Mesmerising music and the magic of mushrooms, Equinox captures the spirit of Wasing festival
Wasing Estate’s inaugural EarthPercent Presents Equinox, a three-day celebration of music, nature and thought-provoking talks backed by the legendary Brian Eno, featured mesmerising music, evocative talks, nature connection, wild swimming and a woodland sauna. It was a weekend of music and more, marking the seasonal transition but also supports EarthPercent, a charity founded by Eno to combat climate change. JOHN GARVEY was there for the rare talk by world renowned US mycologist Paul Stamets
Pictures from the three day festival on Friday, September 20 to Sunday 22, by Samuel George @Wasing1759
Walking into the wooded glade of the Equinox festival on the Wasing Estate, one could be forgiven for mistaking it for a set from Peter Jackson’s Lord Of The Rings trilogy.
Mushroom sculptures, crystals and twinkling lanterns lay nestled in the dank moss at the end of twisting forest paths; there’s mist and incense in the air and moisture underfoot.
Even the stage, all gnarled wooden boughs, candles, ferns and fungi, looked as if it had grown organically.
The perfect backdrop, then, for mycologist Paul Stamets, on a rare visit from his native US.
He is perhaps best known for the Netflix documentary Fantastic Fungi, and is a passionate advocate for their medicinal properties.
Paul Stamets is also a proselytiser for psilocybin or ‘magic’ mushrooms and their ability to catalyse profound changes in consciousness which often result in a renewed appreciation of nature and our increasingly fragile ecosystem.
It has taken decades for these substances to become even partially rehabilitated, after the damage caused by the antics of the late Timothy Leary in the 60s and 70s.
But, as Paul Stamets pointed out, these substances have been used by indigenous cultures since pre-history.
Elaborate rituals governed their safe use in the community.
We, in our modern, industrial society are the aberration, having criminalised their use despite a scientifically validated safety profile.
Whether or not you believe, as some do, that they can save us and the planet, there was a telling moment when Paul Stamets asked those in the audience who had NOT had a mushroom-facilitated psychedelic experience to raise their hands, and just four people did so.
In an amusing reversal, he reassured those who had not experienced magic mushrooms: “It’s okay, that's nothing to be ashamed of!”
The Equinox festival, and its summer solstice cousin, are part of the vision of estate custodian, journalist and filmmaker Josh Dugdale, who spoke of how his own encounter with the ineffable, in an indigenous ayahuasca ceremony, had transformed and inspired him.
Less hedonistic than the former Glade Festival, the atmosphere at Equinox was reminiscent of early Glastonbury tribal gatherings, before corporate sponsorship and consumerism ran rampant.
It’s easy to be cynical about the hippy, new-agey vibe that hung in the air like heady clouds of frankincense.
But the goodwill was palpable – everyone is pleased to see you and to engage in easy conversation with strangers.
There was some fab music, too, including a banging Shpongle DJ set from Simon Posford.
Even if none of that floats your boat (and I say it should!), there are woodland walks, wild swimming (sadly unavailable this time due to algae), saunas and lectures.
There are also wonderful food and craft beers.
But the star of the show remains the beautiful bosky setting.
