Photo: DPA

Harz region to open first German hiking trail for nudists

Published: 23 Sep 09 16:17 CET
Online: http://www.thelocal.de/national/20090923-22117.html

Germans are widely known for the ease with which they shed clothing, so it comes as little surprise the country’s first route for hiking naked could soon open in the hilly Harz region.

Foreigners are frequently shocked by the widespread nudity found in German parks and other public spaces, but even tolerant Teutons have their limits for the country’s Freikörperkultur (FKK), or literally “free body culture.” For example, most would disapprove of a group of girl scouts happening upon stark naked hikers while on a weekend camping trip.

Which is why Heinz Ludwig, an entrepreneur from the bucolic Harz region of Saxony-Anhalt, started an initiative to open the country’s first trail for hiking nude. Stretching 18 kilometres from the town of Dankerode to the Wippertal reservoir and back, it is intended to allow FKK aficionados to commune with nature while au naturel when it opens next May.

Click here for a photo gallery about the nudist trail with NAKED hikers.

Ludwig has started posting signs along the route warning more prudish nature lovers: “If you don’t want to see naked people you should not continue onward.”

The German media reported this week that hikers in the buff could already hit the trail, but Ludwig told the news agency DDP the path still needed to cleared of stinging nettles before the real nude fun could begin next spring.

“You have to be creative in order to survive,” said the restaurant camping grounds owner. “I expect it will spark interest far and wide and people will come here to eat, drink and sleep.”

The Local (news@thelocal.de)

What do you think? Leave your comment below.

Fark It! Digg This Facebook  Share everywhere
Send to a friend Printable version Twitter This

Your comments about this article:

#1
18:56 September 23, 2009 by The-ex-pat
As a Brit who has been living here for 16 years I am quite happy with the nakedness of the local swimming pool and sauna, (though my wife thinks I am just turning into a dirty old man) but I think it will be another 160 years before I would want to go for a hike oh naturale, tackle swinging in the breeze. Sometimes, when in Rome, the best part is the bus home again!
Report abuse »
#2
20:33 September 23, 2009 by Druid67
As a Brit who has been living here for 16 years I am quite happy with the nakedness of the local swimming pool and sauna,

I'm certainly not happy with the general nakedness in this country.. Sir, I hope you are not a proponent of the Speedo clad 50+ plus brigade with the prerequisite third trimester belly accompaniment? However, from your comment, I fear you are, alas..

I am quite honestly astounded by the sheer brazened, unashamed, eyesore-ing desire to get ones kit off in this country at any opportunity.. I am not being prudish I just think some people should keep their clothes on at all costs.. Sorry, but the idea of hiking in your buff while wading through tickets of nettles, attacked by ticks and mosquitoes and hordes of nut seeking squirrels and viewed by Herr Ludwig and his cronies is not vaguely appealing to me...
Report abuse »
#3
22:47 September 23, 2009 by The-ex-pat
I'm certainly not happy with the general nakedness in this country.. Sir, I hope you are not a proponent of the Speedo clad 50+ plus brigade with the prerequisite third trimester belly accompaniment?

Good God no. Any of that and my wife would not let me out to be seen in public..............and I am significantly short of 50, let alone 50+ :)
Report abuse »
#4
02:34 September 24, 2009 by Erised
Sorry, but I think it is prudish to care what other people wear or don't wear, especially since it is not hurting you. Why should you care? I personally wouldn't do it, but I have fair skin and wear clothes for protection. But if showing my belly in public diminishes me, how shallow can you be. That is one of the things that I love most about Germany, it is not about being naked, it is about not caring one way or another and not making a big deal over the natural state of the human body, flaws and all.
Report abuse »
#5
03:18 September 24, 2009 by DavidtheNorseman
You Germans can of course do as you like in Germany (that's the thing I don't like about the current trend towards McGovernments) however I do wonder if one shouldn't extend the proberb that:

"Spandex is a PRIVILEGE! Not a RIGHT!" to nudity. Perhaps potential nudists (and/or would-be speedo wearers) will have to post images online and be rated by an official government asthetics panel as to whether or not they would be an environmental asset or hazard and so whether or not allowed to be publically nude......
Report abuse »
#6
08:09 September 24, 2009 by gordonthemoron
some people won't be happy until everyone is wearing burqas
Report abuse »
#7
09:16 September 24, 2009 by long-haul
I seriously don't understand why some people are against nudity. Personally, i dont have the guts to do such a thing. But i have absolutely nothing against people who follow/appreciate naturism. Nudity is not made compulsory. I would get angry when they confine a whole city only to nudists, Which means i can't visit that place. More often than not one knows where the naturists hangout. Either you go there or not. Thats how simple the choice is. But i consider trying to lay out rules as to what one is not allowed (ofcourse not any crime) to do is morally insane. There are godforsaken countries which do that too. If one is uncomfortable in Germany then they are free to go to such countries.

We were born this way, we will decompose with little or no trace. Its the intermediate period that all the fuss is about. And i won't stand any other person dictating me what and when and how i should wear something in this short period.

This is today's problem. Man has set so many rules and guidelines and has gotten used to living by it so much that when one does what comes naturally, it is a big NO NO.

Grow up!

cheers
Report abuse »
#8
09:53 September 24, 2009 by Steven192
Have you noticed that all those with problems in this area always say "I'm not a prude"but.

To those against the idea , would you be happy with being told just exactly what you can wear?

No jeans, no trainers, no hoodies and a complete ban on those godawful mahosive hoop earrings just for a start
Report abuse »
#9
11:03 September 24, 2009 by Editor Bob
You Germans can of course do as you like
David, fyi, nobody here is German.
Report abuse »
#10
11:12 September 24, 2009 by long-haul
Perhaps potential nudists (and/or would-be speedo wearers) will have to post images online and be rated by an official government asthetics panel as t…
- This must be the heights of one not minding his/her own business. Btw David, how shallow can one get?
Report abuse »
#11
11:18 September 24, 2009 by Frank78
If I read your posts here I get the impression every second German runs around naked. I´ve been living here since my birth and I´ve never seen anyone nude in public, just on seperated FKK beaches.

Beside the fact that you can report people running around nude in public to the police. That´s not allowed, only in clearly seperated areas.
Report abuse »
#12
11:34 September 24, 2009 by leky
I wonder, will they have tick checkers at the end of the trail?
Report abuse »
#13
11:48 September 24, 2009 by Moonboot
@ Frank78

come to Munich and spend a few hours in the English garden.

and nudey bike tours or dinghy trips anyone?

http://isar-nacktradeln.de/set.html
Report abuse »
#14
12:53 September 24, 2009 by Steven192
I wonder, will they have tick checkers at the end of the trail?
Don't think I will be volunteering for that one. Unless I get to pick who to check!
Report abuse »
#15
13:35 September 24, 2009 by long-haul
I wonder, will they have tick checkers at the end of the trail?
"Unfortunately stinging nettles still need to be cleared from the trail before it opens next spring." - Source: The Local

And by the way, in relation to my earlier post...
Report abuse »
#16
21:13 September 24, 2009 by Druid67
Yes I do care, and well said theNorseman; most nudists including the lovely's above are an absolute blot on the environmental landscape and I know are mostly culprit for pushing malodorous armpit fumes down your nostrils on various forms of public transportation in this country.. And Erised, you just wear clothes for protection..?? D&G must love you..!! So what you are saying is; if you had an ounce of melanin you would be in your starkers like the rest of the well endowed, gravitational followers... What you love about Germany is they not caring, not making a big deal? Seriously, so I just to drop my plastic bottle in the wrong bin in my birthday suit to prevent my German neighbors being always in my business and declaring "Well I was going to call the polizei, but you are in the buff, so alles klar.."
Report abuse »
#17
06:49 September 25, 2009 by Smitan
I love it. I will definitely make the hike some day. I wish we had a similar thing here in other countries.

Nakednes ought to be a human rigt! I would prefer area where it is forbiden to be naked, all over the country.

Like the Danish beaches, where everybody always is allowed to be naked.

