Anyone for a skinny dip?

Continuing along Marine Drive, shortly after you pass the Rifle Range featured yesterday, you round a bend in the road, and come across a car park looking back across to the Cape Recife Lighthouse.

This is known as Shelly Beach, and is home to one of PE’s best kept secrets, the nudist beach. To be honest, I don’t know if it is still operating as such, because it is many years since we have been there. We live in less repressive times now, but “back in the day” when little boys grew up thinking that women’s breasts had little black stripes or stars on them, and nude bathing on the beach was a horrifying crime against society, Sandy Bay in Capetown rose to prominence as a nudist beach. There sun-lovers ran the gauntlet of Police Raids, and it was a sort of badge of honour to buck the system and come back from trips to Cape Town sporting an all over tan!
What many people didn’t know was that PE had her own version of Sandy Bay, but it was less famous. Walk along this bay back towards the Rifle Range and lighthouse, and about halfway along, go over the first row of dunes, and there is a natural hollow that overlooks the sea, is perfectly private all round (well it was, I guess the bush clearing might have changed all that 🙂 and, in those days, gave enough warning of approaching cops/voyeurs.

You can see the admin tower of the University to the left, and it is too small to see in this photo, but the Cape Recife Lighthouse is on the distant point to the right.

This Post Has 10 Comments

  1. ben wideman

    beautiful! there is a reason south africa steals your heart.

  2. Firefly

    I have always known that there was a nudist beach somewhere around there, but I have never been. Maybe one day… He he he

  3. Anonymous

    “… and there is a natural hollow that overlooks the sea …” just love the caption … 😉

  4. Jeanne

    A nudist beach in PE! Who knew… Stunning view though (I mean the waves!!).

  5. Anonymous

    New to your beautifulblog, XPE-ite living in Houston TX. Love the daily nostalgia. How about view of Mill Park?

  6. arnieo

    Hey Anonymous – I too an am XPE-ite living in Houston TX and I too hail from Mill Park. We need to meet!

  7. sam

    anon and arnio, wow, this is turning into quite a meeting place… sorry we can’t offer coffee! Will try for some pix of Mill Park, but basically it is all high walls, not too much to see. Maybe the big new wall around Grey will interest you, sign of the times! We’ll see what we can do….

  8. Anonymous

    I am a naturist and enjoyed nude sunbathing, with my wife at Café Recife. Lately it is to dangerous unless you go in a group. take note this isn't an official naturist beach. Have a look at my blog for other naturist place in SA. http://naturisminsouthafrica.blogspot.com.Peter

  9. Anonymous

    Good day,I am a South African naturist female.Please have a look at my blog and commenthttp://christiannaturistsuzi.blogspot.co.za/Another blogs on naturism is South Africa you can visithttp://www.naturisminsouthafrica.blogspot.comEnjoy Susan

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