Ep. 58 Same Same But Different 2026 Prep

No stress prep for Same Same But Different at Lake Perris. Built from community tips plus everything we learned camping there ourselves. The gear that actually keeps you comfortable. The camp mistakes that ruin a good night. The food prep that makes festival days easy. Everything you need before you roll into Lake Perris.

Check out the Festies Tool Kit for festival packing lists, planning resources, helpful guides, and products we actually use to make festival weekends smoother and more fun: Free Festival Planning Toolkit 

See you at Same Same But Different!

Transcript

Copy Transcript Copied

Cold Open And Welcome

Vanessa 0:00

Hey Sunny.

Sunny 0:01

Yeah, Vanessa?

Vanessa 0:02

What do you call the two best friends that love music festivals?

Sunny 0:06

Hmm, I guess you'd call them Festies! Hey, hey, welcome back to Festies. I'm Sunny. Today's episode is a little bit different because we don't have Vanessa with us this time. But don't panic. She will be back for our next episode. So it's just Clark and I holding it down today.

Clark 0:57

Hey.

Sunny 0:57

Hi, Clarky. But we've got a good one for you.

Clark 1:00

Oh yeah.

Sunny 1:01

Same same but different is coming up so fast. And today is a full of a sudden. And today's a full prep episode. If you're going to same same but different, this episode is for you. If you're not going, but you know someone who is, please send this their way. You could save them a lot of stress. And if you're not going at all, stick around anyways, because these tips carry over to any camping festival.

Clark 1:26

Definitely, definitely.

Sunny 1:27

Especially Clark's food prep segment that he's gonna do. So we put out a call to the SSBD community on Reddit and Facebook. We asked what first timers still forget. We also scoured community pages for any tips we felt that were worth mentioning. And then we also have some tips ourselves because we did go to this festival back in 2023. Let's get into it.

What To Expect At Lake Perris

Sunny 1:58

Same, same but different hits Lake Paris, State Recreation Area, September 25th through the 27th. That's about an hour southeast of Los Angeles. There are five main stages with a wide mix of genres. Lake Paris gives you beachfront views the entire weekend. It's so beautiful. And it's very intimate. Tickets are capped at 7,500. So this isn't some crazy mega festival like we're like we're used to.

Clark 2:26

Yeah, when we went in 2023, it felt very comfy.

Sunny 2:29

So comfy. Yeah. That's a great word. On top of the music, there's a whole lineup of workshops. These are just a few that caught my eye. Draw like nobody's watching. There's a garage ping pong tournament. There's a sacred twerk shop. And there's there's so many more, but I won't list them all here. There's also yoga, meditation, arts and crafts, live painters you can watch work, immersive experiences, and really big um art installations that they have on the beachfront.

Clark 3:04

Yeah, I I think this year too, after getting our experience at lighting in a bottle uh together, I really want to experience uh those um works like more of those workshops. Yeah. I think that's one regret I have for lighting in a bottle is like trying to, you know, do more of those.

Sunny 3:22

So you heard it here, folks. We're gonna go to the workshops.

Clark 3:26

We we say, we say.

Sunny 3:29

Then there's Nakey Island. It's the island in the middle of Lake Paris. It's a collab between Almost Nike, which is San Diego's premier boutique festival and event company. And same, same but different. Quick clarification: it's not a nudist beach. There's a stage out there, and there are ferries that run you from the festival grounds to the island. Just a heads up the boat rides do cost extra. There's a hot air balloon you can ride this year. That was not a thing when we went back in 2023. So I'm super excited to see that.

Clark 4:03

Yeah, for sure.

Sunny 4:03

I connected with someone through the same, same but different community page who actually runs the hot air balloons. And he told us that the balloon flights are short tethered flights that give you a great view of the festival.

Clark 4:16

Yeah, that's awesome because that'll be really fun to get videos from up there without having to bring a drone.

Sunny 4:24

Right. Right. You can see it with your own eyes.

Clark 4:27

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Sunny 4:28

And some exciting news. Well, we already said this on a previous episode, but I'm going to say it again. We were granted media passes this year.

Clark 4:37

Ooh.

Sunny 4:38

Yes.

Clark 4:38

We're so hyped about that. Uh last time we went back in 2023, we fell in love with this place. I mean, this has been one of the festivals we've talked about the most with any of our, you know, uh friends and anyone we've met, you know, asking about our top festivals after they learned that we do the podcast. And it's pretty cool to after we worked it the first year that we went, we're work we're working it again, but in the capacity of media for it. So we will get to kind of give more of a an inside look. And we weren't really taking the type of videos and content that we were we can take any. Yeah, we uh we were just we were just experiencing it. Yeah, yeah. So it's pretty special that we got to go back like this.

