Naturalist

Islands for Everyone!

As cabin fever sets in and winter blues hover in the air (unless you live in Florida, no winter blues here), why not take yourself on a tropical getaway? Say, to an island that’s perfect for your personality?! CNN Go has put together a list of islands that are perfect for all kinds of people – nudists, families, loners, lovers…. you name it. Here are some of the findings:

World’s Best Islands For…

Naughty Nudists
Rab, Croatia – The birthplace of skinny dipping where clothing is optional. There are 3 different nude beaches where all of your parts can get some Vitamin D.

Nature Nuts
Sark, Channel Islands – It’s here, off the French coast of Normandy, that you can see the Milky Way nearly every night. There are no street lights or headlights because cars and bright lights are outlawed – perfect for stargazing space freaks (like me)!

Family Frenzies
Oahu, Hawaii – I’ll admit, the thought of visiting an island where are bunch of kids are running around is a turnoff to me. But Oahu is a great destination for families because of all the activities to keep young ones entertained – things like surfing school, giant mazes and water slides.

Lusty Lovebirds
Lizard Island, Australia – Between the 24 private beaches, the torch-lit dinners at the resorts and the Great Barrier Reef, this island is sure to make sparks fly. I know it’s going on our itinerary…

Laid Back Loners
Ogasawara Island, Japan – Traveling solo isn’t a bad thing, especially if you enjoy the quiet of being one with nature. South of Tokyo, this island has few inhabitants and a ferry is the only means of connecting the island to the “real world”… otherwise, you’re on your own! (Bring your survival bracelet!)

Party Peeps
Ibiza, Spain – Yes, the same Ibiza that J-Lo sings about. Known for its sweaty summer raves, there are tons of clubs with head-throbbing trance music if you’re looking for a party scene-getaway.

Movie Star Madness
St. Barts, French West Indies – Pretty, posh and full of paparazzi, this is THE island for celeb sightings. It’s also a gorgeous place with white sand beaches, just like in the Hollywood movies.

To read about the other island recommended, check out CNN Go’s article.

Happy island-hopping!

Categories: Adventure, Around the World, Backpacking, Celebrities, Explore, Family, Globetrotting, Landscape Photograph, Love, Naked Hiking, Naturalist, Nature, News, Nude Beach, Nude Hiking, Ocean, Outdoors, Photography, Planning vacation, Plants and Flowers, RTW, SCUBA Diving, Summer, Top Knotch Gear, Tourist Site, Transportation, Travel, Travel Photography, Travel Tips, Trip planning | Tags: , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

National Parks FREE ADMISSION!

There are a few weekends each year where the National Parks offer free admission for visitors. This weekend is one of them! In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, each of America’s 397 national parks will waive admission fees. (You may still need to pay for parking, we’re not sure). So this weekend, get out and enjoy the wonderful outdoors at a national park! For more info, click here to visit the U.S. National Park Service’s website.

Joshua Tree National Park

Other times when the parks have free admission are:

  • April 21-29 (National Park Week)
  • June 9 (Get Outdoors Day)
  • September 29 (National Public Lands Day)
  • November 10-12 (Veteran’s Day weekend)
Categories: Adventure, Backpacking, Camping, Explore, Family, Mountains, National Parks, Naturalist, Nature, Outdoors, Photography, Planning vacation, Rock Climbing, Tourist Site, Trails, Transportation, Travel, Travel Photography, Travel Tips, Trek, Trip planning, Utah | Leave a comment

CYBER MONDAY SPECIALS ALL DAY!

***CYBER MONDAY SPECIALS ALL DAY AT TOP KNOTCH GEAR!***

  • 8:00am-2:00pm (EST) – 25% OFF entire purchase with code CYBERKNOTCH
  • 2:00pm-6:00pm (EST) – FREE matching key chain with every purchase – no code needed
  • 6:00pm-11:59pm (EST) – FREE SHIPPING on all order with code CYBERGEAR

Check out http://www.etsy.com/shop/TopKnotchGear to start your shopping!

