Mazo Beach
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Mazo Beach is the only legal public nude beach in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is on the Wisconsin River between Mazomanie and Sauk City, Wisconsin. Since Mazomanie and Sauk City are in two different counties, with Mazomanie being in Dane County and Sauk City being in Sauk County, nudity is only legal on the beach itself and on approximately half of the river on the eastern side facing the beach. With the weather causing changes in the size and shape of the river and the beach itself, as well as disputes over where the exact county border is, controversy has developed over where you can be nude and where you cannot. Beachgoers have generally tried to stay on the eastern half of the river to avoid any legal disputes.
Mazo Beach has a long history of use for nude sunbathing, which some say[who?] was started by students of Frank Lloyd Wright from Taliesin, which is not far away.
On a hot summer weekend, the beach may see hundreds of people. Conservative groups in the recent past have occasionally protested near the beach. (See: Mazo Beach Fight) Bills have been introduced at the Wisconsin legislature to make nudity illegal on any land managed by the state Department of Natural Resources[citation needed], which would outlaw the beach, but so far these have not passed.
