Stress Relief and Relaxation at Buckridge

They come from near and far to experience a relaxing time at Buckridge Nudist Park.  For instance if you were here any week this past summer you may have met your neighbor, Jan & Anne from Holland, Mike from Maine, Von & Jeanne from PA, Marilyn from West Virginia, or Frank from Texas.  Comments come back to Carol and Cap (owners) like; how beautiful, how peaceful, I really slept good last night, I am ready to face the real world, I don't want to go home, and I don't want to put my clothes back on. It has been said that two days in a nudist camp is like a week's vacation.  For most people it is the best way of relaxing. Many people pay many times the cost of a day or two in a nudist club to go somewhere and do something else to relax. They often end up with poorer results.

 Buckridge Nudist Park sits on one hundred plus acres of beautiful rolling wooded land.  It is surrounded by wooded undeveloped land on all sides.  Some even in a trust that makes it forever wild.

There are forty campsites some with electric and water, some without.  The water supply is ample for the size campground. An early project was to wall in and floor in the back portion of a screened in porch for a check in area. Facilities have been improved each year with minor improvements to several buildings. A clubhouse was built about five years ago and houses a snack bar/check in area, office, lounge and Fawn Hall, an all purpose room 24' x 40'.

A four and a half acre lake provides one focal point for sunbathing. If you get too hot a quick dip in the lake cools you off. A row boat, canoe, and a paddle boar are there for your use should you desire a ride on the lake.  You can often see the bass swimming in the lake and if some cases they swim between your legs in the swimming area. A few picnic tables add a place where you can eat your picnic lunch.

 Should you decide a hike is in order over a mile of trails await your exploration.  There are over a mile of trails on the property that can be walked nude. To add to those trails, there are two more that go on a neighbor's property and out of respect for the neighbor anyone walking those trails has to be dressed. 

 Two new features added this past year include a pool and petanque courts. Both have had a lot of use and were welcome additions. The pool is a heated pool and has a twenty foot lounging area inside the fence on all four sides. The petanque courts are made with stone dust and provide a very nice playing court.

Gardens are found all over the grounds giving color and making the grounds very attractive to the members and guests.  Each year sees additions to the gardens and their further development. Each year they get more mature and beautiful.

A Children's play area is in the development stage with swings, sand box and other things available for small children to play with so far.

A hot tub/spa is a great way to finish off a day and many make sure they enjoy it before they leave. Stay late or camp over, a camp fire is usually started around seven thirty and everyone gathers around it.

 Of course if you get hungry or thirsty there is the always open snack bar.  It serves good food, in fact, a couple drove several miles just to enjoy a hamburger and home fries this past summer. Dale often comes in for a short visit and always wants something from the snack bar.

 Buckridge is eight years old. It had the fourteenth largest membership in the Eastern Sunbathing Association as of December 1997.  This is out of some seventy clubs from the Florida boarder to the Canadian Boarder. Buckridge is proud to have won the prestigious Erwin Koch Award in 1997 for the cleanest and friendliest club in the American Association for Nude Recreation with some 200 plus clubs. The club has developed a calendar of events that is rich in variety and interesting events.  Since many have to do with food, a comment was made "well if we don't do anything else, we sure eat good here".  This next summer, Buckridge expects to work with several from around the local community to provide some outstanding events such as a Psychic Show, a Venison Tasting, a Atlatl Demonstration, and a Goat Cheese and Wine Party.

 Buckridge holds two Open Houses a year. The first one is in June in cooperation with the Campground Owners of New York open houses. The second one is National Nude Weekend.  A free will offering Pancake Breakfast is served from eight to eleven. Tours of the facilities are offered. Those who want to experience being nude and use the facilities can stay and use the grounds by paying ground fees at the member rate. Couples will be given a special of a two for one on ground fees.  Guests and potential members are welcome anytime and pay a ground fee charge to use the facilities.

Carol and Charles (Cap) Preston have been nudist since 1963 when they joined Empire Haven Nudist Park in Moravia, NY.  Charles worked for Riverside Book Bindery in Rochester at the time and within three weeks told his boss that he and his family were nudist.  He also informed his rector at church that he and Carol would not be there in the summer because they would be going to the nudist park.  Neither Carol or Cap ever made it a secret that they were nudist.

Carol and Cap could often be found helping George and Mary Robinson with the camp operation in the later years of their membership in Empire Haven.  They represented Empire Haven in the Campground Owners of New York and made a lot of friends with others who ran regular campgrounds. Carol spent several summers at Empire Haven running the Snack Bar and signing people in. In 1990 Cap retired from his full time job and worked at Empire Haven all summer.

In the fall the decision was made that they would no longer be working with the owners of Empire Haven.  That fall they visited old friends who had run a regular campground, Buckridge Camps in Candor, NY. From that visit grew an idea that  Buckridge which had been closed down for four years could be reopened as a nudist park owned and operated by Carol and Cap. After one summer of relaxing, Carol and Cap purchased Buckridge. Buckridge opened for business the following summer. It was chartered by the American Association for Nude Recreation with fifty members in August of that first year.  Since that time Buckridge has grown to over one hundred and twenty five members.

In community service and other organizations they have served as follows.  Cap served as President of The Eastern Sunbathing Association for three years. Cap served as Senior Warden in his church in Candor.  He is Past President of the Candor Chamber of Commerce  He currently Serves as Secretary on the Candor Free Library Board of Trustees. Cap is a Rotarian and has been a member of a few other groups.  Carol is Treasurer of the Episcopal Church Workers group at church and just finished serving four years Region 4 Director in Campground Owners of New York.