Swimming nude under a blue moon

We are all naked.

Well, at least we all start out that way. Most of us spend our childhood, fighting the best efforts of our parents, to maintain that state. And in many cultures, people remain uncovered when living in climates where clothing is more of a hindrance than a luxury.

But somewhere along the way, that changes. Whether it is a question of societal norms, body insecurity or simple modesty; living sans clothing, for most, is not optional. But not everyone is living by those standards.

"I worked at the University of Florida (Horticulture Science Department) for 35 years and, in science, it's either right, you haven't found out, or it's wrong — it's just one of those three. I see nothing wrong with this at all," said Steven Hiss, who sat fully nude, with the exception of his outdoorsman style bucket hat and a cold beer in hand.

Hiss is a longstanding member of Tallahassee Naturally, a group that rents a private lake near Monticello to spend their weekends with the freedom to shed their clothes and live what they call a naturist lifestyle.

The monikers of "nudist" and "naturist" seem vague in their discrepancy, though most at the camp agreed that one difference is that— though both sets enjoy being nude, nudists are those who want to gather in a club with like-minded individuals. Naturists enjoy being nude specifically amongst the wilderness, in a natural setting, either through the companionship of a group or all alone. Neither seems to be mutually exclusive.

"It is a natural part of being a human being," said founder of Tallahassee Naturally Steve Haley. "If it's freezing cold, I'll pull on a sweater to get warm. But on an 80- or 90-degree day, I don't want my body to be encumbered by clothes. I want to be naked. I want to be free. I want to be the way nature intended."

History laid bare

Tallahassee Naturally has been around for decades, though it started under the name Tallahassee Bare Devils. Before formal organization, some of the original members were merely looking for a place to skinny dip as a weekend frolic where they utilized Sam Allen Lake, just south of Tallahassee. However, according to Haley, a police raid one afternoon in 1983 led to the arrest of seven skinny dippers. Six of them pled guilty and paid their fine.

However one of the skinny dippers, Anton Kronenburg, demanded a jury trial and obtained a lawyer to defend him. His charge: Florida statute 800.03: Exposure of sexual organs.

He was acquitted.

The raid was enough to make the group rethink their location scouting. In July 1990 they found a new, permanent location, a lake just south of Monticello. Because the lake was private, they were allowed to freely shed their clothes, without fear of reprisal from local law enforcement.

The new official locale helped the group grow in numbers, from 15 at the time to nearly 60 according to Paul LaValley, one of the founders of the club. Tallahassee Naturally is also boosted in numbers by Naturally FSU; the only officially recognized collegiate nudist organization functioning today.

On full moons during the summer months, the two groups combine for a moonlight skinny dip. During this July's full moon, the groups were out to bare theirs.

"At first I was very shy about my body," said Adrienne Yancey, a FSU computer science graduate student who stood proudly under the moonlight, with only the light of a tiki torch flickering over his naked body. "Eventually I just thought, why do I care what anybody thinks? Why cover up? Once I found that there was this group, I had to join. I feel at home."

Covered in nothing but bug spray

Clothes mask insecurities. They form a barrier, both in the way they cover and in a way that makes people feel as if they fit in. Wearing what others wear, doing what most do, is a way to make sure you are most accepted in society.

"Everybody has different taste. People wear long sleeves, people wear short sleeves, some people wear tank tops and the majority of them — they are self-conscious about themselves," said Brandy Cain, manager of Classee With Attitude, a clothing shop just up the road in Monticello from the private lake naturists who are doing their best to shed themselves of the idea that clothing is necessary for comfort. Cain says her clothes and expertise in finding the right fit help to relieve some of those insecurities. "That's what I'm here for," she says, "to help them feel confident when they step out that door."

Without the protection of clothing, and in the middle of the woods, bug spray becomes the covering of choice. The waves of people that show up throughout the night quickly ask around to find a lacquering of spray to hide their most vulnerable, and newly exposed areas from the swarm of yellow flies and mosquitoes that are thick in the brush.

Though even within this group — a gathering of people who have decided to shed the cultural norms in the name of personal freedom, to take a stand against the judgment they've found outside of the gates of the private and gated lake, to adhere to their own idea of what feels right — there is a fear of simply sharing the idea that they are here.

As carloads of people come and go from the dimly lit patch of forest, one theme seems to run throughout: few people want to talk about their visit. Whether it is fear of judgmental neighbors, co-workers or fellow students, future job interviews or potential dates — people are mostly scared to share their stories.

Even in a group that might be perceived as free spirited, one where there isn't a stitch of clothing in sight, a distinct idea of reprisal emerges — all for the simple act of taking a naked moonlight dip.

Though dozens of people show up to swim and mingle throughout the night — both young and old, men and women — most don't want to talk. Some of the few that will, aren't willing to share their names.

"We are by far the most prudish of all the western democracies," said Haley, who is one of the alternate few: unabashed in his willingness to speak about his enjoyment in being nude. "There is something in the American psyche that finds the nude body to be sinful."

And that is felt, even here in the dark. Even here on a private lake where the entire idea is to remove not only one's clothes, but the preconceived notions that taking them off is wrong. Where societal concerns have forced even the freest of us to forget — we are all naked.

Joe Rondone is a photographer/videographer at the Tallahassee Democrat. Follow him @JoeRondone on Twitter. Full disclosure to our readers: He shed his clothes to report this story.

Tallahassee Naturally reserves Suntan Lake every weekend throughout the year from Friday at noon until Sunday. First-time visits and monthly summer moonlight swims are free to the public. After the first visit, payments for each subsequent visit are required, but are reduced for members.

For those looking for more information on Tallahassee Naturally, visit their website at www.tallahasseenaturally.org