Sun Worship Festival

a music festival in the woods? say no more!

A few weeks ago, I joined in on a summer solstice celebration up in Bellingham, Washington. The Sun Worship Festival was hosted by Reflect the Glow as a kick off to the season, and took place at the gorgeous Lookout Arts Quarry. It’s a secluded property outside the city dedicated to stewarding diverse art experiences and community through hosting events in a natural space. For this festival, there were four main stage areas all connected by wooded paths. Parking and camping was a free for all, but nice and cozy— and removed enough from the main events that you could easily get away and have some quiet time.

We were only there for Friday and Saturday night, and I still felt like we had such a full experience. Although we hit the sack a little early that first night after some exploring the area and dancing, Saturday morning followed with a guided yoga flow that really reenergized us. Gotta hand it to festival yoga sessions to wake you up and regain your bearings after partying all night. After a day of exploring Fairhaven— the historic town nearby— we got back to Quarry for a night of more music, new friends, fire dancers, treehouse teatime, and more.

Amongst other things, I loved the size of this event. At least to me, it was the ideal balance of enough of a crowd that felt lively, and small enough to maintain that more intimate feel of familiar faces, new friends, and still having space to get away.

Festivals and big crowds of strangers is pretty intimidating, and even still gets me a little anxious initially. But something I’ve come to love about the house and electronic music community is that it really feels like such a safe, judgement free space to express yourself. I feel like I can just as easily zone out to the music and not talk to anyone, or get absolutely down like a kook dancing, or step away for a breather and still have an amazing time meeting so many sweet people. It’s becoming a space, to me, where I can arrive without feeling pressure to present myself in any certain way, or to know anybody at first, or even really know much about the artist playing in order to have a great time. I know I’ll be surrounded by friendly people all there to have a good time and feel comfortable dancing in their own skin.

This weekend was no exception— every artist who played was so talented and offered something for everyone. I had an absolute blast dancing my little heart out for those two nights, and came home for the work week feeling full and rejuvenated.