Sunny 5:22

Yeah, we volunteered the first year that we went. And I loved that experience. So shout out to all the volunteers that keep festivals moving.

Clark 5:31

Seriously.

Sunny 5:32

Thank you so much to Same Same But Difference media team for including us this year. We are so excited.

Clark 5:39

Yeah, thank you.

Sunny 5:40

Okay, Clark, what's the best way to structure today's episode? Because we have a lot of info to get through.

Clark 5:46

You're you're true. Um, I think maybe let's start with the Reddit and the Facebook stuff that you found. Okay. Piggyback double down that we're like, yeah, that I think that's a really good idea.

Sunny 6:06

Okay. And then you'll do your food prep after that.

Clark 6:09

Yeah, yeah,

Community Tips First Timers Miss

Clark 6:10

and then I can talk about that stuff.

Sunny 6:11

Okay. I posted on Reddit.

Clark 6:14

Yeah.

Sunny 6:14

Asking for tips for same, same but different. So I'm gonna read those as written. Comfortable tail 474 says bring things for a beach day.

Clark 6:27

Yep.

Sunny 6:28

Some kind of light up marker to find your camp at night. It's really dark. Headlights for the walk back to camp. If your site has a fire pit, you can use it. So bring wood if you want. Also read the local fire warnings. Bring a shade for camp. It has rained one day the last two of three years I have attended. So be prepared just in case. They also said red ants and critters live here, so make sure all your food is put away. Coolers are fully closed, tents fully zipped, check for holes in your tent floor. They crawled in one year through a hole. Yikes.

Clark 7:06

Yep, that's rough. Ate that. That's rough to wake up to.

Sunny 7:09

Um, days are warm and nights can get chilly. Bring shower shoes. Grandma's house has secret areas you could explore, open every door and cabinet everywhere throughout the festival. And don't sleep on the pre-party. They have upped the production at the inner base stage where it's now held.

Clark 7:29

Awesome. So many of those are definitely spot on. Yeah. Especially, I think it's deceptive the um that point they say about the days being warm and the nights being chilly. We really felt that because we were doing upfront camping and the water was very close to us, and we really got that breeze off the water, that can get pretty chilly. So you definitely need to remember that.

Sunny 7:57

Take that into consideration if you're still trying to decide where you want to camp.

Clark 8:00

Totally.

Sunny 8:01

I also wanted to piggyback a little bit off of those tips. The way I prepare for the rain is I bring clothes for that kind of weather, but I put it in a compression bag and I leave it at the bottom of my suitcase. So if I need it, I have it. But if I don't, my big jacket's not taking up a lot of space in my suitcase.

Clark 8:21

For sure.

Sunny 8:22

Dollar store ponchos are are great too. You can bring a handful in with you.

Clark 8:26

Yep, yep.

Sunny 8:26

I like to use hand warmers. And to quote actually one of the podcast episodes that same, same but different did embrace the suck.

Clark 8:36

Yes. Yes.

Sunny 8:38

Milo Teller says the pre-party is way bigger. Last year they basically just added a festival day versus the small tent that they had before.

Clark 8:47

Dope.

Sunny 8:48

Okay, got it. Pre-party. Make sure not to miss it.

Clark 8:51

That's crazy too, because I remember even in 2023, we felt like Thursday was like popping.

Sunny 8:58

Vibes were high. Bad Fez says headlamp or flashlight. Getting back to camp can be a little tricky, especially if you are car camping. They also said bring a bitch and floaty and shade.

Clark 9:12

Yes.

Sunny 9:12

All right, I'm gonna switch to Facebook. There's a really active SSBD community Facebook page. Someone said the beach sand gets really hot during the day. Good morning.

Clark 9:25

Can confirm.

Sunny 9:26

Bring watershoes. Bringing a wagon for nighttime is clutch. I replied, you bring it into the fest grounds at night. And they responded, yes. Jackets, blankets, backpacks, all the things you don't want to carry.

Clark 9:38

Yep, for sure.

Sunny 9:39

Next person said, prepare for rain, cold nights. Um, okay, this next one, pay attention. Because I thought it was a really good specific tip for same, same but different. Best spot to be is at the RV with hookup site. Camp next to RVs. Free hot showers are always open. There's never a line for their bathrooms because people are using their RVs. Yeah, that tip that's something I never thought of. But if you want quick access to those amenities, look at the map ahead of time and try to find where that is.

