Have you ever been to Wacken before?

Dude, dirty dirty mind, lol.

Oh, trust me - I have no problems with camping. Eagle scout here. Did my Wilderness Survival merit badge (Sleep a night in a structure built by yourself out in the woods) in the middle of december with six inches of snow on the ground. Woke up with frost coating my face. I can be Tr00 when necessary.

The worry is the fiancee :) She's a tad bit of a neatfreak. To understate it greatly. Lack of showers would be a dealbreaker, so I was trying to figure out a way to work that out :p

~kov.
 
I used to sleep in a place with no heat for weeks in late fall, so that makes me your boiscout master :heh: true story, btw: I couldn't figure out at times whetehr I sould warm up somehow or fall back asleep... could do neither.

That house is still there *shrug* It is an old haunted mansion.
 
Haha, ok, you have me beat. My fiancee has a similar story though - she used to live in her parent's basement, after her brother stopped trying to make it into his apartment. However, he put in an AC unit, never insulated it (the window unit), and then never gave them back the window. She spent three winters down there before they finally put heat in. Probably why she hates the cold so much. I guess I'm lucky that I love it. I sleep so much better when it's cold out than when it's warm.

But yeah, I'd have no problems camping out at Wacken. I just don't know if I could get her to. No bugs, if it were true, would be a plus though.

~kov.
 
Hahaha, oh man, I can't let her see that pic. :lol: She'd freak out - not because she wouldn't use it (looks like the kinds of showers they have at beaches around here), but just the thought that it'd be all she had to wash in the whole time.

I don't mind the mud, but methinks that's another thing to hide from her :p

~kov.
 
How is the camping there, if anyone knows? As in - pretty decent as long as it doesn't rain? Lots of insects? Generally shitty weather?

And how about those bathrooms? :p

~kov.
There are the ever-famous Dixie toilets of course, but also mobile toilet container thingies, which you have to pay for, but which are really clean. Like your average McDonald's toilet :p

The camping is ok, with the north sea near, you always have a cooling wind, even in early august. I havent been plagued by mosquitoes or other insects once. If it does rain though, you better have a boat. Because the paths and the festival ground quickly transform into a sea of ankle deep mud. I bought a pair of army boots for last year.... just in case ;)

Some examples:
http://www.tjwuppert.net/spgm/festivals/wacken05/images/100_2058.jpg
http://www.tjwuppert.net/spgm/festivals/wacken05/images/100_2065.jpg
http://www.tjwuppert.net/spgm/festivals/wacken05/images/100_2072.jpg

Just so you know what awaits you :D
 
I'm surprised your shoes were that clean afterwards :p

I'm no stranger to mud. Was camping at West Point (yes, the academy), and we had a flash flood - for some reason they had us all pitch our tents in a basin that was the lowest point for miles. About 5-6 hours of heavy rain, and about a foot and half of sucking mud before we managed to get out. That shit was bad.

It's not something I'd want to relive, though. How's the weather like? As in, does it actually rain all that often? It's in summer, so I'd assume shorts would be fine to wear?

Want to get all of my research done well in advance of trying to convince the fiancee.

~kov.
 
Summer is the rain-season here, but Im no weatherman.. all I know is that 2002 was bad, supposedly, 2001 was a lot worse.. and 2005 was bad, too. Best prospects for 2008, eh? ;)
Those werent my shoes though, my ex-roomie was the one taking the photos so they're his shoes :p
 
I don´t know if you can pay by credit card on the festivalsite, or in smaller supermarkets (like Wacken - village..); in Germany you can pay by card of course, but those are bankcards or EC-cards from Europe. Creditcards often are accepted only at large stores and hotels and such.
You´ll have to find out where it will be cheaper to change your money, in Germany or at home, but definitely I would change some into Euro (and make sure to get smaller notes - 5, 10, 20, not 100 - 200), depending on how much you plan to spend.
Maybe others know if there is a safe storage somewhere on the site, but at such a big place, with 50 000 or so visitors, I would keep all money and papers with me; I would not trust some random person who operates storage facilities; and you definitely can´t keep it in your tent, either.
 
I don´t know if you can pay by credit card on the festivalsite, or in smaller supermarkets (like Wacken - village..); in Germany you can pay by card of course, but those are bankcards or EC-cards from Europe. Creditcards often are accepted only at large stores and hotels and such.

Maybe I'm getting you wrong here, and I don't know much about how things work in Germany, but if Jolty has a Visa or Mastercard, shouldn't that be accepted in cash dispensers and so on...?



I would keep all money and papers with me; I would not trust some random person who operates storage facilities; and you definitely can´t keep it in your tent, either.

I'd recommend carrying it in a pouch hanging around your neck.
 
There are 2 banks, like 2-3 km from the festival site. From wednesday noon on, the queue there is roughly about 100m. If you dont want to end up grilled on the Wacken sidewalk, bring some cash right away.
 
When I was at the Hultsfred festival last time (Slayer! :kickass: ) there were a cash dispenser on the festival area. Guess how long the queues where to those? :p

At least it's great to have the possibility to get some cash, although you might have to wait for it. :)
 
visa cards sure works on cash dispensers!
it may be that when you go to the bank early in the morning or late in teh evening, that you dont have to wait too long? But it is better to have at least some cash with you... just keep it with you all the time and it should be fine.
 
Maybe I'm getting you wrong here, and I don't know much about how things work in Germany, but if Jolty has a Visa or Mastercard, shouldn't that be accepted in cash dispensers and so on...?
Yes, they do work, but that often costs a_lot of fees, and also I personally find it complicated when upon arrival I have to go straight to the cash dispenser, with a lot of luggage additionally, before I can even buy a bus ticket. Also from those you often get only the large banknotes, every bakery will be happy if you pay with 50 euro for a sandwich ;) I just know that if I take cash from the automat with my Visa-card in Germany, it already costs fees, so I suppose with a Canadian card it costs even more. Of course you don´t need to bring all your money in cash, just for the everyday stuff, and as I said, you sometimes can´t pay with a creditcard in smaller stores, and you don´t know when you will encounter that situation and where the nearest automat is and all. So it might help to have a bit of money in small notes handy.
 
Last summer, there were some mud close to fences etc.. Couldn't figure out why, because there weren't any rain...
Then, I figured that the mud was there because everyone was taking pisses near the fences. So the mud was dirt mixed with piss.

No bugs anywhere tho.
 
Last summer, there were some mud close to fences etc.. Couldn't figure out why, because there weren't any rain...
Then, I figured that the mud was there because everyone was taking pisses near the fences. So the mud was dirt mixed with piss.

and after 3 days, you had to stop breathing to get past the entrance of the festival area... :zombie: