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Prince's Island Park - Clothing Optional Area
Canada's first ever downtown nude beach
This protest is organized by Calgary Nude Recreation
Contextually appropriate nude recreation is legitimate and lawful.
Clothing-optional areas exist all across Canada.
Organizations such as the City of Calgary, Alberta Parks, and Parks Canada intentionally misinterpret the law despite our vocal presence and clothing-optional activities in all their jurisdictions.
Weaselhead is in a City of Calgary park.
Hidden Beach is in a provincial park.
GET NAKED BANFF takes place in a national park.
Despite our presence and advocacy, organizations such as the City of Calgary continue to maintain that nude recreation is a criminal offence. The City of Calgary refuses to acknowledge Hidden Beach or Weaselhead despite both existing in the City of Calgary.
We are addressing this hypocrisy because the City's interpretation offends our 2(b) Charter rights for freedom of expression.
We insist that the City of Calgary acknowledge the legitimacy of contextually appropriate nude recreation just as Calgary Police Service Chief Constable Mark Neufeld has.
For the above reasons, we will be using Prince's Island Park for nude recreation as a demonstration that the City of Calgary's interpretation of the law is incorrect. We welcome everyone to join us wearing as much or as little as you choose.
What Started This:
In 2018, Calgary Nude Recreation (CNR) was the target of threats of violence, a bomb threat, threats of vehicle vandalism, outrage, and a $500 bounty on the identify of the organizer of CNR which is still available for viewing on Facebook. Our group was to only make up about 1/3 of the people in that facility, with the other two groups mostly being comprised of hockey kids and mothers with their 3-8 year old daughters doing gymnastics. These threats resulted in the cancellation of a private indoor swim that was to be out of the public eye and hidden from view. As result, Calgary Nude Recreation (CNR) began an advocacy campaign to establish that nude recreation as legitimate and lawful.
Then in 2024, a nudist group in Toronto received threats and outrage, which resulted in policy changes and changes to the nudist website.
Our community regularly receives threats of violence by people who seek us out no matter where we are hidden. Therefore, we are seeking formal recognition that contextually appropriate nude recreation is legitimate and lawful.
What CNR is Seeking:
Because of ongoing threats to our greater community, and because remaining hidden from the public is not good enough for some people, CNR is seeking formal recognition from the City of Calgary that nude recreation is legitimate and lawful.
We wouldn't need to do this if our community didn't receive threats of violence every few years. We are asserting our 2(b) Charter rights in the face of these threats and we have full faith in the police to correctly identify the source of problems that we encounter through our advocacy.
Formal recognition can come in many forms. For example, the City of Calgary can issue CNR permits for outside activities instead of informing us that our form of recreation constitutes a criminal offence. Alternatively, the City of Calgary can recognize the legitimacy of Hidden Beach and Weaselhead. There are many more options available.
Currently, the City of Calgary "lets" nude activities happen in public as long as they don't have to "approve" it, but also continues to maintain that we are committing criminal offences when we do. We wish to end this hypocrisy.
We wish to establish that contextually appropriate nude recreation is legitimate and lawful.
Why This is Important to Us:
Keeping nude recreation hidden in darkness makes us easy targets for the anger and outrage of a vocal minority and forces us to stand alone when we are attacked.
Bringing nude recreation into the light allows the police to correctly identify the source of disruptions to the public peace by focusing on the behaviour of the individual rather than their nudity.
When nude recreation is viewed as criminal, we are perceived as being antagonistic for peacefully enjoying our day, even when we are out of sight or are in a private facility.
Keeping clothing-optional areas mired in legal ambiguity means public sex acts are common in these areas because no one wants to call the police on themselves for being nude. This allows criminals to commit criminal acts in broad daylight and casts nude recreation in bad light.
2(b) Charter rights are not limited by what some people find offensive, or even by the fear that someone might be offended at some theoretical future time.
CNR's Successful Advocacy:
Among CNR's many advocacy achievements, we established Hidden Beach in Fish Creek Provincial Park, Calgary's second clothing-optional area. We established Hidden Beach by marking it on Google Maps and then using it accordingly because nude recreation is lawful. We established Hidden Beach because Alberta Parks maintained that nude recreation is a criminal offence and was attempting to use park regulations to prohibit our activities. We then asked Parks Canada about hosting activities in Banff. Parks Canada also tried to maintain that nude recreation is never allowed and also attempted to use park regulations to prohibit our activities. Years later, Parks Canada continued to maintain that nude recreation is criminal and therefore not allowed. To demonstrate that Parks Canada was incorrect, we created GET NAKED BANFF which took place at Lake Louise. The RCMP threatened to arrest everyone the first year, but left us alone the next three because contextually appropriate nude recreation is legitimate and lawful.
