Which is absolute and utter freedom from other human beings, freedom from their disapproval, implied or stated, freedom from the need to .carry a sarong to cover up, freedom from the need to carry a water bottle in a bag made from synthetic materials to chafe my skin.  No glasses, no cap to protect against sun-stroke, no sun-tan cream, no boots, no electronic gizmo to find my way (I'll take my bearings from the position of the sun), in short, absolutely nuffin....

I do take your point and can understand the desire to be at one with your surrounding and being totally natural -  it appeals to my spirit too.

I do wander about the boring practicalities though
No glasses - I'd bump into everything
No water - maybe for a short walk
No boots - cut feet, at least for me
No cap - not in hot sun as I'd get a headache
No gizmos - Yes I'm fine with that one

I does depend on where you're thinking of walking of course.

So watch out for a guy bumbling around bumping into everything.

Davie  8)

We live in a natural park in Southern Catalonia and before I started to suffer with sciatica I regularly used to walk naked for distances such as you mention.  Just used to need clothes to get to my starting point.  However I did take water for the heat but the water here is so pure that you could probably drink from mountain streams and pools.  Would strongly recommend a cap as well for the blazing sun.  I just used to place my clothes somewhere where I could find them without difficulty, and if I ever came across anybody out here which was rare then it was just a quick greeting and on my way.  They don´t worry about nudity over here and if I apologised then a short ´tranquilo´ was the answer.  We have an apartment to let on our clothing-optional finca so if you want more information then please email me.  fincatony@gmail.com

Grower,

Pretty much every walk I do with my dogs would meet your criteria. I do occasionally meet people but a friendly greeting and keep moving is usually sufficient to avoid any unpleasantness (some folks want to stop and chat, in which case I would not be so rude as to ignore that).

Most of the dog walks are around one and a half to two hours and in one of half a dozen areas near home (Thames Valley between Slough and Reading). It is really not that hard to find a space where you can walk naked if you are prepared to do a little research first and to choose times when the rest of the world is not also going for a walk.

Have fun,

Ian.

Thank you for your replies!

Davie, I'm not at the white-stick level of visual impairment, I can see far enough ahead of me not to fall off the edge of a cliff, so off with the glasses!

milfmog & Tony, perhaps unwittingly you provide me with practical solutions to all of my needs.  Going barefoot is a big part of being totally free for me, and I don't mind the odd Ouch! if I stand on a stone - the soles of my feet are pretty tough - so sandy tracks and grassland tracks would fit the bill.

Now I'm thinking about the South Downs, or taking up Tony's suggestion. As I get up at first light anyway there couldn't be a quieter time.  And the sun thing wouldn't be an issue then.

I'm still wrestling with the psychological discomfort of coming across someone and receiving their disapproval, even if they don't say so.  Taking the dog with me might just be the answer.  There's something about walking with a dog that legitamises a lone male in the eyes of others - he must be 'safe' if he keeps a dog - so being a bit kooky walking naked might be the worst reaction I'll get.

Anyway, with your replies I'm now much nearer to becoming a naked rambler.  Thanks.

ps Tony:  I understand that in Spain attitudes to nudity are much more relaxed and that I'm unlikely to feel 'psychological discomfort' at meeting someone while I wander.  I think that the point you make is a powerful one.
Here in the UK there is a constant overt disapproval.  Elsewhere neutrality.
Nuke the UK and the USA and the world becomes a better place...

5 km or so is little problem.  I have a number of places that I go (northern uplands) where I go out with a small rucksack and water, which I will stow at a convenient spot and carry on light.

However, a slight caution. On one occasion I tried somewhere new. I avoided the stoned tracks as can be painful barefoot, more likely to meet somone (eg farmer on quad-bike) and more interesting walking. However, I didn't take a compass and as I took a big loop around, made a mistake and turned the wrong way. I realised i had gone wrong, but struggled for a while to get my bearings and find my way back.

I could easily have found myself in completely the wrong valley needing help to get back to my car, and my clothes! Just part of the excitement of 'travelling light' ..... But for less excitement, make sure you are already familiar with the area.

Thank you, MartinM, for flagging up the nightmare scenario of my getting lost, and having to knock on some lonely cottage door, with my willy out, to ask for directions........

Collectively you knock me into shape.  Now I'm studying a map of the South Downs.  Now I'm planning a sunrise dummy run with my dog.  Now I'm getting the lie of the land so that even without glasses, and within a featureless landscape, I won't get lost.

There's every chance that on my first dawn raid I'll strip off for the hell of it.
At that time in the morning, dewy, swirling mist maybe,  utter indescribable beauty definitely, you'd have to be brain-dead not to.... 

I am so pleased to have been of help Grower and maybe we will see you out here one day walking these beautiful mountains.  Martin has brought to mind the only other problem I could think of which is taking the wrong track and getting lost.  Then I realised that I have a walking stick (a necessity on our tracks where it is easy to stumble) bought locally  and which has a compass set in the end of it.  Maybe you could get something similar in the UK.  Should you think of coming here then I would be pleased to loan it to you.

