When I told my wife I would be traveling solo and camping alone at the Suwannee Roots Revival Music Festival in Live Oak, Fla., more than 350 miles and a six-hour tow from home, she wondered why I’d go alone. Wouldn’t the solitude and seclusion be unsettling? No one to talk to or hang with or enjoy the music beside? Wouldn’t I be… Lonely?
Nay, m’lady. To the contrary, “I know people.” And a few trolls who dwell in Spirit Lake.
So imagine the coincidence when this meme came across my Facebook feed days later: “Instead of naked and afraid, i want to see a reality show of someone being dropped off at a music festival for four days, one pack of smokes, phone but no charger, tent, $20, no map, no friends and watch them navigate, barter and befriend.”
I had to repost – and comment: “Just got back from rollin’ solo to #SuwanneeRootsRevival. But I was never ‘alone.’”
Part of the fun of festivals is the crew – your own, and the thousands who attend on the same mission.
But what if there were no crew? Would you dig camping or festivaling stag? I don’t mean arriving alone but with firm plans to meet your camping peeps to pitch camp and hang with. I mean heading out with no set plans – or people.
If you’re a soloist and you mention such plans, do others roll their eyes? Do they sigh and toss you a look of puzzled amazement that says, “Are you out of your mind?”
The reasons to go on your own vary. Maybe their posse is too big to ever be alone. Some never would even entertain the notion – feeling it’s way beyond their comfort zone or they simply don’t possess the fortitude to pull it off.
Alone? I couldn’t.
But you probably could.
I’ve not always been that free-spirited and confident to pull this off, at least voluntarily. I mean, I did that “backpacking Europe by Eurail” summer back in college. It was almost compulsory.
I found myself faced with the prospect of festival camping solo my first time after circumstances conspired to make it so. I had plans to travel with a buddy and the buddy had to bail. I was ill-at-ease about the prospect of a 367-mile ride to the Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park (SOSMP) and camping on my own.
I begged another to join me. Fortunately, he obliged.
Festival salvaged.
Another time when a companion cancelled, I hemmed and hawed and dawdled and debated before finally telling myself, “Screw that. I’m outta here.”
It was an exceptional weekend on my own. I saw and spent time with old friends I’d made through years of festivaling and a bunch of new ones they introduced me to – or I befriended. Festival folk are easy that way.
At the end of the day – or night – I ventured back to the campsite to settle in.
I was hooked. As Adventure Sunsets coined about wrote festivaling, it was “enriching.”
I’ve done several since.
The Beauty of Going Stag
There’s a lot to be said about maverick travel, whether camping, music festivaling, or wherever your adventures take you.
When camping, you can choose your site and set-up, meals and meal-times, hikes and explorations. Layer music festival camping atop that and the freedom to flow takes that independent fluidity to a whole new fanciful level.
Every little detail is yours to decide.
Sometimes, it’s about something as simple as a walkabout. One evening at this year’s Roots Revival, I took a late-night walkabout to nowhere in particular. I met friends, befriended strangers, enjoyed pickin’ sessions at tree-covered encampments deep in the woods, and ambled back to my campsite around 3 a.m.
As the Red Hot Chili Peppers sang in Walkabout, “I think I’ll go on a walkabout, find out what it’s all about. Use your legs to rock it wide. Take a ride to the other side.”
The next morning, I continued my stroll. I shuffled from stage to stage, listening to the different selections like some Spotify brought to life.
Then a mood certain mood struck. The night had been chilly, and the cool still touched me. I left the shade of the forest-shrouded stage and found a spot to sit in the middle of the meadow of the SOSMP Peach Stage. I just sat there, the sun warming my body and spirits as young children and families ambled by. The scene warmed both body and heart.
As Adventure Sunsets also wrote, “Wander. People-watch. Observe. Take it all in.”
Soloing invites introspection. Are you comfortable or unsettled? Are you enjoying your alone time, or looking for familiar faces? What’s your place? It’s a great opportunity to get outside yourself and deeper into your own mind.
It’s all yours to explore.
Making an Art of Friendliness
Being alone can be a lot to wrap your brain around. Our son, Zack, spent the better part of a year traveling the U.K. and Asia with no companions other than those he met along the way. And he met a lot. Our daughter spent a semester abroad with no friends in tow – and then a month traveling Europe (even to the Auschwitz death camp in Poland alone). For any number of reasons, it takes a certain strength of character to muster that independent nerve.
It’s called the ethos of being gregarious.
Camping platform The Dyrt explored solo camping. Among other reasons, they wrote that “…It forces you to learn new skills; you’ll build new confidence; you’ll discover the kindness of strangers; and solo camping gives you the freedom to camp more.”
They also wrote that “you might finally read the book you’ve been carrying around.” Not so sure about that. Because the kindness of strangers means you’ll be spending time with people like Chris and Randi at the Indo merch booth; or Katie, Gary, Jason, or Tommy at KampHappiness; or Kris and Nick from Velvet Hippie.
Don might offer you a slice of morning casserole, or Beckee will have your tie-dye ready, that is, between sets at the Quartermoon camp. Stop by Robert’s campsite on the Loop to check out some wicked practical RV hacks, or take a deep dive into classic rock and Allman Bros with him over a set at the Music Hall.
Then there’s Randi and Cynthia and Shelly, Spreadheads (and #RoadtripMojo hammock winners) Kym and Joe, and Hoke, a married guy who often shows up indie, too, whom Zoe and I met on the rail at a Spring Revival set. You’ll find Grateful Momma Bear Michelle Leigh and gal pal Sarah dancing away at some late night set or and Hulaween’s JRAD closer.
