~~4848 Snowshoe Mountain July 18-20, 2024~~

Ok....here's my 4848 overview.

This is one of the best run festivals I've ever attended. The communication was wonderful. The music was great. The shuttles running around the property were fantastic. The location is absolutely gorgeous. The only thing I have to complain about is the $14 beer. And even that didn't bother me too much.

After driving the last 100 miles through the middle of nowhere with no amenities to speak of (thank goodness for the miracle gas station 20 miles out!), we arrived at check-in. The check in process was super smooth. Hardly any line because they stagger arrival times. We moved on to our very reasonably priced dry RV camping lot, and were guided in by no other than jrtmom . The lot was gravel, but we were prepared for that because I had emailed a question and received a prompt answer.

Our camp had absolutely gorgeous views of the mountains. It was about a 3/4 mile trail down to the stages, but we opted for the shuttle because it was well-run and we are old and fat. We headed down to the stages on day 1 and caught the end of the first band, set up our chairs at the main stage, and enjoyed a pricy beverage. Molly Tuttle and Golden Highway was the highlight of the first day, and was followed up on the main stage by St. Paul and the Broken Bones. We left midway through St. Paul, because it gets pretty chilly on the mountain and we were both cold and exhausted.

On day two we spent some relaxing time at camp with coffee and breakfast burritos, then went down to the stages for some more fun. Almost immediately I noticed that folks at 4848 take their theme days seriously. This was "Alien Invasion" day and people were dressed in all kinds of fun stuff. I was sporting a set of headband antennae that screamed "I cared enough to do the bare minimum." I enjoyed The Brothers Comatose (who were dressed in space suits for the occasion) on the Village Stage. I may look into seeing them when they come through town in September. We wandered around a bit and took in the environment, and were more than ready when The Flaming Lips hit the big stage. And they did not disappoint. If you've never seen them, you should try to rectify that. It's amazing performance art with lots of props and balloons and bubbles and glitter. And they play great music to boot.

Saturday we were not super excited about the lineup. Nothing we felt pressed to see (including the headliner Greensky Bluegrass, whom we have already seen a million times, including this May). And that was a good thing. Because it rained. It rained hard. It rained long. It rained sideways and upside down. We were happy to hunker down at camp and enjoy each other's company and some good bratwurst and go nowhere. It did finally stop raining, just in time for Greensky, but we were already mentally and physically drained from the rain. So we never even went down to the stage for "Rhinestone Cowboy" night, despite my killer outfit. Hanging at camp with our propane firepit was the right choice for us that day. We went to bed early so we could get up and out in the morning hours. No regrets.

All in all...it's a nice medium-sized fest. Very enjoyable. If the lineup ever catches your attention, you won't regret going.