Events - Part 90

 GNI - The Gathering

Last time we saw The Gathering, an event of Gay Naturists International (GNI).  Today we learn a little more about them.  GNI started in 1982 as a SIG (special interest group) of TNS (The Naturists Society).  But by 1994 they were numerous enough to split off into their own organization, which they called Gay Naturists International.

As the name implies, it's not just for U.S. naturists.  Above is a contingent from Canada, and GNI holds events in Toronto.

The big annual event is The Gathering, held at a resort in the Poconos in Pennsylvania each August.  The resort has a set of cabins ...

and two swimming pools.

The Gathering has been described as the summer camp that you wish your parents had sent you to.  Activities include dressing up as superheroes ...

getting body-painted ...

and just general partying.

There are also some contests, like the Mr. Bare Bear contest.  Obviously, the winner is not the hairless guy holding the winner's sign.  It must be the guy he has his arm around.

And there's a Mr. GNI Leather contest.  This is Matt, the 2025 winner.

But mostly, The Gathering is just an occasion for gay naturists to get naked, be with friends, and enjoy themselves.

Hiking - Part 90

Iron Mountain Trail

Today's hike was in the Sheep Mountain Wilderness in California, which is in the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument and maintained by the Angeles National Forest.

I'm afraid Jim Tighe has photoshopped the sign.  The words "Hike Naked Hike Free" were not really on the sign.

Jim did this hike on the Iron Mountain Trail in 2010.

Above, Jim at the top of a ridge.

Topping another ridge.

We end with this photo that Jim labeled "Skyclad in the mountains."

Poem of the Day - Part 90

Auguries of Innocence

Auguries of Innocence is a long poem by William Blake, thought to have been written in 1803 though not published until much later.  It is most famous for its first four lines, which I have illustrated here with pictures that may not quite fit the "innocence" in Blake's title.

To see a World in a Grain of Sand

And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,

Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand

And Eternity in an hour.

Artists - Part 92

Chris Lopez

Chris Lopez, seen above with some of his paintings, is a multimedia artist, working in acrylic painting, drawing, watercolor, and photography.  Born in Barcelona, Spain in 1966, he has lived in Fort Lauderdale, Florida since 2000.

He specializes in the male nude.  He says of his subjects: "They show something interesting about being sexy and masculine, without any sexual reference."  Above, Carlos.

Dan

Gabriel

Bill and Mark

Jack

Joe Grand.  The piece of composite wood that it is drawn on creates a strange texture.

Jorge

Manolo

Pablo and Palo, a charcoal and pastel drawing.

We end with Pablo and Palo 2.  Although Lopez says his art is not sexual, but merely shows how pleasant it is to be naked, we may be forgiven for seeing a bit more than that.

Beach Bums - Part 87

 Point Impossible Beach, Australia

Point Impossible Beach is a legal nude beach in Torquay, near Melbourne, on Australia's southern coast.

It is well posted with signs like this one.

It's a wide, sandy beach ...

good for sunbathing ...

swimming, and surfing.

Behind this sunbather on the beach are the dunes ...

where other activities take place.

But for us, as the sign says, that's the end.

Gods, Myths and Heroes - Part 84

Cerne Abbas Giant

The Cerne Abbas Giant is a figure on a hill in Dorset, England.  It is cut into the turf about two feet deep, and the cuttings are filled with crushed chalk.  We hardly need to point out its prominent anatomical feature.

The Giant measures 180 feet long.  The size can be seen above relative to people who were maintaining it in 2019 (the cuttings have to be cleared of weeds).

Three theories have been proposed for the origin of the Giant.  One is that it is a Celtic creation, because the Giant is similar to the Celtic god Nodens found on a skillet handle dated between 10 and 51 AD, above.

The second theory is that it was created when England was part of the Roman Empire, and the Giant represents the Greek/Roman hero Hercules (above), specifically during the reign of Emperor Commodus (176-192 AD), who represented himself as a reincarnation of Hercules.

The third theory, citing the lack of documentation about the Giant before the 1690s, is that it was created in the 17th century.  Above, a 17th century Dutch sculpture of Cain and Abel.

Well, it turns out they're all wrong.  In 2021, scientists analyzed samples from the deepest layer of the Giant with a technique called optically stimulated luminescence.  The results: the samples dated between 700 and 1100 AD, most likely around the midpoint of that range, the tenth century.

So the Giant was made by medieval Britons.  What did it represent to them?  We don't know, but they certainly gave us something to look at.

World Naked Bike Ride - Part 93

York 2014

Today we look at the World Naked BIke Ride held in York, England on June 20, 2014.  Riders gathered in a field near the Millenium Bridge.

And they're off!

Crosssing the modernistic Millenium Bridge.

Riders enter the town streets.

Heading for the Bootham Bar, which was a gatehouse into the medieval city.

Through the Bootham Bar.

Riders pass the Crown Court, the building on the right.

Some riders approaching the Crown Court on foot.  Note the slogans painted on some riders' backs.  The World Naked Bike Rides promote two main goals.  First, bicycle safety, getting drivers to notice bicyclists, like the slogan "Please don't crash test me again."  Second, getting people to ride bikes instead of driving cars because cars generate pollution, like the slogan "It's oil over."

Another rider promoting bikes instead of cars: "One less car."

Approaching the historic St. Michael le Belfry church.

Passing the church, which can be seen in the background.

The group poses for a photo by York Castle, with another sign promoting bicycle safety: "Notice us when we're NOT naked."

We end with a rider visiting a pub after the ride.  Clothes?  Who needs clothes?