Couple combine their travels with nudist recreation.

Byline: Been there by The Register-Guard

TRAVELER: John Kinman of Marcola retired eight years ago after 30-plus years of banking in Portland and moved to Kona, Hawaii, with his wife, B.J.

"We just wanted to change, to get out of the city have have something totally new, and Hawaii was a big change for us, and we loved it," he said.

"Now, we're in the process of relocating back to the mainland because we started feeling too far away from friends and family, and missing our granddaughter growing up. Even while we were in Hawaii we always spent the summers here, and I've got to tell you that there's no place prettier than the Willamette Valley in the summertime."

They purchased a home last year on Parsons Creek Road, near the Willamettans' cooperatively owned nudist park and are among the club's 500 members.

They also are in the process of building a condo in Palm Springs, Calif. "So, in the future, we'll be splitting our time between Marcola and Palm Springs," he said.

"In my work life I was traveling a lot on business, whether it was trips to New York and Chicago to meet with rating agencies or whether it was corporate meetings various places in the county," he said. "But whenever possible, if it was a conference or something in Florida, B.J. and I would tack on a trip to the Caribbean along with it. ...

``So during the '80s and early '90s we made probably 10 trips to the Caribbean, whether it was staying at a resort or going on a windjammer or something like that.''

Kinman is president of the Western Region of the American Association for Nude Recreation (AANR, pronounced ``ann-er''), an organization with 50,000 individual members and 220 member clubs in the United States and Canada.

Most of the Kinmans' travels have involved visits to nudist resorts, and his service as an AANR officer has added new opportunities.

"We have summer conventions, plus fall and winter board meetings in various places in the country that we need to go to," he said. "Normally, these things are held at resorts, so it's very nice. And when the visit is done we can take a couple of extra days and visit with friends and enjoy the sun and unwind."

Freedom and comfort are two things that draw people to nude recreation, Kinman said.

"Most people who have a backyard hot tub would say I'd rather be in it in the nude rather than wearing a swimming suit. It's not very comfortable in there (wearing a suit)," he said. "The same thing with swimming or laying by the pool - or especially laying on the beach and getting sand inside your suit is not fun.

"So it's more comfortable and the fact that we're associating with people who see it as wholesome family recreation. We're with friends (who) ... have a respect for the human body or at least a body acceptance saying, this is who I am and not much more to it. It's an honesty," he said.

FAVORITE DESTINATION: "I would say the Caribbean. The Caribbean on a windjammer was probably the greatest time we've had," Kinman said.

He recalled starting at St. Martin's in the French West Indies, sailing to other nearby islands, stopping at deserted beaches, returning to St. Martin's, and then visiting Club Orient, a clothing-optional resort on the French side of the island. The resort's Web site address is www.cluborient.com.

"We've been on three windjammer cruises in the Caribbean," he said, explaining that one was to the British Virgin Islands, and the other two were to islands near St. Martin's.

These cruises were special, he said, "because of the big sailing ship and kind of a feeling of being part of the past, and thinking of all the sailing ships that probably went in there discovering that area centuries ago.

``But at the same time being very upscale. And not having to be dressed was a nice feature."

Kinman and his wife booked their cruises with a travel agent who contracts with Windjammer Barefoot Cruises for the entire ship to be clothing-optional. But sailing ship cruises aren't the only ones that are clothing-optional, he said.

"Back here (he displays an advertisement in the The Bulletin of American Association for Nude Recreation) is a company called Bare Necessities that books the big Carnival line type boats," Kinman said. "This one is going to have over 2,000 people on it for a February cruise. But, for us, we prefer the smaller windjammer type things than the great big liners."

FAVORITE WEEKEND DESTINATION: "I guess an occasional run to the coast is what we like to do from time to time," he said.

MOST MEMORABLE EXPERIENCE: "In the Hotel Utah," he says, and his wife laughs. "In December of 1980 watching the snowflakes fall over Temple Square (in Salt Lake City) and asking my wife to marry me."

TRAVEL NIGHTMARE: "I don't know which is worst, but probably the most recent was in November when we flew into San Francisco to change planes on our way back to Kona and the airport was shut down because of a security breach," he said.

"We were fortunate that we were on the airplane, and they just didn't let us off (for 2 1/2 hours). So we weren't part of the crowd gathering out on the street. But we really didn't know what was going on either.

``We could see military helicopters flying over, and it was just a scary feeling only two months after 9/11, and a little leery about airports anyway, and here we are in the middle of this security issue ...

``And the drink cart wasn't coming around to calm our nerves."

ADVICE: "Try a nude vacation or try out visiting a nudist resort," he said.

"In most cases, clothing-optional is the rule, not nudity required. And you will be much more comfortable than you think you will. It's a step that people are reluctant to take, but my guess is you will soon be telling stories about your first experience.

"And what we find is these resorts or camps range from everything from a pup tent in the woods to half-million dollar motor homes, from rustic cabins to very upscale condominiums, depending on where you go."

To get more information, he said, go to www.aanr.com on the Internet or call the American Association for Nude Recreation at 1-800-TRY-NUDE (800-879-6833) or the Willamettans at 933-2809.

We welcome profile suggestions. If you or someone you know has intriguing travel tales to tell, write Been There, P.O. Box 10188, Eugene, OR 97440; fax us (attention: Been There) at 338-2813; phone Jim Boyd at 338-2363 or [phone], Ext. 2363; or e-mail the nomination to [e-mail]. Include the nominee's name and phone number, your name and phone number, and why you think he or she would be interesting to feature.

CAPTION(S):

B.J. and John Kinman relax by their pool in Kailua-Kona on the big island of Hawaii B.J. and John Kinman relax in Kailua-Kona on the island of Hawaii, where they've been living part time. Been there / John Kinman