The City of Calgary's Hypocrisy:
Despite our achievements, the City of Calgary maintains that criminal public nudity has occurred if we are "open to public viewing" despite the existence of Hidden Beach and Weaselhead. The City of Calgary refuses to explain how Hidden Beach and Weaselhead can exist with their legal interpretation. Both the Calgary Police Service and City of Calgary are well aware of Calgary's clothing-optional areas. Weaselhead has been used for nude recreation for over 25 years and is now next to a major highway. We marked Weaselhead and Hidden Beach on Google Maps in 2020. We notified the City of Calgary and the Calgary Police Service when we began using Hidden Beach in 2020. Alberta Parks also received a courtesy notification since Hidden Beach is in a Provincial Park. The use of these areas for nude recreation is no secret, yet the City of Calgary maintains that nude recreation is a criminal offence.
In maintaining their position, the City of Calgary is offending our 2(b) Charter rights by effectively maintaining that our values and expression are not worthy of any Charter protections. Instead, we are treated as "tolerated" as long as its convenient for the City of Calgary.
The City of Calgary is Flat Wrong:
There are clothing-optional beaches all across Canada. The World Naked Bike Rides (WNBR) happen all over Canada, even as close as Edmonton. The Edmonton WNBR has had police escorts in years past, who followed them for the entire route without any arrests. There is clearly no ban on public nudity as the City of Calgary maintains.
The City of Calgary's interpretation of the law is contrary to the Attorney General of Canada, the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service, The Calgary Police Service Chief Constable Mark Neufeld, the Lake Louise RCMP and the town of Banff RCMP.
We Welcome Everyone to Join Us:
For these reasons, we look forward to enjoying this iconic downtown location and we welcome everyone to join us.
CNR is inclusive of all persons, regardless of comfort level, sexual orientation, gender identity, or relationship status.
This is a 2(b) Charter Rights Issue
We are a legitimate community group and we wouldn't need to assert our legitimacy if people didn't keep denying it. In denying our legitimacy, the City of Calgary is effectively maintaining that our values and expression are not worthy of any Charter protections.
Nude Recreation is Expressive:
The courts have consistently ruled that contextually appropriate nude recreation is expressive. A complaint resolution from the RCMP's oversight board (the CRCC) to CNR states that "the objectives of the organization [CNR] as whole are indisputably a form of expression". We have clear 2(b) Charter protections for freedom of expression, yet the City of Calgary still refuses to recognize our rights as legitimate.
For these reasons, we must stand up for ourselves and for the legitimacy of our 2(b) Charter rights. We insist that the City of Calgary acknowledge the legitimacy of contextually appropriate nude recreation and to stop calling us criminals for peacefully enjoying our day.
Nude Recreation is Lawful, But Don't Take Our Word for it!
We have engaged a lot of people about the legalities of nude recreation, including:
1. The Attorney General of Canada
In correspondence from the Attorney General of Canada to Calgary Nude Recreation, they explained that the legal test for criminal public nudity is determined by the Labaye (2005) Supreme Court decision. The test starts at paragraph 62 in the Labaye (2005) decision.
The Attorney General emphasized that behaviour must be incompatible with "the proper functioning of society" for the behaviour to be criminal. Our advocacy demonstrates that our activities are not a threat to the public peace, especially since Weaselhead has existed for 25+ years.
The Attorney General also stated "Accordingly, not all acts of public nudity are criminal".
The Attorney General emphasized that their concern is protecting the public from harmful conduct.
The Attorney General did not say that nude recreation is criminal.
Attorney General of Canada Email
2. The Assistant Deputy Minister of the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service
The Assistant Deputy Minister (ADM) of the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service (ACPS) suggested a public nudity decision aid for implementation by the RCMP. The sample decision aid that they provided clearly lists recreational nudity as lawful, an odd thing to recommend if public nudity is criminal.
The ADM said "Any decision in this regard must be made on a principled basis, in consideration of the specific facts surrounding the commission of the alleged criminal offence as determined by the law enforcement agency". Why would the ADM say that a decision "must be made on a principle basis" if public nudity were banned as the City of Calgary would have us believe?
The ADM also said "you must work with the appropriate policing agency", which is indicative that contextually appropriate recreational nudity is lawful.
The ADM of the ACPS did not tell us that nude recreation is criminal.
3. Calgary Police Service Chief Constable Mark Neufeld
Calgary Nude Recreation (CNR) filed a formal police complaint against the Calgary Police Service (CPS) because the of the inconsistent interpretation by the CPS regarding the law around criminal public nudity. In our complaint, we explained that the law is far more nuanced than simply being "nude in public". Chief Neufeld agreed, and the CPS will be developing a policy on the prosecution of public nudity.
Chief Neufeld agrees that nude recreation is expressive, engages 2(b) of the Charter, and that there are lawful instances of public nudity.
This policy would not be needed if mere "public nudity" is what determined that a criminal offence has occurred.
