Canada’s clothing-optional beaches are at the centre of a turf battle between nude bathers and their clothed counterparts.
Visitors to Wreck Beach in Vancouver and Hanlan’s Point in Toronto have reportedly been told by naked beach-goers they must disrobe if they want to stay.
Toronto’s Cailey Root said she found homemade signs at Hanlan’s Point this week stating that nudity was mandatory at the clothing-optional beach.
Root said she and a friend were later approached by two nude men who told them to take off their clothes.
“I was already a bit nervous because I’d never been there before, and I wanted to do things at my own pace,” said Root. “If I decide to (undress) or not, that’s my choice.”
Metro Vancouver, meanwhile, said it’s received complaints of naked visitors at Wreck Beach telling people the spot is for nudes only.
The Federation of Canadian Naturists (FCN), a national nudist organization, said that while there are several public beaches across Canada where authorities turn a blind eye to nudity, Hanlan’s Point and Wreck Beach are the only ones that have been officially designated “clothing optional.”
