Any information about Blacks Beach (clothing optional beach near San Diego). Directions, logistics, climate, reviews, ratings, warnings, discussions and experiences intended to provide potential travelers with information as to what can be expected and when they should go. History/Background:Black's Beach is a secluded section of beach beneath 300-foot high bluffs of Torrey Pines on the Pacific Ocean in La Jolla, (San Diego) California, United States. It has seen nude usage since the 1960s and is still one of the largest, most used clothing-optional beaches in the Americas. For many years, nude usage was also enjoyed on the beach portion owned by the City of San Diego, which abuts the southern boundary of the State-owned beach located about 100 yards south of the Glider Port trail head (usually marked by traffic cones). However, in the late 1990s, conservative politicians began to enforce the City's anti-nudity laws, so if you now wander onto the City portion of the beach, at the very lease you'll be warned by the beach patrol, or worse, receive a citation. But the portion of the beach wherein full nudity is allowed is almost a two mile stretch, so you have plenty of space to go nude if you like.
Aerial View of Blacks Beach
Crowd:I have seen published reports indicating that "thousands" go to Blacks on a sunny summer weekend, with one claiming that there were as many as 40,000 one weekend for a protest in the 1970s. But this is untrue, and cautions us against believing reports where the number of beach-goers are "estimated". On one busy summer holiday weekend, I did a very rough head count walking the entire 2-mile stretch. I counted, roughly, about 600 people. With people coming and going during the day, there were probably over 1,000 going on the busiest day of the summer. I'm guessing that, on average, about half that many are typically there on a typical warm summer weekend. Large crowds continue through mid October.
The gender ratio is a negative for Blacks. On average, over 80+% are male, many of whom are there just to gawk and walk up and down the beach (remaining clothed) gawking at any nude female flesh they can find. Because of this, those females that go are often inclined to leave their clothes/swimsuits on. But for the CFNM enthusiasts, it's not necessarily bad to have females going to this beach for solely for the intent to look at naked male flesh. One Yelp review from a woman named Angelina is fairly accurate in describing the environment:
The greatest concentration of clothed females is found in the 100 yard stretch south of the Glider Port trail, where it is no uncommon to see multiple groups of young females keeping their suits on yet surrounded by many naked men laying out side-by-side. Further north, you'll encounter both clothed and nude females, with clothed females being higher in numbers with the exception of the stretch where the locals hang out. In that stretch you'll find the highest concentration of nudists, both male and females. A few hundred yards to the north it begins to get less populated with unoccupied stretches even on the busiest days, until you arrive at the gay stretch. The gay stretch usually has about 150+ people, about 95% being male with about half being nude. It is also not uncommon to see a single or couple of females hanging out on this stretch - there to see the bevy of young naked hunks, albeit gay men.
For CFNM enthusiasts, Blacks offers one of the best opportunities to experience what it is like to be stark naked laying out and walking about amidst plenty of young females wearing sexy two- or one-piece swimsuits. The flatness of the beach also attracts many female joggers who cannot help but to sometimes look down and take notic of your swinging dick as they pass you. Lastly, although you make get some scorching stares from the local nudist nazis that aggregate in the center, in general, Blacks is an erection-accepting beach. Although it is normally not proper nude etiquette ("netiquette") for a nude man to have a visible erection, in my many years of going, I've seen many, many naked men with full erections bobbing up and down as they walk down the beach yet never once have I ever seen anyone say anything to them about it (although I've heard a lot of the clothed females giggle and make jokes about it such as that described in Angelina's Yelp post.
Climate/Weather:The Southern California coast is fairly temperate. During the winter months, it is often windy and cooler although some days in January and February can be sunny and warm (in the 80s). In early spring through early summer, it can be hard to predict the weather on the coast. The cool waters provide coastal clouds that often only extend a mile or so inland. Thus, one can be 5 miles from the coast, sunny with hardly a cloud in sight, yet on the beach it is completely overcast and misty making it for poor beach weather. Offshore winds sometimes cause the overcast skies to "burn off" by afternoon, but it's not always predictable. Also, one can be enjoying sunshine at the beach in the morning, but a cool cloudy overcast sky can develop by afternoon. There is a condition called "June Gloom" which refers to how this climatic condition can persist through June, and, sometimes into July.
This is not to say that the months of March through June are bad for beach going - only unpredictable. But usually starting in July, the offshore winds become stronger and the warmest, sunniest months at the beach follow in August and September. Due to warm weather in early fall, Blacks enjoys a lot of usage even into the fall months of late September through mid October, but begins to dwindle off as the days grow colder, more overcast and shorter.
The best way to find out if it warrants going to the beach is to follow the local weather for La Jolla, California, or, even better, Torrey Pines Golf Course. Torrey Pines Golf Course can be seen in the above aerial photo as it is borders the bluffs overlooking Blacks. Both weather reports can be found here:
Weather ChannelHowever, an even better gauge for Blacks is to watch live webcams perched on nearby beaches. From these webcams, you can see a) what the weather is, and b) if there are a lot of beach-goers, and if so, what are they wearing (i.e. swimsuits or sweaters/windbreakers). Live webcams:
San Diego Live - Webcam and WeatherLa Jolla Shores WebcamDel Mar Beach CamDangers/risks: The southern portion of Black's Beach is known to surfers as one of the most powerful surf breaks in Southern California. The waves gain their power due to the focusing effects of Scripps Canyon, an underwater canyon just offshore in the San Diego-La Jolla Underwater Park. Because of the sometimes large surf, fast breaking waves, and aggressive crowds, Black's is a dangerous surfing location, advisable for advanced surfers only. For non-surfers, their is a high risk of riptides, particularly in the late spring and summer. From my personal experience, these riptides are worse and more life-threatening than those found on other beaches in the Pacific and Atlantic.
Stingrays are also very common in the shallow waters, so when wading out, shuffle your feat. If your stung, it's extremely painful with the only alleviation coming from hot liquid or hot sand (lifeguards have hot packs for those stung). There are also rattlesnakes in the brush (yes, I've even seen them on the beach!), so be careful when walking through the thick brush at the base of the bluffs.
Lastly, there is debate about whether it is legal for people to be nude at Blacks. For the past 40 years, law enforcement has turned a blind eye to it. Lifeguards are stationed at Blacks and both they and State Park Patrol drive up and down the beach passing hundreds of naked people but never making commentary about it. With that said, if they observe open sex or a lone guy masturbating, yes, they will intervene and either cite them, or in some cases, make arrests. Further, there is a patrol officer that sits on top of the 300-foot high bluffs at the Glider Port constantly looking down at the beach with binoculars. He has a walkie-talkie and keeps in constant communication with the patrols driving the trucks on the beach. His job is to not only look for swimmers in distress, but also illegal activity on the beach such as beach vendors selling beer, pot smokers or guys wanking. However, he and the other patrols leave the beach at 6:00 p.m., which is also the time one is more likely to witness a couple engaging in sex - typically on the less-used stretch of beach further north.
There are many stories I and others have told about Blacks, as well as many photos and videos. They are found in these topic threads:
CFNM at Clothing Optional Beaches - Photos & Videosand,
Real CFNM Experiences/Stories - Clothing Optional BeachesCFNM Moments Captured on Film - Blacks Beach:Actual video showing some of the above CFNM scenarios:CFNM Beach Day @ Blacks - 6.8.2014CFNM at Blacks and ErectionsVideo Showing Groups of Clothed Girls Surrounded by Naked Men