The Nude Bowl was a popular
skateboarding
Skateboarding is an action sport originating in the United States that involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard, as well as a recreational activity, an art form, an entertainment industry job, and a method of transportation ...
locale from the late 1970s to the early 1990s. The name comes from the fact that the site was once a
naturist resort
A naturist resort or nudist resort is an establishment that provides accommodation (or at least camping space) and other amenities for guests in a context where they are invited to practise naturism – that is, a lifestyle of non-sexual soci ...
named "Desert Gardens Ranch."
It is outside
Desert Hot Springs, California
Desert Hot Springs is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. The city is located within the Coachella Valley geographic region. The population was 25,938 at the 2010 census, up from 16,582 at the 2000 census. The city has exp ...
and consists of an abandoned kidney bean shaped swimming pool and a few foundations of buildings that used to surround the area. There is no paved road to the Nude Bowl.
Initially, the Nude Bowl was merely a skateboarding party location, but by the 1990s, large parties and violence became commonplace there. After numerous complaints about guns and fighting around the Nude Bowl, the police filled it in with dirt. Skateboarders returned, removed the dirt, and repaired the bowl. After a few months, the police broke up the concrete and buried the remains of the bowl, but recently the pool was dug up and repaired and is now intact.
Documentary and resurrection
A documentary project on the site was started in 2008, intending to trace the Nude Bowl's history, from Nudist Colony to the many attempts at re-building.
The
Palm Springs
Palm Springs (Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Riverside County by land ...
Skatepark
A skatepark, or skate park, is a purpose-built recreational environment made for skateboarding, BMX, scootering, wheelchairs, and aggressive inline skating. A skatepark may contain half-pipes, handrails, funboxes, vert ramps, stairse ...
contains a replica of the Nude Bowl, which is the most popular feature in the park.
[{{cite web , url=http://www.ci.palm-springs.ca.us/index.aspx?page=265 , title=City of Palm Springs – Skate Park , publisher=Ci.palm-springs.ca.us , date= , accessdate=2010-05-07 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100514134542/http://www.ci.palm-springs.ca.us/index.aspx?page=265 , archive-date=2010-05-14 , url-status=dead ]
The history of the Nude Bowl is the subject of
JFA's popular song "Nude Bowl Resurrection".
Footnotes
External links
A description of the Nude BowlNude Bowl c.1988 (p: rodger bridges)Nude Bowl Photo 2008Nude Bowl Ruins c.1989? (p.Terri Carrion)
Skateboarding spots
Sonoran Desert
Colorado Desert
Desert Hot Springs, California
Sports in Riverside County, California
Coachella Valley