heat, even with an expensive smart thermostat, is not the most cost effective or environmentally friendly option. So we try and make simple changes that when added up can have a big impact while keeping the thermostat as low as we can
comfortably accept. When naked at home the two things I always have are my slippers and a warm toque (for non-Canadians reading this that's a knitted hat and one of the greatest inventions of all time. Last winter Tara would often add a scarf to her "outfit" and even has one she calls her "nude scarf" that never leaves the home. On those especially cold days I will often sacrifice a little and put a shirt or sweater on and just keep it naked from the waist down. This is usually a last resort after a few days of indulging in having the heat turned a little higher.
Our evenings in are almost always spent in our family room where our TV is and more importantly our fireplace. A fireplace is not exactly efficient or environmentally friendly, even a gas or electric one,
Our evenings in are almost always spent in our family room where our TV is and more importantly our fireplace. A fireplace is not exactly efficient or environmentally friendly, even a gas or electric one,
they use more energy and only heat the one room. On the other hand it lets us turn the temperature settings down for the rest of the house on those nights in where we are not really leaving the one room anyway. Besides, what couple wouldn't want to cuddle up in front of a fire while binge watching Netflix? A few extra hot drinks don't hurt either when spending a naked night in. Decaf coffee with a shot of Irish Cream or Kahlua is always a good thing. Tara likes Apple cider, both the alcohol and non-alcoholic versions are a nice warm up drink.
We have also picked up a few tricks from non-nudies that are good ideas for everyone to be more efficient. As an example, do not heat rooms you barely use. Our home has three bedrooms, one we obviously use, and another is used as Tara's "office". The third is used only as a guest room so unless we have guests, we keep the door closed, and fully close the air register so no heat is being directed there. This is repeated for the spare washroom and so on.
One final tip for at home, I like to leave the oven door open once we have finished using it and turned it off, rather than let the residual heat drift up and out to the exhaust. It may not have a huge overall impact, but for a short time the whole house feels a little more cozy. This is especially a treat when baking aromatic treats. I would NOT recommend this to someone with children.
One final tip for at home, I like to leave the oven door open once we have finished using it and turned it off, rather than let the residual heat drift up and out to the exhaust. It may not have a huge overall impact, but for a short time the whole house feels a little more cozy. This is especially a treat when baking aromatic treats. I would NOT recommend this to someone with children.
Getting out of your clothes, and out there!
Staying home and cozy is never a bad idea in winter, but many naturists, myself included, like to get out in the world. While not as common or frequent, there are options for naturists of the Great White North. My experience is very Toronto centric so
that's where my focus will be here, but there are options pretty much nation wide. The easiest options near Toronto, and likely for most of us is your local landed naturist club/resort. Every club will have different levels of amenities and activities at your disposal to keep things interesting during the Canadian winter. In Toronto we have the two I have happily been to man times now, even in the colder months.
Ponderosa Nature Resort - Definitely a great option for a winter nude experience, and it does not hurt that they offer discounted rates off season. I have spent a few days there reading in the lounge, relaxing in the sauna or hot tub, and my personal favourite, swimming in the indoor pool. Going for a naked swim in a heated pool when outside there is foot of snow, where do I sign up? Ponderosa has a restaurant on site if you want a naked dining experience year round. They often have dances and other events so they are sure to have something happening for a naturist who wants to get out there, their website is frequently updated so have a look
Bare Oaks - Your bare naked needs are also covered year round at Bare Oaks. Sadly there is no indoor pool at Bare Oaks but they make up for it in other ways. Two saunas, one dry and one steam, and a large hot tub are an excellent start. They have a lounge with TV, darts, billiards and a fireplace. The Bare Bistro at Bare Oaks is a significant highlight for me. Open year round (which I believe is a recent enough addition) they have good food, draught beer and an espresso bar. I am also seeing an increase of winter activities offered by Bare Oaks and the Bare Bistro, and if their photos are to be believed that includes nude ice skating on their pond. That is something my Canadian pride insists I get out and try at least once....for a short time at least.
GTA Skinnydippers are a great option for planed events. They have monthly private swims at a variety of public pools they rotate through in and around Toronto. Twice a year they also hold a bowling event which I have been to and blogged about, you can check that out here. They have been featured in a number of Naked Club Videos:
- Naked Club: GTA Skinneydippers Nude Bowling
- Naked Club: GTA Skinneydippers Swimming / Winter Indoor Beach Volleyball
If you watched the Naked Club videos above you saw the clip about winter volleyball. The Toronto Area Naturist Sports group hosts this annual winter indoor beach volleyball in January at Spikes volleyball centre in London Ontario. I have played a few games of volleyball at Bare Oaks but I have yet to attend this event so I am not an expert, get info on their meetup page here
Obviously if you are not from or visiting the Toronto area, most of this is not going to be very helpful. But there are clubs out there coast to coast so check out either the Nude in Canada Map that I maintain, or the Federation of Canadian Naturists which maintains a list and map as well, or those in Quebec there is also la Fédération québécoise de naturisme . For those looking to go further, maybe to warmer climates, there are some other resources at your disposal.
- Naturist BNB is basically Airbnb but for naturists. So far I only have found two listings in Canada but further south and in Europe there are far more options and once can hope this list will grow.
- Our neighbours to the south have plenty of options year round. There are plenty of resources out there but it is probably best to start with the American Association for Nude Recreation, they have a list of clubs and beaches to get you started, by far the majority of which are in Florida, must be something in the water.
- Another great resource for those looking to travel is the Naturist World Map. Which has the four corners of the earth covered. If someone from Naturist World sees this, thanks for mention my blog in your resource list, but please update you link!
- For the more "liberal" folks who have a bit more in their travel budget there is always Cap d'Agde in France. On the surface Cap d'Agde is a naturist paradise. Located on the French Mediterranean coast, it has shopping, dining, night clubs, and of course the beach, all fully nude friendly. It does have a bit of a reputation that would not appeal to some traditional naturists. I for one want to check this out one day even if Tara and I have no interest in the more risqué activities, but I suggest you do plenty of research before you make the trip.
The important part is that you get out there. Sadly in Canada we are a bit behind our more adventurous European cousins but it is getting better. I believe naturism will continue to grow as a movement and gain acceptance if we as naturists are out there taking advantage of what is readily available. If we do that, more people will be encouraged to plan even more activities. If you have a suggestion of something I missed, either in the Toronto area or across Canada, that will help our fellow naturists survive the Canadian winter, let me know in the comment section below, or via my Facebook or Twitter pages. I hope this was of some assistance to some of you. Winter is just another opportunity, not a road block
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