Review by Jam Band Purist
FloydFest is billed as “five days of Music, Magic, and Mountains” featuring adventure, vendors, food, brews and more than 100 artists. It helps that campers enjoy that same experience. After all, when camping atop a mountain – the Blue Ridge Mountains, no less – the experience peaks like the altitude itself.
This year’s FloydFest, named for the host city in my native Virginia, was beyond phenomenal musically. Yet, those who know know the festival experience isn’t all about the musical collaborations and late night jam sessions. It’s also about camping under the open sky and enjoying the scenery with those around you.
After all, since the event began in 2002, it’s grown to include multiple stages with rock, bluegrass, reggae, folk, Yiddish, Cajun, or Zydeco, African, Appalachian, and world music performers. FloydFest also features local arts and crafts, dance workshops, morning yoga lessons, storytelling, poetry readings, and a “Children’s Universe” tent. Virginia Living voted it the “Best Large Music Venue in Southwestern Virginia,” perched “in a timeless, beautiful section of Virginia, far enough from bigger cities like Roanoke and Danville to feel like it’s truly in the middle of nowhere.”
While RV spots are available, camping at Floydfest is an experience in and of itself. With onsite and offsite camping, offsite camping is where the party is. If you’re not camping on the actual site of the festival then, you won’t need to lug all your gear via bus shuttle and you can camp with many of the other festival patrons. This would be my choice if I were coming to the festival for the first time. It’s a great way to get to know the grounds and other festival goers.
Any festival veteran knows weather can be unpredictable. Even in the hills of Boones Mill in late July, Virginia can get chilly. Staying warm, cool and dry are essential to an enjoyable experience. So smart festies pack accordingly. Jackets for chilly nights on the mountain, shorts and flip-flop for the days.
I had a great time this year. I wish I would have brought some more snacks and long-sleeved shirts. But that’s small shortcoming after an event that rocked the senses with close to 60 acts, including Gov’t Mule, Leftover Salmon, The Infamous Stringdusters, and Keller Williams (and Keller Williams PettyGrass).
Man, FloydFest was a great experience. If you can make it next year, you’ll dig the perch on top of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Just remember to bring a jacket.