It all started for me with 1950s movies of Tarzan swinging from vines and swimming with Jane in waterfall-fed jungle streams. Those childhood images helped power a lifelong search for similar experiences. For me, there is no naturist exploit as satisfying as visiting a jungle waterfall with friends. Thus, when the opportunity to go on a backcountry waterfall adventure in the Dominican Republic presented itself, I was delighted.
Naturist friends of ours, Sharon Lynn and Kenneth Mauldin, organized a shore excursion for acquaintances on the 2023 Bare Necessities cruise when the ship docked in the Dominican Republic’s Amber Cove. Sharon and Kenneth have a home in New Cambium, a naturist housing community on the north side of the island, and are familiar with places where one can enjoy naturism outdoors.
Outside the Amber Cove port facility, we met our guide, “George of the Jungle” as our friends playfully called him, who took us to a privately owned waterfall that, while known to the locals, was seldom visited and not on any tour route.
Heading east from the port, we reached the parking area via highways, side roads, and finally a route into the jungle. There were no signs or other indications of a waterfall at the end of the trail. It required multiple stream crossings, travel up and down modest hills, and trust that George knew where we were going. A surprising part of the journey was encountering a herd of well cared for dairy cattle. They were not the “wildlife” we expected on a jungle trail. After about two miles we got our first look at the falls, and it was worth the effort.
Cool, clear water flowing over a rock face into a deep pool was everything we were hoping for. George joined in our naked fun, and to our delight and amazement climbed the falls like a modern-day Tarzan. My naturist friends and I have long aged out of such free-spirited climbing, and were content to watch and cheer him on as he climbed the falls and dove into the pool. In those moments it was clear that George was one with the falls and all that surrounded it.
If you are in the Amber Cove area of the Dominican Republic, George (of the Jungle) Donaldson can be contacted at jorgedon@gmail.com, and would be happy to guide you on a stunning naturist experience.
Source: https://naturistsociety.com
Story & photos by Michael Cooney