Woodford Folk Festival

There’s a magic about Woodford Folk Festival that keeps luring people back year after year, a magic that stays with you long after you depart Woodfordia with sore feet and sleepy eyes.

I saw that magic once again in my too-brief daytrip to the festival.

If you’ve never been, my simple advice is this – go.

Yes, it’s crowded. Yes, it’s hot. Yes, it’s either dusty or muddy (for my visit this year the sprinklings of rain did little to curtail the dust).

And yes, you’ll achieve your pedometer goal for the day in the first hour.

But the experience is more than worth it.

This year’s festival offers up the usual delights of music, comedy, circus, workshops, talks, dancing, street performers, chai tents, street food, and more.

There’s only so much you can fit into a day, so plan wisely if there are things you really want to see or do, or just wander from venue to venue and find the little surprises waiting around every corner.

We didn’t factor in the long line-up of cars to get into the parking lot, then the wait to get on a bus into the festival site, so we eventually arrived into the festival around lunchtime.

Highlights for me were the Sunny Coast Rude Boys who had a packed-out crowd at their high-energy show at Blues Town, and Sunshine Coast duo The Dreggs at the Pineapple Lounge.

This was my first introduction to The Dreggs and I’ll be keeping an eye out for them next time they’re in the Brisbane region.

And, of course, the friendly smiles and conversations with strangers.

Woodfordia is a community in every sense of the word, and a place where everyone is welcome.