Two friends from the ragged coastline of Cornwall united by a love of wild swimming…one festival for untamed women in the wild Welsh hills, it seemed like a pretty perfect match. But we were still apprehensive.
Weary from travel and leaving our teen and toddler at home, we weren’t sure if we could keep up with the pace for the whole weekend. After all, the festival marketing is awash with punky, cool Gen Zs with tattoos and mullets doing wheelies and flips on ramps. Could we actually cut the mustard here or would we be looking at nursing some bruises, bone breaks and dented egos by Sunday night?
We drove along the narrow lanes and caught our first glimpse of the Camp VC sign, enveloped in a horseshoe of stunning meadows, forests and hills. We’re very distinctly not in Kansas (well, Cornwall) anymore. The first thing we noticed - space! Lots of it. Unlike some of the UK festival circuit’s more famous friends, there were no muddy trenches, hordes of crowds, cities within cities. There was space to breathe, indeed - space to frolic.
Throughout the weekend, we’d see women whizzing by on BMXs, motorbikes, dunking in hot tubs, heading a ball during a football game, posing on the “Self love revolution” bus, firewalking, axe-throwing, stretching and flexing with ecstatic yoga, shimmying while showgirl dancing, fixing circuit boards and plumbing sinks. This all felt completely natural and obvious by the end…and it never felt overly crowded. This may well have been the Goldilocks of festivals.
From the moment we first heard about this festival (now in its ninth year), we knew we were in for an eye opening and exhilarating weekend, where the very nature of the event lends itself to gently coaxing out of your comfort zone and into the unknown. It’s all about trying new and different activities varying from white water rafting, BMX, dirtbiking and self defence classes to burlesque workshops, crafts and DIY skills. There is a very clear imperative here for adventure - lots of it.
This festival is catered exclusively to women and non-binary people only and throughout the weekend, we spoke with countless women and NB folks who spoke of the incredible dynamic on site. It’s the feeling of being held and supported by others without the element of being watched and judged. It’s trying an activity and feeling nervous without the expectation of everything being turned into a spectacle or a competition. It’s feeling comfortable enough to admit your fear and anxiety without the expectation of being mocked.
This is the matriarchy with a strong undercurrent of unbridled joy and intentional pleasure. I didn’t have to think about my safety once on site. We were so well looked after from the stewards to the activity instructors and other festival go-ers too.
VC recognises that the vast majority of the activities they host are typically male dominated outside of the festival site, but VC instructors invite you in to pull up a chair. Oh, you haven't roller skated since the 80s? Fine! We have boots! You don’t think you can skate on a ramp? Give us exactly 55minutes to prove you wrong.
I (Gemma) thought I wouldn’t enjoy white water rafting, mainly because I have a fear of drowning, am claustrophobic and don’t like the idea of hurtling towards rocks at high speed. Guess who agreed to the instructor flipping the boat and challenging us to try to get out from under the raft? I actually lived my real nightmare…and belly laughed from start to finish.
Sharron likes to tell people she has a poor sense of balance. One lesson with Olympic legend and BMX world champion Shanaze Reade (on site everyday) and she took a BMX bike down a track (and got a resilience medal for it).
We were scared about the prospect of riding a motorbike, but after an hour, we were riding one around a track - and looking for tracks near our homes where we could try it again. Sports and adventure industries may be slow on the take to welcome, include and be kind to women but after this weekend, many women will feel emboldened and ready to step up and take up space in those environments.
There were some lovely surprises and memory-making scenes too, the absolute belters at karaoke on Friday night where women from Gen Z to Gen x raged and moshed and screamed along until our throats were hoarse. The women who took on the firewalking after stripping off to their birthday suits (the whole thing felt very earth mother and primal). An absolutely terrifying spectacle for anyone scared of feminists with brightly coloured hair and tattoos I’m sure.
Here, self-conscienceness and body negativity so perfectly groomed into millennials who lived through the 90s are completely out the door - and radical acceptance is in. It did feel very liberating not to worry if my outfit was "flattering" or “pretty” and instead think about the degree to which we could move around and generally slay.
Camp VC prides itself on it’s inclusive atmosphere, it’s radically LGBTQIA+ friendly and Saturday night’s Cabaret evening featuring the incredible Heartbreaker’s Club (a dance party for fierce femmes) gave an impassioned plea of support for Trans people during their final song, complete with clicker fans and pink, purple and blue confetti and glitter fell from the ceiling. It’s an affirmation of the type of belonging and welcome that VC lives and breathes.
This was a weekend party for people with hearts in a world that can all too readily spotlight division and the destruction of community. But community was in abundance in Llangollen - and I’m absolutely certain that we will go back to find it again next year.