Club History

The Pines began in 1967 when, on a bright spring day Gerry Ryland accompanied our founder, Bert Reeves, to our site near Longhope on the edge of the Forest of Dean. Gerry was CCBN (now British Naturism) President at the time and had first met Bert and his wife Rose when they visited Western Sunfolk to play miniten. They were then members of Bristol Solarians, now called Tara (closed to naturists 2012). Even then Bert was determined to start his own club and was always scouring the press for any land for sale.

When he found our site, having first rejected another near Randwick because of poor screening, he fell in love with it and bought it for around £350. Although he liked to tell folk it cost thousands! Advertising brought in the first members and work began, levelling some areas (we are on the top of a hill so all directions head down), clearing, felling, hedging and securing the boundaries. In 1972 the members got together to purchase the site from Bert, so that it could truly become a members club and it has steadily developed over the years since then, but always remaining in sympathy with the surroundings.