Heading up to a show with overnight camping is nothing new to me–I’ve done it all over the country–but with multi-day festivals, the situation can change slightly.  There are things to consider, such as what type of environment you will be in and how close to outside amenities you will be.  The Coachella camping lot even has restaurants within relatively close proximity, because it’s basically located in the middle of a town.  The Gorge Amphitheatre–located in the Eastern part of Washington State–on the other hand, is much more of a pain in the ass.  Both George, Wa (where the Gorge is located) and Indio, Ca (where Coachella is held) are hot as fuck, so water is important, but the Gorge campground is even quite the trek just to get to the venue itself.  Leaving the Gorge campground for anything is hell, with the cars wedged in with very little discernible reasoning.  Until this year, the Sasquatch! Music Festival, held there annually, never allowed re-entry into the venue.  This means that patrons were either forced to dump endless amounts of cash on overpriced food and beverages or be required to remain at their campsites -hopefully, with enough of the right supplies.

I recently returned from this year’s Sasquatch! Festival, which, as of last year, has become a 4-day event.  Going it alone this time, I decided to make sure that I was fully prepared.  I had my own car and my own space, so I could bring whatever the fuck I wanted/needed without being concerned about room.  I tried to think about everything that I’m always missing or in need of when I’m out at these things and cover my bases.  Of course, I still forgot obvious things like my belt and there was a lot of shit that I didn’t even end up using, but there were a few things that I was really surprised by and will definitely consider bringing again next year. Read the rest of this entry →