I made it to Wakarusa and back in one piece and now I’m in Fayetteville with a slight sunburn and a camera full of photos.

Day one at the festival seemed to be going pretty smoothly, at least for the time I was there. I left around 5pm but things were really just getting started. No big deal, though. There’s plenty more to catch seeing as there’s still three more days and the music lasts until 4am or longer each night.

I figured getting there around noon on the first day would be “early.” I was wrong. It was already packed. I am terrible with numbers in terms of estimating amounts of people in a giant field but let’s just say it was a lot. A whole lot.

Anyway, we’ll be heading back out tomorrow to get even more photos and a taste of Wakarusa nightlife but for now, here’s a couple of dozen shots from day one.

If the slideshow doesn’t load, check out the entire set at our Flickr page.