Only a week ago, Val and Brad spent a weekend hiking at the nearest national park. Hiking had been that one physical activity that was part of their early dating. Fifteen years later, with the independence of teenage kids, they returned to this special dating activity.
Sharing a physical activity was the same exciting connector they had hoped. Even the drive up to the park was filled with anticipation. They intimately held hands and enjoyed each other beyond what existed during their peak parenting years.
Yet on this one trip, their plans took a turn in an unexpected new direction. While staying at the Park Inn, they met a new couple friend in a very similar stage of life. This couple, Emily and Mike, were also rekindling their dating lives. It was easy for a friendship to begin with an equally happy couple. It was a surprising new friendship that developed.
The couples fluidly changed hiking partners as their friendships developed; with a noticeably strong interest between Emily and Brad. Val and Mike also enjoyed getting to know each other although their conversations centered around what they were witnessing developing between their spouses. In an unplanned and otherwise unexpected choice, Val and Mike agreed to convince their spouses to share an overnight free of restrictions. Even being a rather quick decision, it was the right one. Mike wanted his wife to explore her broader sexuality. Val, also deeply in love with her husband, was actually excited to see how he was responding to Emily’s presence. Val spent an anxious night with Mike, both knowing their spouses were fucking someone else.
Their connections the next morning, and their return home, was natural and without jealousy. Everyone came away better from the experience. Everyone had new friends.
— The story thereafter —
Val and Brad expanded their satisfying sex life. The frequency of sex had improved in recent months, probably spurred by their increased outdoor hikes. Brad was always a bit more adventurous than Val, and while their increased sex life kept their marriage strong, Val knew Brad craved more variety. For the most part, Val did well in spicing up sex with Brad. It wasn’t until this swap of hiking partners did she recognize the openness for Brad to discover new friends sexually. He had been successfully monogamous for the past 15 years, but giving him that night with Emily restored a bit of his youth.
Val was even more sexually charged with Brad after their return. Yes, Val did share a room with Emily’s husband that same night. They didn’t have sex as it was mostly sharing the excitement of their spouses together. Now that they are back to normal home life, Val questioned why she didn’t also accept sex from Mike. Mike was definitely handsome. Looking back at her memories, she could get excited thinking of sleeping in his arms again. She even daydreamed of exploring his body if given another chance. Her hesitation was a lack of self-confidence in her body. She cringed thinking of removing her clothes with Mike. Each time she dreamed of him returning her touches, her mind would cancel all sexual desires. She had only been with Brad these past many years. She was turned on by thinking of her husband caressing Emily’s body, finding her erogenous zones, giving her pleasure. She could enjoy the thoughts of Emily because she knew Brad’s touches; how he responds to her pleasure. But she couldn’t give equal potential to Mike’s touches.
They stayed in contact with Emily and Mike the next few weeks and it wasn’t strange at all. In fact, both Mike and Val encouraged their spouses to continue dating. Emily and Brad tried their best to hide their excitement about their new relationship being more than that one unexpected first night together.
By happenstance, Emily needed to travel for a family estate obligation one weekend and Mike had planned a theatre weekend with his kids. Everyone agreed that Brad should travel with Emily as a convenient free time together.
Val didn’t have any particular activity for herself. She wanted to explore her internal feelings and decided to go backcountry camping alone. It was something she previously enjoyed. She gave Brad a confident goodbye when he left Friday morning with Emily, as she drove out to the back wilderness.
Val was very proficient in self-contained backpacking. She parked at her favorite trailhead and followed the trail towards a river a few kilometers inland. This river was always quite secluded and a good place to camp near freshwater.
After a few hours, she found one of her favorite camp spots on a flat above the river. The view was magnificent. The temperature was warmer than usual which probably kept a lot of other hikers away. After setting up camp, she laid out her mats and did some meditation. Trying to understand her sexual thoughts, she really focused on her connection to her body. She would get aroused thinking of Brad touching her. And of course, thinking of Mike’s body. But she lost excitement thinking of Mike touching her. She touched herself only to realize it has been years since she enjoyed masturbation. She seldom had an interest in touching herself.