Categories: Accessories, Adventure, Backpacking, Bracelet, Bright colors, Caving, Chain Knot, Circumnavigation, Cyber Monday, Etsy, Family, Globetrotting, Jewelry, Knots, Mountains, Naturalist, Nature, Outdoors, Parachute Cord, Paracord, Paracord Pet Gear, Paracord Pet Supplies, Paracord Watch, Pets, Random, Rock Climbing, Survival gear, Top Knotch Gear, Trails, Travel | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Insight to Hiking Naked: An Article Written by a Nude Hiker Himself

We’ve seen a ton of hits over the past couple of days from our post about nude hiking in Germany and the Supreme Court debate about nude hiking in Switzerland. (We had no idea the Time Magazine article would be so popular among some our viewers!). For those of you interested in hiking naked in the United States, here is a link to an article written by a man in the Yukon who hikes nude (warning, there are some photos but no “inappropriate” body parts can be seen.) It’s an interesting perspective if you have an open mind.

Read the article here: http://www.yukonalaska.com/nudehiking/ 

Also, if you’re looking for a survival bracelet to match the color of your birthday suit, we have some colors of paracord that may blend in quite nicely with flesh tones! Stop by our online store to see the survival bracelets and get yours today!

Categories: Adventure, Backpacking, Debate, Europe, Explore, Family, Germany, Globetrotting, Hiking, Mountains, Naked Hiking, Naturalist, Nude Hiking, Outdoors, Photography, Plants and Flowers, Random, Stumble Upon, Summer, Supreme Court, Switzerland, Top Knotch Gear, Tourist Site, Trails, Travel, Trip planning, United States | 2 Comments

Get Your Last-Minute Orders by TONIGHT!

Top Knotch Gear will be on a brief “vacation” while we pack up, move down to Florida and get situated in our new sunny home. Please make any last-minute gear purchases by tonight (Wednesday) at 10:00PM EST. At 10, the store will not be available and we will be unavailable to check messages on Etsy. If you have inquiries, please email us at topknotchgear@gmail.com and we’ll do our best to respond to emails as quickly as we can.

Our Etsy store will re-open Monday, June 27 at which point business will continue as usual.

Thanks everyone! And safe travels,

September & Morgan – Top Knotch Gear

Categories: 4th of July, Accessories, Adventure, Backpacking, Beach, Bracelet, Business, Chain Knot, Circumnavigation, Communication, Etsy, Explore, Family, Gear, Globetrotting, Hemp, Hiking, Jewelry, Knots, Mountains, Naturalist, Nature, Outdoors, Packing, Parachute Cord, Paracord, Paracord Dog Collar, Paracord Pet Gear, Paracord Pet Supplies, Paracord Watch, Pets, Photography, Rock Climbing, Stumble Upon, Summer, Survival gear, Top Knotch Gear, Trails, Transportation, Travel, Travel Photography, Travel Tips, Trip planning, Uncategorized, United States | Leave a comment

Naked Hiking in Germany

For most Americans, the thought of hiking in your birthday suit or catching a glimpse of a fellow hiker nude in nature would be alarming – given our prudent, rather body-conscious beliefs about the natural human form. Nude hiking is not all that uncommon in Europe, though. Switzerand allows hiking in the nude but is currently debating the ammenity with its Supreme Court. Last year, Germany opened its first nude hiking trail near the town of Dankerode (about 3 hours outside of Berlin, for those unfamiliar with German geography). Apparently, there were signs at the trailhead that read, “If you don’t want to run into any naked people, stop right here!” Seen as a “paradise for nude hikers” the naked trail is causing some scuffles between German naturalists (the nature-lovers, etc.) and traditionalists (everyone else). As you can imagine, there’s plenty to debate over the issue of “bodily freedom”. The trail is right by a family campsite and the owner of the campsite, who originally welcomed the idea of a luxury trail as added revenue, has since changed his mind when it comes to family camping in the nude. Hot words are exchanged, labels are given but what are your thoughts on nude hiking – in Germany or other parts of the world?

Read the original article from Time here:

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2076783,00.html?artId=2076783?contType=article?chn=world

Hiking in the nude in Germany. Photo courtesy of Matthias Bein.

 

 

 

Categories: Adventure, Backpacking, Camping, Debate, Europe, Explore, Family, Germany, Hiking, Naked Hiking, Naturalist, Nature, Nude Hiking, Outdoors, Photography, Random, Stumble Upon, Summer, Supreme Court, Switzerland, Top Knotch Gear, Tourist Site, Trails, Transportation, Travel, Trip planning, United States | 1 Comment

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