Hi Everyone,
This year is my first Bluegrass Festival and I am very excited. I was only able to get camping passes for Mary E Ilium. Has anyone camped here before. Any information about what to expect about the site, crowd, time to festival is much appreciated. Also is it too rough to bike from camp ground to fest??
Thank you! :flower
Below is the Mary E Campground viewed from Satellite…gotta love the intertubes!
Where the white truck is parked is the main entrance, and you can follow the road up. It’s fenced off before the river.
It’s a bit of a ways into town, but I think it would be bike-able during the day, but at night I would not recommend it.
Mary is nice, with fire pits, pickin and good people. Getting the shuttle was never a huge problem, I don’t think I ever had more than a “one beer wait”, then about 20 minutes to the fest with the various stops. I also met some cool people waiting in line!
The only thing I didn’t like was having to bring your cold weather gear with you, or having to go back to get it. I suggest making friends that will let you stash your change of clothes at TP or Warner.
I would definitely NOT recommend biking unless you are from a similar elevation and in KILLER shape. It’s a fair distance and a decently steep climb.
During the “shuttle rush” (middle of the day) you should plan on an hour at least to get to town from Illium. Depending on how many shuttles are running and how long the line is it might be less and it might be more. Illium is fun, it’s a fairly large area, and you can find parties or a quite area to sleep in. Also, it’s the only campsite that allows fires.
Thanks all very helpful! Gonna pass on the bikes 
And the views are incredible!!! :thumbsup
Auntie Hope :festivarian2 :green
Biking around town is the way to go. But Biking from campground will be difficult as you can’t bring all your stuff on the bike.
Hello, hear are some things to expect out at Mary E. The people are great! There is a real sense of community around the fire rings. :cheers We are all there for the exact same reason. :thumbsup It can take some time to go back out to the campground if you forget something. There is allot more space at Mary E. than just about anywhere else. Prepare for cold at night. It’s high elevation and the temp drops pretty fast as the sun goes down. The camping out at Mary E. is part of the reason I keep coming back to TBF. The best word of advice I could give,If you want to meet someone pretty cool-- just turn your head and say hi. :wave :evil :wave
Ross
Hi everyone,
Same here…first time TBF and camping in Ilium. So I’ve been reading some of the threads here about TP & Warner and I got to thinking. Are there certain areas where “regulars” camp? Like am I gonna be asked politely to move b/c someone has always camped there? I’m kinda shy in person and worry about stuff like making people mad on accident. so if that sort thing is something I need to worry about please let me know so I don’t get off on the wrong foot. Another question --are there showers at Mary E or do I schlep my stuff to town? Last but not least, if you get there early like say Monday, do you pay the park service for those days and pass takes effect Thurs? Oh ok one, more & I promise this is the last…I think I saw something about the shuttles stop running before night grass shows are over? true or false?
Thanks in advance for the info!
There aren’t many traditional camps in Mary E, if I remember correctly. There may be people who camp in the same general area every year, but I doubt you’ll be asked to move.
There are no showers there, so you will have to lug your stuff up to the high school in order to shower.
I’m not sure when the Planet takes over Mary E, but i’s before Monday for sure. Your pass will be all you need.
Unfortunately, I can’t speak to the shuttles. Someone else will have to answer that one for you.
:cheers
I hear various reports about the shuttles for nightgrass. Someone people make it on them even if they stay the whole show, and some people don’t seem to be as lucky. I would say if you plan on leaving a few minutes early from nightgrass, you should be fine, otherwise, you might risk missing a shuttle. If you do decide to risk it, it might be a good idea to chat with the shuttle driver sometime that day and find out when they plan on shutting down. Maybe a big tip will get you an extra half an hour!
So first timer to Mary E. and not clear if vehivles w/ parking passes are allowed at the campsites themselves. In other words, once set up, is it pack in pack out?
PS - If I am lucky I will have a vehicle to park with my vehivles…yes spell check IS the best thing since sliced bread…
I’m not sure I understand the question, but if you have a vehicle pass your car can be next to your camp.
However, once the festival has started your vehicle cannot come and go from the campground. It’s stuck there till the end…
thanks BGDustin - one clarification. What day is the festival considered “started”. We plan on arriving tus/wed… So can we go in and out until Thursday?
Much appreciated
K
Once you park, you’re generally parked for good, it gets really crowded in there starting Tuesday afternoon, with a lot of foot traffic and kids running around.
:medal
It’s really more of a safety issue more than anything. It’s just too dangerous to allow folks to come and go as they please with people and kids wandering around in a state of festival bliss.
…not to mention people that would want to return from a day of sight seeing, tired and in the dark. There could be 50 tents set up that weren’t there when you left, and nobody in a tent wants to meet the business end of a truck.
I want to get camping passes for this site, but I only have tickets for Thursday, Friday, and Sunday. Does anyone know if I will be allowed to camp here since I don’t have Saturday tickets? Please let me know ASAP
so, does Mary E. Ilium open up for camping on Sat the 16th as well? In other words, if i have a little camper and drive her up from denver on the 16th, set up camp and then head home until the following Thursday the 21st, will I have any issues?
Thanks for the neophyte questions!
peace,
stine
:thumbsup Yes it opens Sat 6/16/12 @ 9am and you need a 4day pass to camp @ Mary E Illium.
Only Lawson Hill allows camping with single day tickets.
http://www.bluegrass.com/telluride/camping.html
We are so excited for our first festival!!! :cheers It’s something we’ve been thinking about for 15 years. We just bought a popup and can’t wait to try it out. If we arrive at Mary E on Wednesday will we be able to find a camping spot? I have this interesting feeling of excitement and nerves all at the same time and this is just one of the things that’s running through my mind. The other is how will we charge our cell phones so we can keep in touch with our kids back home?
Thanks for your help. We can’t wait to make this an annual event!