A Tofino writer and mother is floating the idea of establishing a nude beach near the coastal community. And while she admits the idea was initially a cheeky one, it seems to have gathered local support.
Rachel Sutton operates a vacation rental in the Tofino area and said a nude or clothing-optional beach would be one more amenity to add to the tourist destination.
“Here’s just one more offering: they could get a full-body tan, have this comfortable experience,” Sutton told CTV News.
“Can we just have a place we can go where we don’t even have to think about wearing clothes?”
Sutton said the nearby Cox Bay beach would be a preferred location for the destination. Tofino Mayor Josie Osborne says there has been no formal proposal to the municipality or the province to her knowledge.
“Such a beach would need to be an informal arrangement amongst community members,” Osborne told CTV News.
“I don’t have any moral objections to the idea but it would need to be an informal arrangement that respected the various feelings of community members.”
Sutton said she’s been surprised by the support her idea has received, but knows there are some who oppose it.
“There might be some people who are really angry about what I say and I have to accept that,” she said. “Wouldn’t it be better to know where there’s going to be nudity?”
Sutton said she isn’t proposing taking over an entire beach for clothing-optional patrons, just a small part of one.
“I’m a busy mom and I’m certainly not going to get up-in-arms about anything,” she said. “We know for all people that shame is very damaging and a lot of us have grown out of that. We should be able to function without feeling ashamed of ourselves.”
And if her plan falls through?
“I’m going have to work hard to find something else to complain about,” she said.