And yes, the Spanish have a much more relaxed attitude to nudity.  It is nothing to be on the coastal train here and pass bays where people are naked, and in some places walking along a path at the side of the track !!

Anyway, wherever you are enjoy your naked rambling.

You could always try a holiday on Fuerteventura.
Look in the naturism section of Fuerteventura Forum for the naked walking reports.
I often leave the apartment I rent completely naked for a long walk and I am sure I could easily notch up 5 Km of more if my dodgy knee could stand it.
As it is I have managed similar lengths of naked cycle rides.

Thanks JG, I have reason to believe that the future is Spanish:

Went at dawn with the dog to the South Downs.  Deserted, except for rabbits, sheep and deer.

The dog, on the lead, got excited by the animal life - I thought that he'd grown out of that but clearly not - so he disturbed the peace.

One valley was breath-taking and tempting but too open for me to feel comfortable.  Another, very secluded, had an electric fence running through it.  A manifestation of Man I could do without, especially a farmer, who I regard as justifiably anti what-he-sees as townies, especially naked ones...

Got to thinking that only in the presence of a mute naked female would I feel truly at ease - in the belief that a naked female would moderate the reaction of anyone we might encounter - and as my wife wouldn't be seen dead there that idea is a non-starter.

Oh, and at that time in the morning it was too cold to strip off.  I might be a nutter but not that big a nutter..

So it didn't tick enough of the boxes.  On the plus side the grass was kept short by the sheep so it would be easy barefoot walking (I don't mind treading in sheep poo).

So I'm warming to Spain ,solo, and particularly without the dog....

Not being one to fall at the first fence, and driven (inspired) by the work of others who've posted, I shall be out at dawn on the South Downs sans dog, soon.

I understand that SOC use the Downs, and although bimbling along with others doesn't float my boat I bow to their choice of location...

With map and compass in the first instance I'll go explore those deep clefts in hillsides (see how tight the contour lines are on the map!), and report back.

In this way I'll be guided by the quiet experience of other members of this forum, and in some oblique way repay them.

I expect to emerge victorious, at dawn, in my own, lonely, homespun way..

I am pleased to hear that Grower.  Just go for it I am sure that you will find the experience of naked walking very enjoyable and liberating.  I look forward to hearing your report back.  Good Luck !!

I have taken to studying the OS maps now available online and they can be downloaded in sections for a relatively small annual sum.
So far I have managed several walks with the longest being around 5 hours a good percentage of which was naked. The secret is study the map for signs of buildings and avoid them. Try and stick to footpath and avoid national walkways and bridle paths.

During these warm days you can enjoy some really pleasant walks with a much reduced feeling that you will bump into ' non believers'. I find open fields are the best as you can spot people from some distance.
Give it a go and see how you do.
With regard to bare foot that's your decision, me there's no chance, as infections in feet are difficult to cure. Also be careful where sheep have been  and long grass exists. A work colleague is being treated for Lymes disease caught from walking over the South Downs behind our office at lunch time.

I have taken to studying the OS maps now available online and they can be downloaded in sections for a relatively small annual sum.

You may also find the Where's the path? website useful. This allows you to display an OS map and aerial photographs side by side with the cursor on one tracked by a cursor on the other. If you want to use it, it is best to do so early in the day as the number of OS tiles the site can serve in a day is limited so later in the day you may find yourself looking at very old maps instead of the OS maps you recognise.

Have fun,

Ian.

Thanks, airsun, for the reminder about the tick season.  I wore long trousers tucked into my socks today:

Arrived at Harting Down (South Downs) at 4:45 a.m. (pre-dawn).  Enough light to see, but not yet daylight.  This time is magic.

Anyone prepared to carry a bag with their things can get straight out of their car naked.  It's deserted.

I walked for twenty mins along the South Downs Way heading East.  To the south lies undulating countryside.  Here the small hills (Downs) roll off into woodland.  At the foot of the hills there are tractor tracks.  The grass grows short here.  Easy walking barefoot.  So I was able to 'Go Total' - no glasses ,boots etc - off the main drag.

Felt no need to walk more than a few hundred metres one way, then back again to where I'd left my things.  Without my glasses I can't see the landscape so the experience was all about being there, and feeling it...

I gave no thought to bumping into anyone,  without anything to cover-up, and think that I've got past caring - this is progress!

Still, the tractor tracks served as a reminder that I wasn't in total wilderness so I couldn't 'break free' completely.

This is good country for those prepared to carry their things.  I got to thinking that I should try conventional naked rambling, complete with glasses and boots cos that would provide something else.

I even conceded that other naturists would sit so well in the landscape that
they wouldn't necessarily spoil it for me, perhaps if I lagged behind a group
so as not to get too involved in conversation.....

Maybe I'm not an anti-social weirdo after all...