Let's go for freedom!
Report abuse »
#18
07:46 September 25, 2009 by long-haul
most nudists including the lovely's above are an absolute blot on the environmental landscape
On the environmental landscpe or to you? Sounds like the latter to me.
Report abuse »
#19
13:25 September 25, 2009 by billyjean
Can we not see the original size of the thumbnail? The map totally blocks everything on this picture.
Report abuse »
#20
13:30 September 25, 2009 by jeremy
Well I've done FKK here in Germany years ago, on Chiemsee, Starnberger See and in Munich in Dantebad. I found it an experience, not a good or bad one, just a different way of seeing things.

One thing I learnt is how varied the human body actually is, and how we are fed images of ideal bodies in the mdeia, which is all a lie.

I recall some women's mag put up some naked pic of a normal woman some time after she'd had kids, she had a slight sag on her tiummy but she was gorgeous. If more people saw how ordinary bodies look there might be less teenagers insecure about their body image.
Report abuse »
#21
13:38 September 25, 2009 by Owain Glyndwr
Beside the fact that you can report people running around nude in public to the police. That´s not allowed, only in clearly seperated areas.
actually, there is no law banning people from being naked so the police cannot simply arrest you for that. It only becomes an offence if someone is offended by it (Belästigung der Allgemeinheit, §118OWiG). And nudity isn't restricted to "clearly seperated areas". Just wander through the English gardens in Munich and you'll see what I mean.
Report abuse »
#22
13:38 September 25, 2009 by long-haul
@ Jeremy: Is this the person whom you were referring to?
Report abuse »
#23
13:46 September 25, 2009 by jeremy
Aye long haul. That's the lass.

I'd always thought "Middle Age Spread" was something to put on toast till I became a Dad and found out what it was!
Report abuse »
#24
13:51 September 25, 2009 by long-haul
She looks hot! And why on earth would i (or for that matter anyone) be against naturism if there is a chance of accidently/incidently coming across such a bomb shell. Long live naturism.
Report abuse »
#25
14:51 September 25, 2009 by Lorelei
it is about not caring one way or another and not making a big deal over the natural state of the human body, flaws and all.
As naturists in Germany live in a western society where appearance is all-important and where people are ranked by appearance and age, social worth, etc., the idea that they suddenly become oblivious to flaws, become non-judgmental and regard each other as equals as soon as they take off their clothes requires a huge suspension of disbelief.
Report abuse »
#26
23:10 September 25, 2009 by wxman
Why is it, regardless of the country, that people no one wants to see naked are always the nudists?
Report abuse »
#27
13:52 September 26, 2009 by Scottrocks9
On the contrary, one of the things I loved about Germans was how comfortable they are about nudity. I really don't think it's other peoples' business and I really don't find the human form is offensive, no matter it's age or shape(except the obese living across the Atlantic). They are a part of the whole of nature. These English speakers living in Germany really have a bold-faced attitude. I read some time ago about a grand-mother in the USA, who photographed her 2 year old running around the garden without clothes. She was charged by police for child pornography. Now that's offensive.

Thank goodness for Germany.
Report abuse »
#28
15:20 September 26, 2009 by cobra226
"I'm certainly not happy with the general nakedness in this country.. Sir, I hope you are not a proponent of the Speedo clad 50+ plus brigade with the prerequisite third trimester belly accompaniment? However, from your comment, I fear you are, alas..

I am quite honestly astounded by the sheer brazened, unashamed, eyesore-ing desire to get ones kit off in this country at any opportunity.. I am not being prudish I just think some people should keep their clothes on at all costs.. Sorry, but the idea of hiking in your buff while wading through tickets of nettles, attacked by ticks and mosquitoes and hordes of nut seeking squirrels and viewed by Herr Ludwig and his cronies is not vaguely appealing to me..."

And let me guess, God put you on this earth with clothes on! I hate conservatives...it seems to me that they always have something to hide!
Report abuse »
#29
15:27 September 26, 2009 by Expaticus
As naturists in Germany live in a western society where appearance is all-important and where people are ranked by appearance and age, social worth, e…
Amen. Just try walking into a german sauna with a cabriolet dong sometime.