Clark 10:11

Yeah, definitely.

Sunny 10:12

This person also said to bring wood for campfires. They are allowed. Stay hydrated and come to the family business takeover at Nikki Island on Sunday. We were looking into the family business a little bit and they're uh like a DJ collective.

Clark 10:26

Yeah, yeah. Uh it looks like they're an uh Afro dance music and sound like a lot of reggae influence and a lot of just global dance music in general collective. And it looks like they have three different DJs that are part of the family business collective that are gonna be at Nakey Island. So that's that's gonna be like their takeover, which I think they're just finishing a whole big production they did at Burning Man, and they have their own festival that they put on too.

Sunny 10:56

Maybe we'll save the day that we go to Nakey Island for Sunday.

Clark 10:59

We'll definitely keep an eye out for peeps that are part of family business and maybe hear how their festival called uh The Gathering, I believe.

Sunny 11:10

Cool. Okay, so that's what I have for the responses on the posts that I made. The next thing I'm gonna do, quick behind the scenes on this segment. I basically went down a Reddit and Facebook rabbit hole and I pulled every tip I thought was worth sharing. Then I handed all of it to Claude and I had it help me organize everything to share it with you all. So here's what came out of that.

Camping Strategy Gear And Critters

Sunny 11:40

I'm just gonna read it, okay? Camping here is free form, no assigned spots. They point you to a car camping loop. After that, you're on your own. Park anywhere, your car can reach on dirt, just stay off of the paved spots. You have two options car camping or GA. Car camping means you park right next to your tent or just sleep in the car. GA means you park in a lot and walk your stuff to a tent-only area. Farther walk to set up, but it's closer to the fest day-to-day. And within car camping, regular car camping puts you near the showers and then up front puts you near the festival. So pick your priority. Be smart about where you park. You could get boxed in. So have an exit plan if you're leaving mid-weekend. Get there early. Spots are first come, first served, and set up while it's still light out. Doing it in the dark is miserable. Heads up though, people keep arriving all weekend. Your car alone won't hold your spot. So throw a tarp down too, or you might wake up to new neighbors Sunday morning. Once the sun goes down, it gets dark out there. There are like four car camping loops, and they all look the same at night. Depending where you land, it's about a 10 to 25 minute walk to the festival. Pay attention to the path that you take in and mark your camp. Lights on a tree, a flagpole, a lit-up canopy, whatever gets you home. Bring an actual light for that walk back too. Your phone flashlight will let you down.

Clark 13:21

Yeah, that yes, very sage advice.

Sunny 13:25

Now the critters. Red ants will mess you up if you let them. One camp got bitten up so bad. Keep everything sealed, coolers fully shut. Raccoons and squirrels are also not playing around out here. Someone got raided overnight for leaving snacks out. Put your food away. All of it.

Clark 13:45

Yep.

Sunny 13:45

Weather wise, hot as hell during the day, cold at night. Bring shade and steaks. It gets windy. Bring layers and a real blanket for camp.

Clark 13:55

Yeah. Real quick back to the critters. When we were at Lightning in a Bottle, we really found uh super effective for our camp site. We had our main big cooler uh on top of one of our like camping gear bins, you know, just flipped upside down.

Sunny 14:16

Oh, so it wasn't on the ground.

Clark 14:17

Yeah, so it wasn't on the ground. And that was also great because emptying melted ice out of its little hole was also much less of a hassle.

Sunny 14:27

Right.

Clark 14:28

Also, I think on our tips and tricks for lightning in a bottle, we got a great tip that was your garbage bag using a a different like empty container that has like a sealable lid for that trash rather than just hanging a loose trash bag.

Sunny 14:49

Seal your trash. Your sleeping in your car, bring leveling blocks.

Clark 14:55

Hmm.

Sunny 14:56

Apparently, there are only a few spots that are actually flat.

Clark 14:59

Yeah.

Sunny 15:00

One Redditor said that's the reason they stopped camping there. So do with that what you will. RV folks, if you don't have a hookup spot, you're allowed to bring a generator. There's a water refill and a dump station nearby, too. Good news, the bathrooms are legit. Real running water and real showers. That's what I love about this festival. One of the many things I love about this festival. And this is genuinely just one of the easier festivals to camp at. Just know that the GA bathrooms inside the fest are a little rough. The campground ones are cleaner, so maybe use the bathroom before you head in.

Clark 15:36

Yeah.

Sunny 15:36

If that matters to you though, VIP might be worth the upgrade to have those VIP bathrooms inside the festival grounds.

Clark 15:43

Totally.

