AUSTRALIA, WESTERN AUSTRALIA
From: richard@West.Sun.COM (Richard M. Mathews)
SWANBOURNE BEACH, Australia's premier official nude beach, enjoys a
metropolitan location just 20 minutes from the heart of Perth. On
weekends the crowd has been known to reach 1000, or about half that if
a good weekday, with roughly 90% of beachgoers unclad. Swanbourne's
nudist section is an expanse of white sand about 2km long and wider
than two football fields, backed by grassy dunes and well screened from
adjacent suburbia by a fenced reserve of bushland.
Access is easy. Drive to the end of Grant St, and park at the
Swanbourne-Nedlands surf club. Then it's but a short stroll north
along the beach to the nude area. Parking is free, and on weekends the
carpark does fill early. If travelling by public transport, the 207 bus
from outside Perth post office will drop you right at the surf club; or
catch the train and get out at Grant St station. From here it's a direct
1km walk west along Grant St till you hit the beach. Alternatively, you
can walk in from other beaches -- Swanbourne is the name for but a short
midsection of Perth's endless miles of unbroken sandy ocean foreshore.
Food and drinks are available from the surf club kiosk, which remains
open until sunset. For the convenience of those not wishing to don
clothes for a walk to the kiosk, a colourful motorcycle vendor with
trailer in tow purrs back and forth along the sand at roughly 45 min
intervals, selling ice-cream, refreshments, sandwiches and snack food
to the starving throng. Beach volleyball is played in the middle of
the sand, on a court permanently marked out by corner pegs and poles
all fixed in buried concrete.
Situated well below the Tropics, the azure Indian Ocean waters which
lap Perth's shoreline are free of stingers and dangerous jellyfish, so
swimming and body surfing are the order of the day. Despite its open
ocean panorama, Swanbourne generally has only a gentle surf, and this
together with safe, gently sloping sand makes it an ideal wading beach
for youngsters. Toilets and a shower block (cold water) are provided
at the surf club building at the car park.
The undoubted highlight of Perth's nude calendar is the Swanbourne
Olympics, a family fun day of games and competitions (tug-o-war,
3-legged race, best bum award, etc.) held annually at the height of
summer. The date in mid-Feb to mid-Mar is always set well in advance,
though organizers are ready to reschedule the event should the weather
turn against them on the day.
Nudists who are accustomed to wearing nothing but a smile at the beach
are warned to respect the Australian sun, and to wear a shady hat,
protective UV sunscreen, and to avoid sunbaking while the sun is at
its zenith. The red lobster look has never been fashionable in WA!
Overseas visitors sometimes fail to appreciate the vast size of this
continent (it's as big as the USA).
[Original from "anonymous"]
Parent document is top of "REC.NUDE FAQ: Naturist Site Reports: Australasia"
Previous document is "AUSTRALIA, QUEENSLAND"
Next document is "AUSTRALIA, SOUTH AUSTRALIA"