Hiking - Part 82

 Naked European Walking Tour 2025

The Naked European Walking Tour (NEWT) is a one-week naked hike usually held in the Austrian Alps.  My blog follower and contributor Natfree Pascal, who lives in France, is one of the organizers of this event.  Above: Pascal, at left, and his friend Lim from Singapore, a frequent participant in NEWT hikes, with alpine scenery behind them.

One of the conditions of signing up for a NEWT hike is that you agree that they can publish photos and videos of you naked.  This hike is for people who are unashamed.

The group visits a waterfall.  Click on these photos for larger views.

Hiking above an alpine village.

Another waterfall.

Hiking through the woods.

A group photo at a stream crossing.  Pascal is at left.

At a stream in the Zillertal (Ziller valley).  This guy from the Netherlands has participated in several NEWT hikes.  He has a Twitter page under the name @naked_hiker.

The event includes food and lodging.  Kitchen duty rotated among the participants.  Above, Pascal and a helper.

We end with a group photo in front of the lodge where they stayed.  Pascal is at front left.  Altogether there were 37 participants from 18 countries.

Events - Part 83

Koktebel Neptune Day

Neptune Day is a local one-day festival held in August on a nude beach in Koktebel, on the Crimean peninsula, which was once part of Ukraine but was taken over by Russia in 2014.

Above, Neptune and some admirers in 2015.

Many festival participants are body-painted.  The guy above chose a botanical theme, with his penis becoming the stem of a plant.

I should note that all the photos of this event concentrated heavily on the nude women.  The men were incidental.  I found some photos showing men, but there are females in all of the photos.

Someone getting body-painted.

Another look at Neptune and some friends in 2015.

The guy on the left in the previous photo with some younger companions.

Another Neptune, presumably in a different year.

The guy who was at left in the previous photo and some other companions.

More painted bodies.

This guy has painted-on wings, but he isn't an angel, because one of the wings and half his face is black (the other half is white).  Paintings of the Devil often show him with black wings, because he's a fallen angel.  I think this guy is portraying himself as half angel, half devil.

We end with a video of the crowd at the 2017 festival.

Daylight Savings Time

 Daylight Savings Time

Daylight Savings Time starts today.

Time to spring forward one hour ...

unless you live in Hawaii, like I do, or in Arizona.  These states don't observe Daylight Savings Time, so this is what I need to do today.  Nothing.

Weighing In -- Part 83

Bobo Olson

Carl 'Bobo' Olson (1928-2002) was an American boxer who won the World Middleweight championship in 1953.  In 1955 he lost the title to Sugar Ray Robinson.  On May 18, 1956 Olson and Robinson fought a rematch, photographed by Allan Grant for LIFE magazine.

Above, Robinson (left) and Olson (right) shake hands.  Robinson is clearly not actually weighing in, since he is wearing shoes and socks.

Grant's photos show Robinson getting naked, though it's not clear whether it's for the weigh-in.

We only get an oblique view of Robinson's rear.

Here's Olson weighing in.  He must have been over the limit, because we see him next without his shorts.

An official held up a modesty cloth, but photographer Allan Grant was positioned to get a good view.  LIFE did not publish male frontal nudity, so this photo was never published, but it is in the LIFE archives.

Sugar Ray Robinson won this rematch.  Bobo Olson ended his career with 97 wins and 16 losses.

Poem of the Day - Part 83

 Eeny Meeny Miny Moe

Today's poem is a nursery rhyme which I have illustrated with some video clips that match the words.

Artists - Part 86

 Yaroslav Sobol

Yaroslav Sobol is a Ukranian artist.  He was born in Zaporizhzhia in 1973 and studied at Kharkiv State Art College from 1988 to 1992.

His early work was impressionistic in style, like Poppy Fields, 2018, above.

Sunny Boy, 2018, is also impressionistic.  Sobol has painted a large number of nudes, both male and female.

Then Sobol's style became a bit less impressionistic and more realistic, like Mike, 2020, above.

The trend toward realism continued.  Above, Sunny Day, 2021.

Red Wine, 2023, shows even greater attention to detail.

Nude Boy in the Morning, 2024.

Nude Boy on the Beach, 2024, reverts to an impressionistic background.

In 2025, Sobol painted several studies called Nude Male Model.  This one, Nude Male Model #2, is anatomically impressive.

We end with a rear view for my friend Rick.  This is Nude Man by the Sea, 2025.

Beach Bums - Part 80

 Polo Beach, Oahu

Polo Beach is a nude beach on the north shore of Oahu, Hawaii.  Do not confuse it with another Polo Beach on the island of Maui, which is not a nude beach.

The beach was named after a nearby polo field.  Above, the "Friends of Polo Beach" line up.

Nude beaches are not legal in Hawaii, but some beaches, including this one, have been "unofficial" nude beaches for a long time.  Officials tend to look the other way as long as there is no sexual activity on the beach.

Polo Beach is located on the north shore of Oahu, in an area called Mokuleia to the west of the town of Waialua.

The left side of the beach is clothed; the right side is clothing-optional.

The water is fine, but there are no lifeguards.

There is also no shade on the beach, and the sun can be intense, so bring a beach umbrella or use sunscreen.

We end with this little video of a man walking on Polo Beach.  He is not totally naked – he is wearing a lei, the Hawaiian flower necklace.  His lei is made of orchids.  Come to Hawaii and maybe you, too can get lei'd.