Sunny 15:43

Inns and outs are allowed all weekend. Just make sure to check the gate hours. Head into town if you need to. Apparently, there's a Walmart right there for restocking.

Clark 15:52

Yep. Yep.

Sunny 15:52

Thinking about clamping. Details vary by years, so check the site or just email them. People have said that they're really quick to respond. Here is a quick gear list. Take some notes. A shade canopy or an easy up plus stakes. Bring a rechargeable camping fan, game changer for airflow, camp lantern, string lights to ID your site at night, which we've said a few times.

Clark 16:17

Yep, yep, yep.

Sunny 16:18

Bring a floaty. One stage sits right on the lake. It's called Coconut Cove. And it is so awesome to just float in your floaty.

Clark 16:28

Yeah. Yeah. It's it is great.

Sunny 16:30

Also, non-perishable snacks and a cooler that actually seals.

Clark 16:34

Yes. Very, very important.

Sunny 16:36

Um, let's see. And honestly, if you forget something, your camp neighbors probably have it.

Clark 16:41

Yeah.

Sunny 16:42

This is one of the most beginner-friendly, laid-back festivals out there. You're gonna make friends you didn't expect to make.

Clark 16:49

Yeah. The community around us, I mean, we haven't been in, you know, a couple years now. And I texted the two people's phone numbers of people that camped near us, and instantly they responded, and they're like, we will be there. Let's meet up for sure. So we really easily remember us.

Sunny 17:09

Um yeah, that's the end of my spiel.

Clark 17:14

All right.

Simple Food Prep That Wins

Sunny 17:15

Moving on to food.

Clark 17:16

Yeah. Clark's festival. Food.

Sunny 17:21

Clark has the floor now.

Clark 17:23

All right, festies. So uh that was my Vanessa impression. Okay, Festies. Uh when she ends the episode. Um first thing, something else to keep an eye out for at like Goodwill's or Nextdoor and Facebook Marketplace and all the Craigslist, all those places, is looking for a vacuum sealer. It's something that can be really affordable when you buy it used, but there's really bougie fancy ones. I found a vacuum sealer at Goodwill for like ten dollars and it probably retailed for like eighty. Yeah.

Sunny 18:04

Oh, it's crazy.

Clark 18:05

And I think it's just because it had a ding in it. But a vacuum sealer is great for the type of camp cooking that I primarily do. A lot of the stuff that I will do for festivals is pre-cook a lot of things. One of the main staples that go with us no matter what are a fried rice. So just cooking a rice, and I cook chicken separately and mix in a bunch of vegetables and you know, fully cook it and then vacuum seal it and freeze it. It just becomes basically a thin ice pack in the cooler. Uh, so that, and then chicken fajitas, cook down onions and bell peppers and chicken and seasoning. Obviously, you could do that with like mushrooms or with tofu.

Sunny 18:55

Obviously.

Clark 18:56

It's straightforward enough that you could totally do that. And then protein pancakes from Kodiak. I'll make those and again the all these things are super easy to pre-make and then freeze. All those things I reheat just in a pan on our camping stove. So you don't need any other vessel or any other cooking oil or anything really, because you're just reheating something that's already cooked. You can find pretty cheap nonstick skillet at highly recommend Marshall's, Ross, you know, other retailers like that. And so all I really bring is that nonstick pan and a little pot to heat up water. Because the only things we make like fresh at our campsite will be coffee, so boil water for coffee or cup of noodles. Cup of noodles.

Sunny 19:52

We make those fresh at our campsite.

Clark 19:53

Yeah, well, well, it's just you know, it's the only thing I'm like really like heating some, you know, doing two things. Because a cup of noodles after a long day of a festival hits so hard. He absolutely just is delicious.

Sunny 20:06

And for lightning in a bottle, Clark went the extra mile and got really fancy cup of noodles. Or they were fancy to me, I don't know, from an Asian market around here, and it was delicious.

Clark 20:18

Yes, some shin noodles, but also just a regular cup of noodles. Yeah, hits hard too. That'll do just fine. Yeah, so those are you know my big camping food tips in terms of coffee as well, something else that uh is good if you don't want to bring like a vessel and ground coffee, just make cold brew at home. That's it's super easy, or buy cold brew concentrate, however you like, and you can freeze that in ice cube trays. And then again, it's another thing that you're not worried about it melting because you you want it to be liquid anyways. Um, and if you need to melt it, you just put it in the pot, make it into hot coffee. I know some people are weird about that. It's it's coffee. You're camping. It's already made, it's coffee. Yeah, you're if you need the caffeine, you need the caffeine. Oh, and I uh one of our other staples anytime we go camping or go to a camping festival, uncrustables. You gotta put uncrustables in your cooler, smuckers, uncrustables, or any other off-brand or whatever of them. They're so good. They have a million flavors now, which is insane. Yeah. There's the Nutella ones, there's like the honey and peanut butter ones.