P.S. That photo reinforces the success of those Dove soap ads. If you're ever in a hotel that has the Fashion Channel, after a few minutes one realizes 1) how laugh-out-loud silly that whole one-foot-in-front-of-the-other catwalk clomp quickly becomes once you've seen it 100 times in a row and 2) how amazing it is that not one single model is a smiling, healthy-weight, regular gal instead of a pouty, anorexic chain-smoker.
Report abuse »
#30
20:43 September 27, 2009 by Wabit
I think it is all much to do about nothing!!
Report abuse »
#31
11:36 September 28, 2009 by Andrea_mamaro
I don't particularily appreciate "nude" anything. This so called FKK has actually caused problems in places around Germany. Note: In the North Eastern Sea exhibitionists liberally having orgies and what not along the beach. I would not want my daughter to come across some dangling dongs on a nature hike.

I was once at a lake in Eastern Germany, too, where they had an FKK side. Quite disturbing if you ask me...
Report abuse »
#32
11:39 September 28, 2009 by long-haul
In the North Eastern Sea exhibitionists liberally having orgies and what not along the beach. I would not want my daughter to come across some danglin…
Hmmm, looks like you will not be allowing your daughter to park her car in a parking lot too. The last Orgy i read about, was taking place in a parking lot.
Report abuse »
#33
12:54 September 28, 2009 by Andrea_mamaro
All I can say is that I love certain aspects of the German culture and downright disagree with others. For example, I just find it silly that many people in Germany have no problem with nudity in any form. However, when it comes to censorship there are some loopholes, every other late Saturday night while watching TV and this is during any commercial break sex ads begin to go on air. You all know what I am talking about, lol. The topless blondes trying to get you to call them, lol.

So with that said, when it comes down to approving certain video games - Germans prefer to censor all the blood out in the killing scenes. In addition, they made paint ball illegal. Stating that video games and paint ball are to blame for AMOK shootings. PALEEEZ! My German husband also finds this ridiculous.
Report abuse »
#34
13:07 September 28, 2009 by Steven192
they made paint ball illegal
No they didn't.
Germans prefer to censor all the blood out in the killing scenes
No they don't
Stating that video games and paint ball are to blame for AMOK shootings
Wrong again.
every other late Saturday night while watching TV and this is during any commercial break sex ads begin to go on air.
Depends on what channel you watch. ARD and ZDF (the german channels) don't do porn.
lol
Don't do that, it makes your post look even more juvenile than the content.
Report abuse »
#35
01:24 September 29, 2009 by vicka
Can somebody explain me what is the deal with the naked hiking cause I dont get it????

I am a nudist (swim naked since years) and I am a keen hiker. Nevertheless I cannot combine these things together. What's the pleasure in hiking naked, with your breast or balls shaking up and down, without having your clothes for support and protection? Clothes (especially underwears) can make life easier and more comfortable and not create complicated situtation while there is no reason to be!!

Enjoy
Report abuse »
#36
10:30 September 29, 2009 by BobUK
I don't particularily appreciate "nude" anything. This so called FKK has actually caused problems in places around Germany. Note: In the…
No-one's forcing you to enter the FKK areas...
Report abuse »
#37
00:20 October 1, 2009 by TomUSA
Everyone is free to do what they want. If you don't like it , don't go there. If you have to go there wear very dark glasses...lol. I never been to a nudist beach,but I never thought about going to one.
Report abuse »
#38
20:16 October 4, 2009 by workhomeunion
Interesting to say the least .. The U.S. will soon follow suit .. to each his/her own, as long as it's isolated where kids can't stumble upon it, and not too isolated where perverts will be lurking ...
Report abuse »
ADD YOUR COMMENT   (YOU MUST LOG IN OR REGISTER TO MAKE A COMMENT)
For comment quoting and other advanced formatting features,
try posting via this article's discussion forum page instead.
Today's headlines
Photo: DPA

Hartz IV welfare benefits ruled unconstitutional

Millions of German families on welfare could receive more government assistance after the nation’s highest court ruled Tuesday the controversial Hartz IV system of payments was unconstitutional. READ (32 COMMENTS) »

