Field Report: The Good Life Experience

When great minds collide, great ideas are born. Take those ideas and transplant them into the Welsh countryside combined with some incredible music and inspirational guests and you've got one hell of a weekend. From musician and BBC 6 Music presenter Cerys Matthews and Charlie & Caroline Gladstone, The Good Life Experience is a three day festival celebrating culture, food and the great outdoors.

Morning on the Camp Site

The festival is set in the stunning grounds of the Hawarden Estate in North Wales, just over the border from Chester. It was short drive over the Pennines from Sheffield for us and we were among the first people to arrive and park up - we had the pick of the campsite and the rain stopped just in time to get the tent up. We were eager to get into the main site but the festivities didn't kick off till 6 o'clock so we cracked open some beers and took it easy for a while as the camp site started to fill up. 

Entering the festival site.

Campfire cooking.

The site is spread out over the woodland fields of the Hawarden Estate and its rustic setting gives the festival a really unique feel, around every corner there's another inviting campfire and the small scale gives the festival a real sense of cosy community. It's totally dog friendly too which was ideal for George the Whippet.

There were some great brands onboard for the festival and I was really looking forwarding to meeting up with the guys from Best Made Co, although the last thing I need is another one of their axes. Poler Stuff were on site too, this was a UK first for the brand and they sold most of their stock on the first day. They also brought two Defenders with them, one of them complete with a rooftop tent! We also met up with Rob from the With Love Project on Saturday afternoon which was great. We sampled a few beers and took a good look around the tents together after Fern sloped off for an afternoon nap.

Poler Stuff Landrover

Peter Buchanan-Smith & Nick Zdon from Best Made Co talk axe restoration.

There were also some great talks and demonstrations too from explorer and presenter Ben Fogle, Robert Maccurach on Serbia and Sir William Gladstone on Scouts among many others. There was campfire cooking and whittling workshops too - something for everyone. Obviously, I was first inline for Nick Zdon's restoration class what with my addiction healthy interest in axes.

I also took the opportunity to call in on the awesome Pedlars team, headed up by co-organisers of the festival, Charlie and Caroline, who had set up their Summer Camp tent full of wonderful stuff and a selection of vintage gear. Yet again, I nearly bought another axe...

Pedlars Summer Camp tent.

Special edition Pedlars and Good Life Axes.

The festival came alive at night, there was a fairground and a Cuban bar with Mojitos and the finest cigars. The guys from Eroica Britannia were there too, on hand with their Handsome Ale and Bakewell puddings which went down a treat by the camp fire. There was also some delicious food on site and a good selection of ales on the bar.

The fair ground.

The Eroica Britannia Tent

There was a real buzz about the place on an evening. The beer was flowing and the campfires were roaring. The musical line up was carefully curated and there were some big names in the Music Tent over the weekend - The Clameens, Wilko Johnson and my personal favourite -  Public Service Broadcasting, who delivered a mesmerising set which the crowd loved.

Festival founder, Cerys Matthews on stage with Big Boss Man

A very tired George the Whippet 

All in all, it was an incredible event. I met some awesome people and had a great weekend. Thanks to the Gladstones and Cerys for creating such a well organised and beautifully curated event. If you're looking for a fun festival with a charming rustic twist make sure you book your tickets for next years Good Life Experience now!


Time to get some sleep.