The hills are alive with the sound of … nudists!

Yes, it’s really summer. Besides naked biking and rollerblading, there’s also just plain old naked hiking. Steve Gough is perhaps an extreme example. But if you’re going to be anywhere near southern Germany or Austria at the beginning of July, the highlight of your summer could be a 5-day naked trek across the Alps from Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Germany to the South Tyrol in Italy.

It’s being planned now in some detail by a small group, but everyone who wants to join in is welcome. The plan is to cover about 20 km per day, so it’s not for total wusses. However, provided you can find the group en route, you can connect up for any part of the trip you want. Clothing is optional, which means you can even wear something (besides boots) if you absolutely insist.

If you start right now, you have two whole weeks to plan…

For more information, visit the organizer’s Yahoo discussion group, Naked Europe.

Originally published June 15, 2005