Recreation: Free Beach

Just 40 miles south of San Francisco stretch the white sands of San Gregorio. One of the West Coast's most beautiful beaches, it is also one of the most secluded. The 1½-mile stretch is hemmed in by steep sand cliffs, access is difficult and for some thirty years it has been a hideaway for a quiet band of nudists—men, women and sometimes whole families who descend on weekends and merrily remove their clothes.

Unlike many nudist colonies, which wall themselves in like monasteries, forbid liquor and anything that smacks of bodily contact, San Gregorio is considered a "free beach," i.e....

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