Or you might just make friends with your neighbors, like Hal, the recent widower from New Orleans on the tail end of a cross-country roadtrip he’d planned to take with his wife in their Airstream.
See where we’re going with this? If you’re the friendly sort, the friendships are never-ending. And many will take on new dimensions via social media or meet-ups long after the festival’s over.
These relationships each came to mind as I was flipping through iPhone pix for a blog on Thanksgiving. I was surprised by how many friends I stumbled upon in my photos who I made or stumbled upon at festivals and camping trips.
The Festival Friend Incubator
Michelle Leigh calls festivals an “incubator.” Whether with friends or on her own, she knows everyone enjoys the same music, camping, and nature. There will be festival first-timers and veterans alike – more than you can count, she says. No matter how you arrive, you’re not alone.
“You have already found a few thousand people with common interests without trying,” she says. “As a SOSMP veteran, I know my people are there. Maybe they are the same people I’ve known forever, maybe we’ve never met but I know we already have a lot in common.”
That’s pretty comforting.
That doesn’t even include when I travel with my wife or fellow #RoadtripMojo’ers and framily Barry and Jen. The more comfortable you become traveling on your own, the more comfortable you’ll be with others. Whether hanging out chatting with old friends – or making new friends – Barry and I have no problem finding ourselves a crew wherever we find ourselves.
We and they – our new crew – then tend to find each other at fests down the road. It can be a small community that way. We met Jean Marie and Joe at Lockn’ one year, then camped across from them at Spirit of Suwannee the next year. Small world, indeed. We met Jason Nail of Nail Travels at – well, lord knows where we first met Jason – but we’re always crossing paths at this festival or that.
Festivals and camping kinda work that way.
No episode illustrates the “no one camps alone” spirit more than a recent weekend outing. Robbie, Zoe, Stella and I were heading to Fisheating Creek Outpost for a pre-Christmas weekender. I posted to the Fun RV Stuff Facebook group about whether the weather should keep us from heading out for a weekend adventure that promised to be soggy.
Weather warnings aside, a woman replied that she’d met a couple – Bob and Debbie wintering at FEC in their Minnie Winnie whom I oughta meet myself.
So it was on our first night when basset hound Chloe ambled up to introduce herself to our terrier, Stella. Behind her was her human, Pennsylvanian and full-time RVer, Bob. Bob shared that he and his wife, Debbie, were in the Minnie Winnie on the corner spot around from us.
How many Bob and Debbie in a Minnie Winnie could there be? We struck up a conversation, met up a few more times over the next day, and then bid farewell ’til our next time down the road.
Social Media Meets the Road
The chance encounter with Bob and Debbie highlights the beauty of social media. If you’re on the fence about rolling solo, hop online. Spend some time on Facebook or social media groups for the particular festival or your favorite acts that’ll be performing.
Get to know people. Share notes and plans. Drop into your calendar attendance at any meet-ups they may have planned. Like pop-up stages in the woods, friends pop out of the woodwork.
Even TicketMaster registered a few bits on solo festivaling. Beyond planning your accommodations, attire, maybe some swag for strangers, and your must-see acts, they had some practice tips (Pro Tip: Download the festival app so you create your own schedule – and don’t have to rely on cell service to access the festival sched online).
A lot of the content posted out there is about being a friendly person: conversation tips, where to meet people, putting on your happy face. Hey, this is just Networking 101 or Being Friendly.
Just be you and plan to have some fun.
Unaccompanied? Engage Spidey Sense
For unaccompanied travelers, especially you ladies, think ahead. If you and/or family back home are nervous, maybe promise a daily call to keep in touch. But be advised: many remote or rural festival sites have little to no cell service. So you could be incommunicado once on the festival grounds. (See Pro Tip above about the app).
Another piece of advice was well-advised: Have backup stories in case you get nervous. Adventure Sunsets yanged to the yin of the “enriching” experience with the “nerve-wracking.“ Some will think it’s cool that you’re traveling solo. Ne’er do wells might think, “opportunity.”
If your spidey-sense kicks in and you get nervous about your situation, spin a yarn about your “phantom” crew. Tales about friends mixed with the crowd or set to show up momentarily can be a psychological safety net.
Feeling really nervous. Find a cop, campground manager, or event employee.
Whatever you do, if you’re on your own or you haven’t yet found a trustworthy crew, don’t over indulge and lose your senses – especially among strangers. As Leigh advised, the festival world is the Disney World counter to “real life.”
“But you still lock your doors and don’t take stuff from strangers,” she cautioned. “Not everyone is good.”
Another word of advice: Festivals like Roots, Spring Reunion, or Soulshine Farm Festival on Green Mountain along the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina are smaller and distinctly family friendly. They’re a great way to touch your (dancin’) toes to the festival waters.
Realities can change – somewhat – at major fests like Hulaween, Bonnaroo, or those that attract tens of thousands. The sheer enormity can affect you one of several ways. It could be, “What’s WAY too many people to wrap my mind around.” Or you could be, “How Cool! All those friends waiting to be made.” Either is fine. Just try to get a measure of your limits before you commit.
Traveling alone can challenge even the best of those personal limits. College kids have traveled Europe for generations; it was always a bit wiggy for their parents. Then Liam Neeson got involved, deploying his “particular set of skills” to wipe out a hoard of traffickers to rescue his daughter.
Remember, if all this seems beyond your comfort zone, pivot. It’s totally OK if you decide not to go it alone. Find a friend, network on social media, maybe take a hotel room off site so you have a safe place to return to when the show’s done.
But if you do take a shot to camp or festival stag, steel your confidence, ignore those “Are you out of your mind?” eye rolls, and get out there.
Because, you know people. Or you will.
Great article JZ!!! I’m ok at going at alone as well as you have witnessed. Peace and love