Playalinda Beach, FL

[justnude]

Our family will be in the Orlando area next week. I was wondering if the beach is still "up and running"? We do not want to actually make the trip down to Haulover from central Florida if Playalinda is open. Thanks for the info.

[walter05]

I was at Apollo last week. It is on the nothern side of the Canaveral National Seashore.

http://www.nps.gov/cana/planyourvisit/upload/cana_map.pdf will connect you to the map of the Canaveral National Seashore. If you drive down from New Smyrna Beach, you will drive to where it says road ends. That is parking area #5 and that is where the clothing optional beach is.

They now charge $3 per person to get in.

The sign saying that nude sunbathers may be seen beyond this point was taken down however. I don't know that there is any change in status.
There were quite a few nude people there this past Sunday. Mostly males and a few females. I did not see any families.

I hear that Playlandia is nicer. However, there have been some law enforcement issues with nudity there in the past.

[cenfldh]

My wife and I went to Playalinda Beach just yesterday (July 30). (We have also been to Apollo Beach before). Awesome place! Lots of space. Even on a Monday, there were many people (though certainly not crowded), mostly couples, good age mix.

If I understand correctly, there haven't been law enforcement issues in a number of years (though I don't know how long it's actually been). While we were there, a National Park ranger drove back and forth through the area on a buggy, passing many nudes, and never said a word.

If you go to Playalinda, it's the south district of Canaveral Naional Seashore, east of Titusville. Go all the way north to the end of the road, crossing and parking lot 13. There are several signs citing the Brevard County ordinance banning nudity, but no one paid attention.

While you're there, take the family to the Manatee Viewing area and Bairs Cove Boat Ramp to see lots of Manatees. We did yesterday.

Caution: the beach is closed 3 days before a Shuttle launch, and one is scheduled for next week. So you'll have to pay attention to that datewise. The Endeavor is on the launch pad now.

Have a great time, and report back how your experience was.

[Michjoe]

Shuttle launch is scheduled for August 7. Playalinda closes three days before and one day after a launch but Apollo remains open.

[rascal56]

Has been a while,but Playalinda is very nice and usually not a problem as long as you stay north of lot 13.Nice mix the last time I was there.
Wish I could go more often.

[Tyco]

There's a new airline here in Maine that's offering non-stop flights from Bangor to Sanford, Florida. You betcha I'm planning on taking advantage of that this coming winter (around March I think). I've been wanting to return to Apollo and Playalinda beaches since visiting them for the first time about 4 years ago.

[justnude]

thanks to all who replied. We leave tomorrow-full report to follow!

[Nues]

Please do post a follow-up report. I will be in Orlando in Oct and have thought about going over to Playalinda while there.

[walter05]

Tyco;

March can still be a little cool at Apollo or Playlandia.

Late October or early November can be nice to be on the beach but too cold to swim. Still, it is very nice then.

PM me to let me know and I will be happy to meet you. I can even give you a ride from the airport if you want.

To everyone else, does anyone happen to know what happened to the sign letting people know they may encounter nude sunbathing beyond this point? It is missing at Apollo Beach and I wonder why.

[Barelyhere]

I was at Apollo last week. There was 1 young family, several couples and single males. The beach was not really swimable. Heavy surf, a steep dropoff and strong outflow made it unsafe to do more than play in the edge of the surf. However, the sand and sun were wonderful.

As was pointed out earlier, there is no signage. The nude section can be found by walking south until you see naked people.

[Michjoe]

Many people swim in October and November. If you are from the north it is not cold at all.

[walter05]

Barelyhere;

I was there on Sunday. I had no problems with the surf. However, the outflow as you call it, or undertow as we call it is an issue on all ocean beaches. One should always keep it in mind.

There is an area where there is like a steep drop-off into a hole. Most of the way, that steep drop off is about 3 to 4 feet and then one comes out of it. Further down the beach there is virtually no dropoff at all.

[RichNH]

The undertow has to be watched out for but can be dealt with if you keep your head about you. The trick is if you get caught in it swim parallel to the beach and not towards it. Rip tides, undertow, outflows, whatever you wish to call them are narrow, usually not more than 100 yads wide and if you swim along the beach you'll swim out if it and then can swim in to shore. If you try to fight it and swim directly towards the beach the current will beat you and you'll become exhausted. That's how people die. Best advice, if its there, don't go in it. If caught in it, swim along the beach until you are out of it.