To force the issue, she undressed and spent an hour doing naked yoga. Every section of her skin, and the effect of bent joints, was undeniable in naked yoga. She was forced to recognize and accept her less than perfect points. She now understood she was afraid of others, or herself, seeing these imperfections. As the day ended, Val slept in her tent, trying to be at peace with touching herself.
As she slid her hands down her body, she opened her sleeping bag. Absent of light, her hands explored her general shape. She has always been pleased with the roundness of her breasts. She took some time pinching her nipples. It was warm as she moved outside of her sleeping bag. Her hands felt the softness of her stomach as she slid further to her clit. Gently, she explored the variations looking for the small bump at the center. The concentrated nerves tingled as she caressed the clit. Flicking and pressing she experimented with old memories.
After her morning coffee, Val decided this was the day to get reacclimated with her body. The sun had risen and it was going to be a hot day. She started with another naked yoga session, this time a bit further away from the tent. About 30 minutes into yoga, she heard a voice. Startled, she crouched down and waited for the distance and direction to become apparent. She noticed that a man was swimming in the river just beyond her point. Val laid flat on her mat to stay out of sight. The man rose out of the water several times, jumping back in from a boulder along the edge. She noticed two things; first, he was having a joyous time alone. Second, he was naked; skinny dipping; in her favorite river. Val scootched her mat closer to the edge to get a better look. Val was laying naked on her sleeping mat, in the woods, watching a strange man swim naked. This experience got her more aroused than she has been in quite some time.
Val felt no shame in watching this man. He was having fun and her voyeurism wasn’t hurting him. As she lay in the sun, one hand slid down her side and under her body. She touched her clit, as she had the previous night, magnifying her excitement. It wasn’t deep masturbation, but a very enjoyable sensation. Her body felt good being exposed to the sky. Her mind felt good watching a naked man swim.
Soon the man exited the water and dried himself off. Val wasn’t sure what direction he was going to head so she slid back away from the ledge and gathered her mat. As she stood up, a second man exited the trees without notice. The rolling river was noisy enough to hide his approach. He was equally startled when they found themselves about two meters apart; Val being completely naked holding a rolled-up mat. The man paused for a second before he could focus in the sunlight and react to the situation.
“Excuse me, I didn’t mean to ruin your privacy. I was just trying to find a path down to the water.” This second man tried to walk around Val, giving her space and not glaring at her nakedness, but there was not much room in the tall grass. “I was meeting a friend for a morning swim. Please don’t worry as I pass, you can keep this space to yourself.” He was as polite as he could be. Val rotated herself as he passed trying not to be totally awkward.
“Oh, there he is, I will get out of your way now.” He started to quickly depart when he paused just a bit. What was he thinking? How should Val respond? How quickly could Val run back to her tent? “Oh, Oh, I see you found my friend first.” This second man noticed the flattened grass where Val had her mat just minutes before. “Hope you enjoyed the view.” He laughed as he looked for steps down to the water’s edge.
“I wasn’t looking.” Val countered, and immediately she regretted saying anything. This man was about to leave her to depart in embarrassment, and she chose to engage him.
“Really? It looks like a very opportune spot to me. Don’t worry, I won’t tell my friend anything, not that he would be disappointed.” He laughed a bit sarcastically.
Val was somewhat annoyed by his confidence. And when annoyed, Val can get contradictory. “I was here first, your friend invaded my space.” Why did she say that?
The second man maintained a respectful response. “I understand. We didn’t mean to invade your camping.” Val, in her mood, nearly forgot that she was standing naked, arguing in front of a strange man. “Listen, we won’t bother you. And will keep whatever distance you and your group want.” He was nicer in response than Val deserved. “I will say this. I plan to go for a swim, just like my friend down there. I do not intend to offend you, then again skinny dipping doesn’t appear to be offensive. And I wouldn’t mind at all if you wanted to watch me as you have been watching my friend.” And with that, he stepped down and walked away from the conversation. Val finally understood how vulnerable she had been, as she remained fully without clothes. She laughed at herself.