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The Cereal Sundae Bar on “Shakedown Street.” electricforestfestival photo.
Electric Forest campgrounds called “Home” by thousands.
#EF2019
By Warren Schuitema, OCP Correspondent.
ROTHBURY – During the last full weekend of June, approximately 50,000 attendees call the grounds of the Double JJ Ranch “Home.”
To fully understand and embrace what makes Electric Forest such a special place to so many people from around the country and the world it’s important to experience everything that the forest offers by camping in one of the many options available.
The camping is almost an entire festival in and of itself with countless things to do while wandering around the fields that are visible along US 31.
The majority of attendees stay in General Admission camping, which allows each car of campers to take the space next to, or behind their cars, to pitch a tent, canopy and whatever else they can fit – trampolines, kiddie pools, couches, etc. – to make their home from Wednesday to Monday morning.
In General Admission, there are plenty of camping options. Group Camping – if you have a large group that wants to guarantee a spot together. Close and Comfortable camping – to make sure you get a spot near the entrance to the venue. RV Camping – if you want something more than a tent. Maplewoods Camping – if you want some shade from the trees to keep you cooler throughout the day. Sober Camping – for those that attend Forest that want to surround themselves with other sober people. Her Forest Camping – for women attendees that are camping by themselves or with other women.
In the General Admission area, located near the entrance to the venue, foresters congregate at what is called Main Street, or to the foresters as “Shakedown Street.” This main thoroughfare has food vendors, shops of all kinds, and countless other things to do. Some of the more unique things about the General Admission experience include: the Cereal Sundae Bar, where people can choose a type of cereal and turn it into a sundae with toppings of any kind, a small arcade with a handful of classic arcade style games, lounge areas with projections of different cartoons and videos shown on the walls, and The Brainery, that hosted workshops throughout each day and improvisational sketch comedy shows early into the morning.
New this year to Electric Forest’s Main Street was a Silent Disco that ran until sunup every day providing more music for those that want to continue to dance after the venue closes.
If you want something more than a Silent Disco after the shows are done each night, many of the RVs have turned themselves into mini stages with their own light shows and DJs giving an extra experience to their fans. Over the years of Forest some of the big headliners have even done some of these sets including: Griz, Big Gigantic, Caspa, Defunk and Ganja White Night.
Over on the other side of Water Road and behind the Ranch Arena stage lies the VIP area of Electric Forest, also known as the “Good Life.” Just like in General Admission, the Good Life has many options available. Regular Good Life offers larger campsites than in General Admission along with: two entrances into the venue that are closer to your campsites, air conditioned bathrooms, free showers, Official Forest After Parties with headliners playing music until 4 a.m. and a Silent Disco until 6 a.m., and a Pool Party on Wednesday with food, drinks and music.
Those who want to upgrade even more on that experience can choose to camp in the Back 40 Campground, cabins, or in one of the Electric Avenue, Northern Lights, or other effortless camping options, where you get a tent already set up with different options.
No matter which camping experience you choose there are plenty of things to do at any hour of the day, You are almost guaranteed to make new friends with your neighbors that you’ll stay in touch with for years to come, and hopefully see the next time you make your journey “Home” to Electric Forest.
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