Rich

[justnude]

Despite the high heat and humidity our family did venture out to the beach. As stated by one of the posters here, Playalinda was indeed closed due to the scheduled shuttle launch (an awesome site to watch!) so we drove up to Appollo Beach. Due to the launch, the last 2 or 3 parking areas were also shut down so apparently the nude section was moved closer to the main entrance-I think lot 3. Anyway, it was great. My sons and I were joined by my older sister and brother in law, their 3 kids and one of their neighbors for a great day. Due to the weather, we spent most of the time in the ocean but did have a good walk up the beach. There wre perhaps 50 or so other folks on this section of the beach-all nude. They ranged from couples, to a few singles. We did meet one other family there with 2 pre teen kids who enjoyed playing with my neices. All in all-another great nude time for all!

[DenitaLC]

Originally posted by justnude:
Despite the high heat and humidity our family did venture out to the beach. As stated by one of the posters here, Playalinda was indeed closed due to the scheduled shuttle launch (an awesome site to watch!) so we drove up to Appollo Beach. Due to the launch, the last 2 or 3 parking areas were also shut down so apparently the nude section was moved closer to the main entrance-I think lot 3. Anyway, it was great. My sons and I were joined by my older sister and brother in law, their 3 kids and one of their neighbors for a great day. Due to the weather, we spent most of the time in the ocean but did have a good walk up the beach. There wre perhaps 50 or so other folks on this section of the beach-all nude. They ranged from couples, to a few singles. We did meet one other family there with 2 pre teen kids who enjoyed playing with my neices. All in all-another great nude time for all!

You were very lucky to be there at a time when the nude section wasn't condemned to the far reaches of the beach. I've always thought that moving the nude section between two parking lots would make a lot more sense. (Of course, the lack of parking at lot five is [IMO] the park's way of keeping the nudists numbers lower.) If they moved the c/o section between two lots, there would be more parking and textiles could drive around the c/o section. As it is now, anyone that wants to go into the pristine area must walk through the nude section. I know things will never change and one must be happy that nudity is allowed there at all......just wishful thinking on my part.
http://oakhurstonline.com/icon/happy.gif

[justnude]

I understand the parking thing. There have been too many times when we had to either wait for a space or park down at the next lot with the very long hike back up to the end. That is not something one really wants to do in the Florida heat and humidity of mid-August so yes, we were "lucky"

[nude_in_ky]

My wife and I were at Playalinda on August 18th. We got there around 4:00 P.M. As we were driving up to lot 13 we were met by lots of people leaving. One person stopped and told us that if were planning on being nude we would be disappointed because the Sheriff's Deputies had just arrived and told everyone that they were going to have to put clothes on.

We went ahead and walked to the beach where we saw two four wheelers with four officers sitting on the beach. No one was nude.

It appears that there is a crackdown on nudity at Playalinda for some reason.

Today (8/20) we went to Apollo beach. There were several nude people there and no law enforcement. We were only there for about an hour but we enjoyed it. The surf was fairly rough so we only played in the shallow water.

[justnude]

This makes me wonder "what is going on" there! We have been visiting there on and off for nearly 12 years now when we visit family in the area and have never experienced trouble beyond the closing for the shuttle launches. I hope this is not a case of inappropriate behavior by a few making it "bad" fro the many!

[RichNH]

Could it possibly be because the shuttle landed today? I honestly don't know. Maybe a new policy regarding landings as well as launchings.

Rich

[Naturist Mark]

Originally posted by RichNH:
Could it possibly be because the shuttle landed today? I honestly don't know. Maybe a new policy regarding landings as well as launchings.

Rich

I could see them clearing the beach, but not just the nudes.

[DenitaLC]

Perhaps this is in part why and the officers were just a bit early in their clearing of the beach? Let us hope this is the case!


National Park Service News Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – August 17, 2007
CONTACT: 321-267-1110 Eric Lugo
CANAVERAL NATIONAL SEASHORE AT PLAYALINDA BEACH DIRECTED TO CLOSE FOR SHUTTLE LANDING
Aug 20, 2007 Closure Notice Update: Due to hurricane Dean, NASA has moved the shuttle landing up by one day. Accordingly, Playalinda’s closure has been changed to 8:00 pm today, August 20, 2007. Re-opening is now scheduled for 6:00 am on Wednesday, August 22, 2007.
In compliance with instructions from NASA, Canaveral National Seashore at Playalinda Beach in Brevard County will close at 8:00 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2007 in preparation for the shuttle landing, which is planned for Wednesday, August 22, and is subject to change. Playalinda Beach will re-open the day after the shuttle lands.

[justnude]

This is great news! From the other postings I was very worried that the rangers were going to begin enforcing Florida's anti nudity laws for the beach. The beach is always closed for the launches and also if the shuttle is landing in Florida instead of Texas. It remains open when they piggy back the shuttle back from Texas on a special 747-again- a sight to see! Naturally on this forum, we would not hear about folks from the textile portion of Playalinda being asked to leave the beach!

