My wife Karen and I live in Seattle and have attended every Balfa Camp
since the beginning. We share your disapointment John, it is a big part
of our year. Having the camp in a park was great for us. We like to hike
around the Arboretum at Chicot or take a boat out on the lake when we
get overloaded on music. Hopefully, this will just be for one year,not
sure yet if we will be attending in 2014
Me too I'm disappointed. I was planning on going back, take two weeks and tag along the Breaux Bridge Crawfish Fest... That timing doesn't work anymore. As for the shuttling back and forth, some to Blue Moon and other to other motels, mmmm that will certainly kill a lot of the fun of all being on the same site, and worry free of any logistics whatsoever.... I hope they go back to Chicot!
Here's how I see it.
$ 695.00 for the Camp.
$ 600.00 for 5 nights in a decent hotel.
You're already up to $ 1,295.00, unless you find someone to help share the room cost. If it's you and your spouse, it's all on you.
You got to drive back and forth from your hotel, B&B, whatever, to the site, which equals more expense. And you're probably gonna eat breakfast somewhere besides the camp, especially if you are running late.
Don't try driving back to your hotel at 2:00AM after a jam with too many toddies under your belt. The Lafayette PD will have you rooming with Leroy and Bubba in the drunk tank.
If you feel like pulling a travel trailer, there are fairly inexpensive RV parks sort-off close by, but then you still gotta drive back and forth from the site. If you attended the FAeC this week, you realize that the traffic in Lafayette is a bear.
Vermillionville is right there at the airport and the Evangeline Freeway, so it's going to be noisy as Hell.
I am not going. There are too many good teaching musicians in Lafayette, like Mitch Reed and others, who will give you great lessons for a lot less than the cost of this camp, and you can go when you want to.
They could have found a better alternative.
JB