Maslin Beach, south of Adelaide, has southern section declared Australia's first legal nudist beach in 1975

Maslin Beach, south of Adelaide, hosted the Maslin Beach Nude Olympics, later the Pilwarren Maslin Beach Nude Games, each January.
Image courtesy The Times, Victor Harbor

The southern part of Maslin Beach, 42 kilometres south of Adelaide, was declared Australia's first legal nude beach in February 1975.  The action was a response to the many people bathing nude there risked being prosecuted for indecent exposure.

The one-kilometre nude section is at the southern end of the three-kilometres long beach. The Maslin Beach Nude Olympics each January had informal competitions such as the three-legged races and judging the best bum. These later became the Pilwarren Maslin Beach Nude Games.

Maslin Beach is also the name of the town that became an Adelaide southern coastal suburb, in the city of Onkaparinga. With a backdrop of high cliffs near Blanche Point, Maslin is one of Adelaide’s most scenic beaches.

Maslin Beach is separated from Mooana Beach to the north by Ochre Point and the nearby Red Ochre Cove, the tradition source of ochre for ceremonies by the Kaurna people.A commemorative plaque marks the site of the third freshwater spring, said to be created by the Kaura ancestor creator Tjibruke. The plaque is part of the Tjibruke Dreaming Track created in 1986.

An independent film called Maslin Beach in 1997 was created with no costumes, no sets and all located on the nudist section of the beach. It featured more than 40 performers, ranging from noted South Australian actors such as Edmind Pegge, Gary Waddell, Nick Gill, Eliza Lovell and Noel Purdom, to cameo performances by tabletop dancers, sex workers and opera singers – all performing naked.