[Naturist Mark]

Perhaps this is in part why and the officers were just a bit early in their clearing of the beach? Let us hope this is the case!
Perhaps so, if they were actually clearing the beach. But not if they were just telling naked people to put on clothes ...

[DenitaLC]

Originally posted by Naturist Mark:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Perhaps this is in part why and the officers were just a bit early in their clearing of the beach? Let us hope this is the case!
Perhaps so, if they were actually clearing the beach. But not if they were just telling naked people to put on clothes ... </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Agreed. We'll have to wait until someone from here can visit Playalinda and give us an update, which would be much appreciated!
http://oakhurstonline.com/icon/happy.gif

[nude_in_ky]

I really doubt that it was because of the shuttle landing. We were there on a Saturday and it didn't land until Tuesday.

Also, as I said before, there were four Sheriff's Deputies there when we got there. We kept our clothes on and played on the beach for a while. The deputies left once they saw that everyone was keeping their clothes on. There were several other people on the beach as well. All wearing clothes.

I don't think that they wanted everyone to leave. Just stay covered up.

This was our first trip there. There were signs citing the county's law against public nudity posted at each beach entrance. Have they always been there?

Dave and Cheryl

[DenitaLC]

Originally posted by nude_in_ky:
I really doubt that it was because of the shuttle landing. We were there on a Saturday and it didn't land until Tuesday.

Also, as I said before, there were four Sheriff's Deputies there when we got there. We kept our clothes on and played on the beach for a while. The deputies left once they saw that everyone was keeping their clothes on. There were several other people on the beach as well. All wearing clothes.

I don't think that they wanted everyone to leave. Just stay covered up.

This was our first trip there. There were signs citing the county's law against public nudity posted at each beach entrance. Have they always been there?

Dave and Cheryl

The county has had the nudity ban for quite a few years. I "think" it came into being in the late 90's. That is the very reason we've only gone to Apollo, because of the 'agreement' there to allow a nude use section. Apollo is in the next county to the north so not affected by Bravard's anti nudity law.
I know that many people/groups have continued to use Playalinda. There haven't been any major issues for quite sometime that I'm aware of. I've heard of groups placing guards to watch for law enforcement so they can warn people to put their clothes on. Not my idea of fun, having to look over your shoulder the whole day. The local group, Central Florida Nudists, haven't updated their website in years.

Sorry, that's all I really know. Can others add more?

[rascal56]

its been a while since I have been,but friends have not mentioned any issues. as long as we behave and stay north on parking area 13 there should be no issues.
Rick.

[Michjoe]

I have been to Playalinda many times between October and May over the past 8 years. I have never seen a sheriff deputy or a guard watching for anything. Signs concerning the county's law have always been there. Newer ones at the beach crossovers have been posted in the last year or so. I've always gone there instead of Apollo because parking is so much easier to find with two additional lots within walking distance.
I have searched all the local media sources I am aware of for information about any change and have found nothing. The passage of the law was an over reaction to problems that weren't confined to the nude section of the beach. As I recall, the local congressman presented a lot of phony data and the local wackos took it from there.
I sure hope what happened was a one time thing.

[Nativenude]

The beach might also have been closed for security reasons for beach visiting dignitaries or such but time will tell if it was another infamous Brevard enforcement to protect us from the “terrible” nudists.
The nude beach problems we are seeing over recent years is just another branch of the real problem in this country for some time now. The control freaks, be it the christian coalition type groups or our government. The lies and misinformation at the Brevard county hearings was beyond belief but never the less the law makers used those lies to nearly pass laws that would of made it illegal to be nude in our own homes. Many said that the new laws would not effect playalinda since it was on federal land but that sure was disproved quickly. Just because you don’t see a uniform doesn’t mean there isn’t a patrol either since the number of plain clothes and even unmarked cars have gone up dramatically . Course don’t forget there is at least one cam overlooking that beach as well. There are several cities here that now that wants remote control cam equipped aircraft (basically a model plane) for “controlling violent crimes” but there is already a proposal in there for acting upon other code or law violations. It’s easy to see that will be the end of private yard sunning if it gets thru. To many people fail to see that every time that we allow some law or amendment to be passed that takes away any citizens rights and freedoms without considering the long term effects it’s like a snowball rolling downhill, growing ever increasingly larger to eventually swallow all of our rights and freedoms one by one. If have any doubt about these control freaks just look to homeland security, in their thinking we are all guilty now of something until proved otherwise.

"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." (Edmund Burke)