Wilderness Festival 2012: a superb weekend!

Here we come!

We have just got back from yet another truly fabulous weekend at the Wilderness Festival, which is held in the stunning grounds of Cornbury Estate in Oxfordshire.

We arrived on Friday afternoon, in sweltering heat, and having unloaded all our stuff, made several trips to and from the car, pitched up, and decorated the tent, we were all very hot and sweaty and irritable.

But what better way to cool down than a delightful swim in the lake on the grounds of the festival?  And not only that but the lake had a most incredible waterfall: cold, bracing, refreshing and JUST what we all needed.  It was Betty who coaxed (pushed) me under, and I am so glad she did.  I can't imagine that this lake has ever been so busy!  It was such fun, and felt just like something from a film (and there were not any leeches or snakes under the water, despite Dolly's claims that there were).

And from then on, the weekend continued to be great.

Betty throwing a pot

There was an incredible amount of fabulous activities for kids, and THEY WERE ALL FREE!: pot-throwing, tutu and fairy wing making, tile painting, story telling, circus acts, plays, dancing, bubble-making to name but a few.

In fact, we were so worn out from partaking in all the kids' activities during the day, that by the time the evening came, we were completely done-in, and so didn't actually get to see that much music. There were many adult things we didn't get to do/see, in particular the Secret Cinema and Spiritualised.

But for Tom and me (and maybe we are getting old),  just meandering around the site, and marveling at the huge and diverse array of shows, food stalls, people, yoga positions, structures, bunting, music, crafts, and outfits, was more than enough.

My dancing Dolly

There was such a great vibe throughout the festival.  The staff were helpful and smily, and all festival-goers were unbelievably friendly and they all seemed to like kids.  Betty and Dolly made many new (adult) friends on the eve of the Masked Ball - while Tom and I shovelled (very posh) lamb kebab down our necks.

And the absolute icing on the cake - they had powerful, warm showers on site, and without queues.  I have never managed a shower at a festival before - what a treat to do all these wonderful things, and be clean while doing them.

Having spent three days in such a fabulous atmosphere, I came home feeling really inspired, and creative, and chilled out.

Thank you so much for inviting us to what was the 'best weekend ever' to quote my five year old.  The sun beamed ALL weekend, I got to use my new bell tent (bunting and fairy lights galore) and we all had an absolute ball.

To find out more about this festival visit: www.wildernessfestival.com