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So how do you go about finding places to go car camping naked? My personal experience is limited to California, especially the central part of the Sierras. So I can’t say how much this will generalize to other states, or even all of California. But here’s the deal. California has many U. S. National Forests – about 20 by my count. Most of these have a number of nice, public campgrounds – but all or most also have what’s called “dispersed camping”. That means you can camp almost anywhere in the forest! There are some sensible limitations. In certain high-use areas, dispersed camping isn’t allowed, so you have to use a public (textile) campground.
The site should also be adjacent to a Forest Service road (of which there are a large number). That makes it more convenient for you, and avoids disturbing untouched areas. You’ll be able to recognize such sites quite easily as you drive by. For one thing, they often have campfire rings – rock circles 2 or 3 feet in diameter. Although open fires are often not allowed during summer months (because of the high forest fire danger), the rings are still there. (For cooking, you can use a propane or “white gas” camp stove (“Coleman” stoves).) National Forests are the best places for this type of camping. They’re generally where the most convenient and suitable camping sites are easy to find. The USFS also, usually, has very good maps that show all navigable roads, as well as excellent, but less detailed, maps of the Forests themselves. There may, however, be other good locations for naked camping on public lands (belonging to the U. S. Bureau of Land Management or state/local jurisdictions).
Been naked car camping, for years, out here in Oregon. Lots of Federal land to camp on, with no one around.
It’s another beautiful summer morning as you step outside your tent. The birds are singing, the sun is rising, and the breeze is brushing by your cheeks. Both pairs of them. Maybe your tent is pitched in a high alpine meadow, or deep in the hardwood forests of the East Coast, and the moment is tranquil and solitary. Or perhaps, you wave a friendly hello to the naked neighbors in the campsite next to you, and turn on the camp stove for a communal pot of coffee.
There is something deliciously freeing and deeply relaxing about shedding clothes and letting your whole body feel the world around you. Some of us are lucky to be surrounded by public land, and even know where to find a few off-the-beaten-track hot springs which historically have a ‘clothing optional’ standard. Others have access to nude beaches, or just like to go skinny-dipping after the sun goes down. But what about nudity in more popular areas? Can you camp naked in places where you are likely to have a few neighbors?
