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Community Corner

What Do Nudists Wear to a Costume Party?

The Castro Valley clothes-free club will celebrate its annual Halloween party this Saturday, Oct. 29 — the last event of the season. The Sequoians park reopens April 2012.

Drive past old barns and open fields along Castro Valley's Cull Canyon Road and you'll find a group of people with nothing to hide...literally.

The , a member-owned-and-operated non-profit nudist organization, has welcomed park visitors and members to bare it all since 1947, making it the Bay Area's oldest nudist facility.

This Saturday, Oct. 29, the clothes-free club will celebrate its annual Halloween party — the last event before closing down for the season.

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From lounging by the pool to hiking along the park's 80 acres of trails, members take advantage of the facility's many amenities on weekdays from April to October.

According to member Robbie Phillips, weekends tend to be the liveliest, not only because people are off from work, but also because the park holds special events such as parties and celebrations.

“We’ve had a Jamaican day, last weekend a professor from UC Santa Cruz led a nude wine tasting, we had Kentucky Derby on the lawn and an annual jam where people bring instruments and play together,” said Phillips.

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Former president of the park, Bev Axelrad, explained that weekends are also reserved for non-members willing to pay a fee. Visitor admission is offered in order to attract potential members.

“We allow guests with hopes that they will possibly join,” said Axelrad. “Everything you see here is member-done. We have the responsibility of preserving the place."

Since its inception, the land has been completely preserved by Sequoians members. However, one of the biggest changes over the years was the formation of nudist rules.

“There are lots of strict rules,” Axelrad said. “The club is not a pick-up place; the behavioral codes are pretty strict.”

Nudists at the Sequoians follow the American Association for Nude Recreation's Nudists’ Bill of Rights. These 10 rules include nudists’ rights to manage their families as they see fit, assemble in the nude in appropriate public locations and be free from adverse actions by employers.

Phillips said the Sequoians developed from a nudist club in Sonoma County. People accessed the Sonoma property by crossing a neighbor's land.

The original owner did not mind people crossing his property. However, after WWII, the property was purchased by an admiral who banned the nudists from crossing over.

Eventually, the displaced nudists purchased the Castro Valley property.

“Eight families pooled together their money and bought 80 acres for $8,000," Phillips said. "The land was cheap because it was useless — it was too steep for grazing and the lumber had already been removed."

The 1940s may seem like a conservative era for nudism, but according to Phillips, the nudist movement originated from the German philosophy American soldiers discovered during the war.

“[Nudism] started as a popular health movement," Phillips said. "It was all about calisthenics and having the sun and air over your entire body.”

Sequoians President Bill Hendricks said that participation at the park has fluctuated throughout the years due to popularity trends of nudism and competition from other nudist venues.

“It is hard for us to compete with nude cruises," Hendricks said. "Carnival has five to seven ships booked through 2013 for one to four-week cruises."

Nevertheless, Hendricks expressed his belief in the value of social nudism.

"After feeling a little awkward the first time, you become you, and you respond to others without the prejudices associated with wearing clothing," he said.

The fee for non-members is $25 per visit, or $35 for a couple. Membership is $375 per year plus 15 hours of work or an additional $150.

For more information about the park or the Halloween Party, visit the Sequoians website.

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