IN THIS SECTION
Cap D’Adge’s naturist beach is a mile long, up to 100 yards wide and kept in very good condition. The beach is an experience of a lifetime because it holds tens of thousands of naked people on a sunny day. Those who want to show off walk up and down along the shoreline or disport themselves on the ‘adult beach’, where there is an intense feeling of being watched as couples eye each other up for later.
In front of Port Nature and Heliopolis there are restaurants, bars and cafes with steps leading down to the beach. On this part of the strand there are enclosures with sunbeds and parasols you can use for a fee. From there, the beach stretches out to the left in front of the campsite. A long man-made dune runs behind the beach, sheltering the campsite from sea breezes and ends at a dune-top cafe/bar, where the natural dunes begin.
The dunes were originally a popular swinging and exhibitionist locale. Then for several years they were fenced off and mounted police patrolled to prevent sexual activity. That era is over and the fence is buried in sand. However the dunes are now usually infested with lone, wandering men who create a creepy atmosphere that generally puts women off. Most of the sexual activity there is probably gay, although swinging party organisers have been known to hold ticketed events in the dunes after dark.
The adult beach has more rude naked people together than anywhere else on Earth.
As you walk down the beach, approximately where the campsite ends there are two bar/restaurants: the Sun Beach on top of the dune and the Paralia Beach Club on the beach below. The Paralia has a large sunbed enclosure with a statue of a mermaid in front of it. This effectively marks the beginning of the adult beach. Here there are no children, people are packed much more closely together and there is a palpable air of expectancy. On the far side of the adult beach is the much smaller ‘gay beach’ before you get to the sign at the municipal boundary with Marseillan Plage which ends the nudist zone.
Couples often meet new friends on the beach and go off together for drinks, something to eat and some fun. This is a lot easier if one of you speak French or German because most of the conversation is in these languages. However, the Dutch and Scandinavians often speak excellent English and the East Europeans usually have some. Even the Germans often have a few words. The French are the most monolingual of the lot but is their country and the language of love can sometimes overcome all barriers.
Not everyone leaves the beach for their action. As the afternoon wears on, clusters of spectators form around couples who are performing or inviting participation. Sex also happens in the water if the sea in warm. Not just couples playing by themselves but exhibitionists surrounded by the same swarm of spectators as you see on land. The favoured spot for this is where the beach juts out to form a tiny sandy point, which continues under the water to create a shallow area quite far from the shore. If you walk along towards the adult beach in the afternoon, you can often see mysterious crowds thronging the water in the distance.