Just So Festival - anyone going?

[Malvapoeding]

I am trying persuade DH that we need to take our girls to a family festival this year - Camp Bestival is out due to other family commitments so we thought we might try Just So/

www.justsofestival.org.uk/

We loved it, water issues and dragging stuff back to the car at the end without the aid of sherpas or barrows aside!! We'll definitely go back next year, it really was everything we hoped it would be.

I spotted the 6 showers at the entrance (I so wanted to try one in the green trailer they looked lovely!) and there were 2 for men and 2 for women at the toilet block near footlights. Still didn't seem many for the number of people staying. Any idea how many people were camping?

were those showers working near the footlights? i wish i had found them.
they did really big up the luxury showers and nice clean toilets etc and that was how i managed to get DH to agree to go, DH said instead of the lovely big shower rooms with glass sinks they should have had more of the tiny ones, but they were never working anyway so they might as well not been there at all. i really hope its sorted for next year as i will be getting my tickets on friday. its going to be a fortune as the twins turn 3 at christmas and my older two i got on the 'junior' offer this year 'buy one get one free'. so its going to be over £300. which still isnt bad for how lovely it is
i will be taking a fold own pull along trolley next year, we used a barrow on sunday to pack up but couldnt get one on friday when we arrived and it anoyed me some people had two barrows and some didnt empty them when they were putting the tent up, they kept them while others struggled.

we should make a 'must take' list for next year for any people going for the first time..
things like
torches
glow sticks
loads of dressing up
wellies
pull along wagon
camera
solar lanterns and fairy lights for the tent
bunting for the tent
something to heat water on to have a wash if the showers are off again

I'm not sure how they are going to sort the water issue if the place isn't on the mains and is entirely reliant on an underground reservoir. It was really like most festivals though - where there isn't much water available. Yesterday morning the taps were all back on again though (although still no showers). It didn't bother me that I couldn't have a shower - I've been trekking a fair bit so I'm used to it I suppose although I can understand if that was important to you then it would be really irritating.

Mel - the showers near footlights were in that brick block down a little slope but were taped off.

Did you like our solar fairy lights then?

where were you pitched?, we had the 5m bell tent with the tent wing, stripy blue canvas windbreak, blue solar lights and bunting around the tent wing and green solar lanterns. we were by the track and about 3 tents from the end of the row, there were quite a few bell tents.
my DH who owns a building company and does loads of works on schools inc connecting water to extensions and temporary buildings says it can be done, he did ramble on a bit, i cant really remember it all but he mentioned if they have a reservior above the showers that is fed from the supply and this would mean that there would be water when needed. he also said the pipes were too small or something like that, i have suggested to him that he could help point them in the right direction as we are too far away to be physical help. if we were closer he would probably offer to sort it out for them so he could have a shower next year.

i have a photo of my tent on my profile

We were the 1st tent nearest the path as you came into the field - also with blue fairy lights. I didn't see your tent as I didn't walk any further down the field than the loo block but it looks lovely! :)

oh i bet you saw us loads then, we must have past you 100s of times, i would have been saying 'come on oscar' as he was always distracted by the toilets. we were quite far from you then. about 1/4 of the field was empty at the bottom so the kids ran up and down the hill having a great time. it was quite bunched up at the top of the field.

this would be ideal for next year
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Foldable-covered-wagon-pullalong-cart-trailer-flyer-/130562339363?pt=UK_Toys_Games_Outdoor_Toys_ET&hash=item1e661f3223

I didn't really have a problem with no showers, I would have preferred no showers from the start and running water in the loos all weekend! I do wonder how they would cope with any more people if they wanted to expand it still more since it's a young festival.

People must have brought cars to the tent area of the field after 9:30am on Monday, as that's when we left and there weren't any cars before then that I noticed. It was a long drive back for us, but a very fun weekend. I personally loved the Mad Hatter's Tea Party set-up.

Ooh, and nice wagon mel2005.

Andi - I think I saw the first one (a bloody great Luton!) come in around 10 but after that there were a steady stream. The organisers asked people to stop and some did turn around and go back out but one woman got in a complete strop and left her car blocking the entrance to the field and part of the track to the actual festival site which meant lorries couldn't get on and off the main site to carry away the stage etc. The bloke who led the Wild Rumpus had gone to talk to her when I was leaving - have no idea how it was resolved but it made me really cross as I had been comfortable leaving my DC playing in the puddles while we packed everything up but as we were right by the entrance to the field, I wasn't able to once cars and lorries were coming in and out. And agree with you about the showers. Drinking water is more important.

That's a great trolley mel! I think I might buy a waspinator to take with us next year as we all got stung

ChristinedePizan we were a couple of tents behind you! Loved your fairylights.

we should make up a little flag next year so we can see other mumsnetters and say hi.
i am so glad we were not there for the cars in the field problem. we had been planning to be off by 9am if we had stayed on sunday night so we would have missed it. i wanted to go to ikea on monday in nottingham but as we left on sunday dinnertime we didnt get to ikea, might have to do an online shop instead. poor little alice got stung on her lip as i packed the tent up. i was so busy telling oscar off for walking over the canvas if the tent with his muddy wellies i didnt see it. there were alot of wasps, we haven not seen many here all summer.
just waiting for a dry day to put the tent up in the garden and check the guys are all dry before it goes back under the stairs again.
i also agree drinking water is more important, but we couldnt get any on sunday afternoon, so we decided to call it a day. the children were really playing up as well as they were over excited and very tired. will be so much better next year when they are 7y (almost 8y),6y and the twins 3.5y.

Good idea about the flags! I was convinced other MNers would be there but despite my best spying, did not hear anyone slag off Greggs sausage rolls or Fruitshoots :o

TY scaryt. I bought them for my friend so she can glamp so I feel I can take some credit (my tent, her lights, one feral child each)