Strip down and get in touch with nature during this new event at Lake Louise

Get up close and personal – really personal – with the Rockies during a Get Naked Banff! event at Lake Louise this summer.

Clothing is completely optional in this unique activity, which aims to give people a chance to connect with nature while in their most natural state.

According to its website, Get Naked Banff! promotes nude recreation by “openly hosting clothing-optional recreational activities in amazingly beautiful locations.”

Inspired by Naked Hiking Day, the organization was created to help the average Canadian – the “casual skinny dipper” – reconnect with the outdoors through one-of-a-kind opportunities.

“We don’t consider skinny dipping to be any more of ‘a lifestyle’ than going to see a movie or participating in a local bowling league,” reads Get Naked Banff!’s website.

While it promotes skinny dipping, all of the activities are fully clothing-optional. The organization says that it appreciates when clothed people enjoy their day alongside the group, because it helps to demonstrate that all people can co-exist, regardless of how much they are wearing.

“We empower the individual to make the decision that is best for themselves to wear as much or as little as they wish,” says Get Naked Banff! “Anyone not offended by the human body is welcome to enjoy their day with us.”

The summer event is set to be held on Saturday, July 23 (with an alternate date on July 24, in case of inclement weather) at the pristine sandy beach located around the backside of Lake Louise, opposite the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise.

The gathering at Lake Louise will run from 1 to 5 pm, and each participant will be using the area as an individual park user. Attendees are asked to bring everything they’ll need for the day, including water, food, sunblock, towels, and to pack out all of their trash.

And if you don’t feel like taking a dip in the chilly glacial lake, there will be another activity going on, which invites attendees to join “the best game of naked Frisbee ever played in the history of Canada and on the best playing field in the national park system!”

Get Naked Banff! (getnakedbanff.ca)

The organization says that it engages with the relevant Parks Canada authorities to ensure the success of this activity; however, it notes that Parks Canada has not endorsed the event.

“Given our past experiences,” Get Naked Banff! writes on its website, “we believe enforcement action to be incredibly unlikely. We believe that being asked to get dressed is the most likely type of enforcement action to occur, with arrests happening only for extenuating circumstances that threaten the public peace.”

The group says it will follow all requests by authorities, and if getting dressed de-escalates a potentially volatile situation, then that is what they will do.

Either way, they’re prepared to have a good time.

“The current plan is for this to be an annual activity for people to participate in,” said Get Naked Banff! in an email to Daily Hive.

The organization says that it welcomes “humans of all body types, sizes, sexualities, genders, and anybody un-offended by the human body.”

So if you’re interested in skinny dipping, a game of naked frisbee, or if you just happen to be hiking around Lake Louise and see a crowd of folks in the nude, don’t be afraid to join the group this July.

Get Naked Banff! Lake Louise event

When: July 23, 2022
Time: 1 to 5 pm
Where: Lake Louise, Banff National Park, Alberta (From the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, take the foot path along the north side of the water to the silt flat at the back side of the lake. Be sure to stay next to the lake and not take any uphill trails. The location is about two kilometres from the Fairmont)
Cost: Free