From ‘nude beach’ to public beach

To the editor:

My sister back home in Wasilla sent me a copy of the July 17 edition of the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman’s “Profiles 2011.” I always admire Newcomb Park whenever I visit back home, so I particularly enjoyed the article headlined “Local parks honor legacies.”

When I was a kid back in the late ’40s and ’50s, the main swimming hole on Wasilla Lake was out a little farther, now under the Parks Highway. This was accessed by bicycle over a two-track road that passed Herning/Teelands store and home, out between the tracks and the lake. At that time, the Newcomb Park area was an alder jungle. Rumor had it that a “nude beach” was on the lakeshore beyond those alders. It was great stuff for young kids to speculate about.

One quiet summer day, I pushed through the alder thicket to see what might be seen. Duh, nothing but alders growing right up to the edge of the lake, with no evidence of anyone having used the area. Around the mid-1950s, I believe, when the railroad came through increasing the weight (size/strength) of the rails, they stripped off the alders and left the area bare gravel. Later, Al Hagen worked on building a play area/resort, but that fizzled. And then it became a city lakefront park and beach.

Fabulous. For me, and maybe a few other old-timers, it’s come full-circle from nude beach to public beach. Thanks, Harold.

Skip Coghlan

Big Bend, Wisc.