4. City of Calgary Permit Rejection
The following are two emails from the City of Calgary where they make statements such as "public nudity is illegal, and therefore, the City of Calgary is only able to offer private bookings for clothing optional events that are not open to public viewing". Accordingly, our permit applications were summarily denied and the City of Calgary is not willing to revisit their incorrect assertion.
The City of Calgary's interpretation of the law is inconsistent with the Calgary Police Service, Alberta Parks, Parks Canada, the Lake Louise RCMP, the Banff RCMP, the Attorney General of Canada, and the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service.
Additionally, the City of Calgary suggested Clearwater park for us to use in email 2, and as of March 2025 we have still been unable to complete that booking because the City of Calgary appears to be worried that we'll be "open to public viewing". Why doesn't this standard apply to Hidden Beach or Weaselhead?
1 - City of Calgary Email About "Not open to public viewing".
2 - City of Calgary Permit Rejection & "Public nudity is illegal".
Reasonable Compromises
We are willing to consider any alternative location within the City Limits of Calgary. For example, if the City of Calgary would prefer us not be downtown, they are welcome to suggest a location that they feel would be more suitable for the lawful expression of our 2(b) Charter rights. For example, Hidden Beach and Weaselhead would be fantastic suggestions, and also the most obvious, except the City of Calgary will not recognize the legitimacy of either location. This is what we are trying to bring attention to.
Thus far, no suggestions have been made as to how we can adjust this protest in order to comply with their interpretation of the law, except to find a private facility where we are shielded from public view at all times. This is the reason this is a 2(b) Charter rights issue.
Contextually Appropriate Nude Recreation
Calgary Nude Recreation (CNR) believes in "contextually appropriate nude recreation". All of our activities are entirely clothing-optional because we empower the individual to choose what is best for themselves. We believe in a peaceful coexistence between the naked and the clothed. We do not believe in "taking over" an area, but rather sharing that area with everyone else.
CNR is a community oriented activity group. We host group activities because a group conveys a different meaning than lone individuals and it also demonstrates that we have legitimate ties to our community.
We believe in reasonable limits. We do not believe that it is appropriate to conduct daily activities (shopping, banking, public transit, etc.) while naked. Nudity that is designed to disrupt is never lawful. We believe if the attention were focused on the behaviour of the individual rather than their nudity, the source of public disruptions would be easier to determine.
There are people who use nudity to disrupt, and the courts were correct to find them guilty of criminal public nudity. We are not seeking to disrupt. We are trying to demonstrate that nude recreation is compatible with our culture and that nude recreation is legitimate, lawful, and not a threat to the public peace.
Media Requests
Media requests can be made by contacting CalgaryNudeRecreation@Gmail.com.
Clothing-Optional Beach Etiquette
- Pack in, pack it out. No littering.
- Ask permission before taking pictures of people, even if they are clothed.
- Do not stare or gawk.
- Nude beaches are family-friendly areas. Sexual activity and exhibitionism are unacceptable.
- Nude beaches are not the place to be finding yourself a potential life or sexual partner.
- Be aware that some people attend nude beaches to socialize with friends while others attend to enjoy being naked in nature. Be courteous to other people's reasons for visiting this beach and do not engage others in unwanted conversation.
Sexual activity in public will be reported to the police.
Q: Nude recreation really lawful?
A: Contextually appropriate nude recreation is legitimate and lawful. Using nudity to cause a disturbance is not.
Q: Is this area sanctioned?
A: There are only two beaches in Canada that are officially designated as clothing optional, located in Vancouver and Toronto. Every other nude area in Canada is "unofficial". This lack of formal status for nude use has no effect on the legality of nude recreation at all.
Q: What do I do if the police show up and ask or demand people get dressed?
A: Follow all instructions from the police. Do not argue with the police.
Then, once dressed, ask for their business card and email that information to CalgaryNudeRecreation@Gmail.com so that we can file a formal complaint with the Calgary Police Service. Nude protests are lawful and a form of expression. Therefore, our complaint will focus on the violation of your 2(b) Charter rights for freedom of expression and your freedom to participate in a peaceful non-disruptive protest.
Q: What do I do if someone happens by who is angry or upset over nudity?
A: One of the perks of this area being in a City of Calgary park is that it is against bylaw to disturb someone's use or enjoyment of the park. If someone is interfering with your peaceful enjoyment of the park you may call the Calgary Police Service non-emergency line at 403-266-1234. If there is a threat or actual use of violence call 911. We recommend de-escalating if possible, but the most likely scenario is that the person who is offended will leave the area without issue.
What you are wearing is not a factor if someone approaches you to yell or make threats. The police are very experienced at identifying a peaceful person relaxing by a river from someone that approaches other park users to cause public disruptions.
Safe and Courteous Behaviour
7. A person must not engage in any conduct or activity in a park which:
(b) unreasonably disturbs the use or enjoyment of the park by any other user of a park;
Enjoy your visit!
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