Sunny 21:38

Apple cinnamon.

Clark 21:39

There's the apple cinnamon peanut butter ones I just got the other day. Highly recommend those because you can just put them in frozen and they're gonna be thawed, and you know they'll keep for the whole time you're there because they have a million preservatives. They have so many preservatives in them.

Sunny 21:56

Not good for you.

Clark 21:57

Yeah.

Sunny 21:57

They also squish in your bag too. Yeah, true.

Clark 22:00

True. And even if it's smushed up, it still tastes good.

Sunny 22:04

Still tastes good. Can I say the one thing that I make?

Clark 22:08

Yeah. Oh, yeah, yeah.

Sunny 22:09

Shout out to my Aunt Debbie.

Clark 22:11

Yeah.

Sunny 22:11

Who shared this recipe with me? Um, I like to make pasta salad. Sorry, I don't know what I wanted to say like iced for some reason. Pasta salad. Um and I like this because there are a ton of veggies in it. I can put bell peppers, I can put why can't I think of any other vegetables?

Clark 22:35

Uh bell peppers, olives, uh celery, onions, onions, um broccoli. Yeah, yeah. I mean blanched, yeah, blanched broccoli totally. Um we could even put like chickpeas in it too.

Sunny 22:49

Yeah.

Clark 22:49

You know?

Sunny 22:50

When I'm at festivals, I have a hard time eating vegetables. Just not something I want to eat. But this pasta salad is delicious. There's a lot of um uh like salad dressing in it. Yeah. But it's still a way for me to get my veggies in. And you can just keep it in the cooler, it stays cold. I just eat it out of the bag with a fork.

Clark 23:10

Yep, yep. And it's and you know, we don't put any like cheese or it's not, you know, it's not like a mayo based pasta salad, right? Like mac it's not like macaroni salad. So it's not it doesn't have any dairy. So if you're vegan or and vegetarian, another great option.

Sunny 23:26

Okay, that's my one food thing that I contribute.

Clark 23:30

No, that's I pretty much only I eat, but no, I I definitely try and get in there too when the spirit moves me. Yeah.

Sunny 23:40

Thank you for sharing all those tips with us. I feel like we have gotten it down over the years.

Clark 23:45

Yeah, yeah, definitely.

Sunny 23:46

Let's see here. I have some other information that I would like to share before we close this out. Logistical things.

Clark 23:52

Oh,

Gate Hours Tickets And Final Reminders

Clark 23:53

yeah.

Sunny 23:53

The box office opens at 11 a.m. on Thursday. I'm not sure if entry starts right at that time or at noon. Um, so check the site to confirm, but no earlier than 11. Yep. But here's the important part pay attention to those gate hours. If you show up outside the box office window and the gate's closed, you are not getting in. So look up those hours before you head out and time your arrival around them. And on the other end, everyone has to be out by 3 p.m. on Monday. 3 p.m. is such a doable time. Thank you. Yes. Oh my goodness. Usually it's like 10, yeah, 11. Yeah, which is which is hard. And as of today, when we're recording this, September 2nd, there are still tickets available. There's three-day GA at 446 and 3 day VIP for 693.

Clark 24:49

Mm-hmm.

Sunny 24:50

All right. Is that it for this SSBD prep episode?

Clark 24:53

Yeah, I think so. I think we got out everything we were thanking.

Sunny 24:58

All right. That's it for us today between packing, camping, and everything Clark just walked you through on food. I think you are all set for same same but different.

Clark 25:07

Mm-hmm.

Sunny 25:08

Don't forget to check out the digital toolkit in our show notes. There's a packing planner and checklists to make your festival prep easy.

Clark 25:16

If you know someone headed to same same but different, send them this episode. It might just save their weekend.

Sunny 25:23

And if you are going the same same but different, please keep an eye out for us. Our camping spot will have a big festies flag tied to it. And Clark and I are usually wearing um our festies hats. We have stickers, bracelets, um, and we would just love to meet some new festies.

Clark 25:40

Yeah. Can't wait to see y'all at Lake Paris.

Sunny 25:44

Oh, and if you have a second, please like, subscribe, and rate the show. It really helps us out a lot. For more Festies content, find us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube at Festies Podcast. Until next time. Bye.

Clark 25:58

Bye. Festies.