Big crowds head to Golden Gate Park for Outside Lands
The excitement was palpable Friday as tens of thousands of music fans flooded into Golden Gate Park for day one of the Outside Lands Music Festival.
"Feels good. We're excited. We've got the nervous energy. We're ready to go," said Chinmay Surpur, a festivalgoer.
A total of 225,000 fans are expected to attend the festival over the next three days. Many of them came to the popular summer music celebration to see some of their favorite artists.
"Obviously everyone's excited for like Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter. I've seen the Killers like four times already at the previous festivals that I've been to so that'll be nice to see them again," said festivalgoer Vanessa Fulton.
All that buzz means a lot of headaches for folks just trying to drive around town near the park. On day one alone, cars lined every stretch of road near the festival entrances, we even saw people selling parking spots in their driveways.
Zach Kerkhoff said he drove out from Sacramento a day early to avoid all the traffic.
"I left last night so there was like no traffic or anything," said Kerkhoff.
Now that they've made it, folks like Kerkhoff say they're just ready to enjoy Outside Lands. It's a festival many describe as one of the best on the west coast.
"I'd say it's San Francisco. Like, the locals here, people really do get along with each other. This is just another event where like we're all here. We're going to have a great time, let's make sure it's a fun time for everyone as well," said festivalgoer Paul Pevzner.
Outside Lands will continue for two more nights after Friday, featuring performances by headlining acts Sabrina Carpenter, Post Malone, Sturgill Simpson and many others.
Additional tips on travel to Golden Gate Park are also available on the Outside Lands website including information on the festival's paid shuttle service to and from the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. Additionally, BART put together an online transit guide to help attendees get too and from the festival, as has the SFMTA for those using Muni to get to the park.