To each his own at a campout. Musicians gather at many of our campouts in any form in order to play with friends. They arrive in 40 foot motorhomes with every bell and whistle possible. It is good to get to know these attendees in case there is nowhere to jam when It’s raining. They also have snacks like brie cheese, smoked salmon on butter crackers and drinks such as wine on hand. In nice weather they have beautiful awnings and comfy chairs and, sometimes, a firepit!
Some, sans motorhome, come with a complete camp outfit with tents, tarps, easy-ups and carpets. The complete outside kitchen has more gadgets than there is at home. It’s a little cooler at night but the easy-up is always welcoming with its tie-dyed curtains gently fluttering in the breeze. These camps also have snacks – mostly the healthy kind.
The fifth-wheel crowd is very well prepared and almost always have a run for their dogs. May I mention that these dogs are festival trained and very polite! Some of these fifth-wheelers will set all their instruments out on display for us to envy and readily let you try one at any time. Another nice thing about the fifth-wheel/trailer campers is that they have a vehicle to run you to the store or grab something you need.
There are the simple campers. They come with a car full of instruments, a tent and a chair. They unload all the instruments into the tent and look for the nearest McDonalds. Be sure to invite them to hang out with you under your awning (if you have one) as they are usually the better musicians and can attract a huge jam. You have to provide the snacks and drinks since, most likely, they don’t have a cooler either. Another great group is the bands, the ones not famous enough to be hosted by someone in town. They usually arrive in huge groups with one tent or VW bus between them. It never seems to bother them since they play all night and don’t seem to sleep anyway. All they have are snacks…
Last, but never least, are the “motelers” who are perhaps the smartest and by far the cleanest jammers in the group by day three. They have a soft bed, shower and usually a continental breakfast for showing up to the camp. Offer to store their instruments for them to ensure they don’t have a super jam at the motel without you. You have to supply the snacks. I have a medium sized motorhome as I am too old for the ground but too broke for the better square footage. It has a bathroom and a nice refrigerator in which I keep yogurt, water, wine, squeeze cheese and triscuts. Stop by for a snack! Bluegrass attracts us all, young and old, big and small!
