The East of England is a beautiful place to explore, so why not make the LodeStar music festivals part of a longer holiday.
East Anglia was once joined to the rest of Europe, and East Anglia’s rivers were tributaries of the Rhine. Imagine, you could have travelled to music festivals all over Europe without setting foot off dry land! At the end of the Ice Age the forests that covered the land were flooded, and the trees decomposed into the peat that makes up today’s rich Fenland
The fens stretch from Cambridge to Lincoln, and from Kings Lynn to Peterborough. One of the most fascinating aspects of the history of the area is that the landscape was once dominated by some seven hundred windmills. You’re likely to come across one on your way to the LodeStar music festivals because many survive, and some are still in working order. The Maud Foster windmill in Boston is seven storeys high and is the tallest working windmill in Britain.
Time is of little importance at music festivals, but Anglesey Abbey is home to one of the National Trusts largest collection of clocks. Anglesey Abbey and Lode Mill contains rare works of art, 98 acres of landscaped gardens and a working 18th century water mill. The house dates from 1600 and was built on the site of a 12th-century Augustinian priory.
If the whole family is going to the Lodestar music festivals, a couple of nearby attractions for the kids will make the holiday even more special. The Baytree Garden Centre at Weston is home to over 100 owls and they have flying displays daily. You’ll find the birds’ silent soaring and swooping a complete contrast to the lively atmosphere of the music festivals.
Alternatively take a trip to the Long Sutton Butterfly and Wildlife Park. It has tropical houses for the amazing collection of butterflies, but also has lizards, ponies, snakes, wallabies, goat and plenty more. There’s a big activity castle for the kids, too, if they have any energy left after their weekend at the music festivals!
Pick up some local produce to take with you to the LodeStar music festivals. As well as fields full of flowers, growers produce a wide variety of foodstuffs including wheat, sugar beet, potatoes and pumpkins. Buy your supplies at local shops, farmers markets and roadside stalls.
We hope we’ve managed to whet your appetite to take some time out between music festivals to extend your stay in this beautiful part of England.
The LodeStar Festival looks forward to welcoming you in 2007. For more information contact info@lodestarfestival.com