Photo: DPA

Löw backs down in contract dispute

National coach Joachim Löw ended his stand-off with the German Football Federation (DFB) on Tuesday, as both parties agreed to plough all their efforts into Germany's 2010 World Cup campaign. READ (1 COMMENT) »

Photo: DPA

Germans splashing out on Karneval despite bad economy

The tough economic climate is failing to dent Germans’ enthusiasm for Karneval, with partygoers set to spend €300 million on costumes and makeup during this year’s season, the Toy Retailers’ Association said Monday. READ »

Photo: DPA

Study finds major discrimination against Turkish job applicants

Jobseekers with Turkish names are clearly discriminated against when looking for work in Germany, a study released this week has found. READ (2 COMMENTS) »

Photo: DPA

Young literary star Hegemann counters plagiarism claim

Best-selling teenage novelist Helene Hegemann rejected accusations of plagiarism in her debut novel “Axolotl Roadkill” on Tuesday, after it emerged she had taken slabs of text from an anonymous author and blogger. READ (1 COMMENT) »

Photo: DPA

Hamburg politician puts the 'I' in street de-icing

The president of Hamburg's city parliament is reportedly in hot water for ordering authorities to clear the footpaths of ice outside his own home while leaving the rest of the city to slip and slide their way home. READ (1 COMMENT) »

Photo: DPA

Construction worker confesses in Cologne archive collapse case

Eleven months after the deadly collapse of Cologne’s city archive, a construction worker has given investigators their first confession in the case, media reports said on Tuesday. READ »

Photo: DPA

Berlinale highlights shift to 3-D films

Buyers at the Berlin film festival will be seeing triple this year, as 3-D productions such as "Avatar" transform the global cinema industry. READ »

More National
More popular articles »
Highlights
Photo: Tamsin Ross Van Lessen
SOCIETY »
Indie cinemas are a dying breed the world over... except in Berlin, home to nearly 60 small arthouse and neighbourhood venues. As Alice Harrison reports, some are even getting the red carpet treatment at this year's Berlinale.

See all ads | Join the Marketplace

Sponsored Links
Jobs in Germany, in English

572 jobs in Germany, in English
397 new jobs this week
78 new jobs today

ALL JOBS »

Latest news from The Local in Sweden
Blog
Essentials

Dating
Looking for your own blonde bombshell? Or is the strong, silent type more your style? Find a German sweetheart here.

Weather
"After clouds comes clear weather," say the Germans. But what about after that? Find out in The Local's weather section.

Blog
German stuff that's distracting us today.

Noticeboard
Whether you want to buy, sell, hire, announce or promote something, here's the place to do it - completely free of charge.

Discuss
Debate the news, ask for advice, make friends - or just let off steam.

Search News


Register

Register now for:
> Free use of noticeboard
> Special discounts
> Weekly news roundup
> Unlimited use of discuss

REGISTER FOR FREE »

News from the Goethe-Institut
News from Young Germany
News from DeutschlandOnline
Noticeboard
SHOW ALL NOTICES »
Toytown Germany
FULL INDEX »
Best Foreign exchange rates dealing - all major currencies
Foreign Currency Direct voted as offering the best exchange rates. All currency exchange transactions are managed by Ben Amrany. We guarantee that readers of The Local/Toytown receive a 5 star service
FULL DETAILS HERE>>>
JOB: Nursery Teacher / Early Years Educator
Wolfsburg nursery, specialising in an Early Years Programme, seeks English speaking nursery teacher
FULL JOB DETAILS
JOB: Admin and academic positions
GBCM is currently seeking experienced and ambitious full/part-time staff in the academic field as well as a flexible office manager for roles in an international environment
FULL JOB DETAILS
Advertising 2.0
MARKETPLACE - promote your business to half a million targeted readers a month on The Local. Find great products and services in Germany or tell The Local's readers about your own business.
CLICK HERE>>>
Sales managers - country wide
The Local is seeking talented and experienced media sales professionals for our online advertising sales in Germany
FULL JOB DETAILS

The Local Europe GmbH
Linienstrasse 214
10119 Berlin
Germany