Using "in the raw" in this way (as you suggested) gives a sense of man and country being in the raw but also the poet himself feeling in the raw, i.e. exposed to intense sensation. You could also say "feel" instead of "touch" but I don't think there's a strong enough reason to make that change.

which is of course the closest literal translation but I think "feel" works better in English.

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Note added at 3 hrs (2011-02-01 07:34:56 GMT)
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Sorry, ignore the last bit "which is of course the closest literal translation but I think 'feel' works better in English". As you can see, I changed my mind and decided "touch" works better in English!

Another suggestion; not literal but poetic. It depends on how literal you need to be. I might be changing the sense too much.

Or 'into the very soul'

Might work. Good luck.

to feel people's and countriy's life in the skin

if "en carne viva" is good enough in Spanish then why should "in the living flesh" not be good enough in English?

In that climate of pain and wonder it was possible to feel the rawness of man and country.

I think that it conveys the sense of touching the innermost depths of the country and its inhabitants.

I found this on http://www.katiepowderly.com/

'In addition to taking the time to become intimately acquainted with the places she sees, Powderly is also taking time to become intimately acquainted with the people she meets along the way in the form of "The Postcard Project."'