Karina Mereki, Tyagarah

The Echo’s reporting of the Nude not Lewd rally at Tyagarah Beach on Sunday 16 September gives rise to some strange figures.

The clear picture of the ‘almost 100’ supporters of the clothing-optional beach turns out to have only 55 people in it.

Residents counted the cars in the carpark at midday on that day and there were 47 cars. Thirty-one had Queensland registration. That leaves 16 from NSW. Some of those would be from out of the Shire. Meaning a Nude not Lewd rally in favour of a clothing-optional beach at Tyagarah in 2018 gathered approximately 12 to 14 local Shire residents.

That is a big fall from the heady days of the Nude ain’t Rude rally of the 1990s, and possibly represents a reflection of the criminal behaviour that over-ran the beach for so long and has brought some local residents to a firm resolve to have the clothing-optional classification removed.

Local residents have not advocated for an alternative site for a clothing-optional beach. We do note, however, that Council’s efforts to look for a more appropriate site have not drawn welcoming sounds from any other community area in the Shire.

♦ Ed: Not all naturists want to be in a photo for the world to see (Naturist does not = exhibitionist). Not all naturists travel in cars alone, are from New South Wales, and not all nude rally naturists were on the beach at the same time. The story said: ‘…almost 100 supporters visited the Nude Not Lewd beach rally throughout Sunday morning.’