2025 Festival Programme

Adventure Awaits

We’re pleased to reveal the programme in more detail below, with timings and details to follow as we finalise our line up and add more session leaders and speaker to the roster.

Your festival pass includes entry to all masterclasses, a wide range of adventure activities (on and off site) and a fantastic lineup of entertainment planned for the evenings. Take a look below to see what we have planned.

And in addition to these sessions, there’ll be a library & shop, chill zones, food trucks and a great bar service, and good vibes throughout this incredible location. If you want to explore further afield visit our concierge service to provide you with routes and facts for running, biking, hiking, and local history in the area.

Full Programme

*Indicates pre-bookable session.

  • Our surf sessions are taken down at a fantastic nearby beach, just a very short drive from Kudhva (shuttles provided). These sessions are open to all abilities from complete beginners to advanced. Wetsuit hire is £10 per session. If you are bringing your own board, please let us know in advance so we can transport it to the beach for you!n text goes here

  • A casual, fun, social trail run at a no-drop pace. Leaving from the main reception area.

  • Join Ian Finch, an expert in natural navigation and survival as well as global expedition photographer for his Wild Walks Sessions. During this walk we’ll learn about certain tree species that can help us navigate, which plants can help us find water and which trees are used by native people the world over.

  • Throughout the Elements Festival, Howl will be providing our bushcraft sessions, including skills like firestarting, carving, foraging, and more. The aim of HowlBushcraft is to provide the elementary skills needed to spend time outdoors without the clutter of modern gadgets and gear. Howl looks to nature to provide what we need, and the skill of our hands to craft it. These are really fun hands-on sessions.

  • Join From Trees for a unique workshop adventuring into the use of organic pure plant teas. Learn to slow brew, savouring the leaves and honouring the trees. Explore a new daily ritual that benefits collective health – for you and the planet. The session will start and end with a short Qigong practice to help you feel grounded and present.

Start times: Friday 10:00

Friday 10:30

  • Come climbing at local landmark Roche Rock with its ruined chapel on top, with expert local instructors Charlie Chambers and Darren Swift. During your climbing session you’ll learn about about placing traditional protection as well as experiencing some of the popular classic climbs at Roche.

  • Gilly McArthur (open water swim coach and lifeguard) describes her swim style as 'non-competitive, inquisitive and adventurous'. She is an afficianado of cold-water swimming and time in water for mental health benefits, and we're lucky to have her leading our swimming sessions. Each session will begin with a talk from her and she will be on-hand with advice and encouragement for swimmers.

  • Our team of Sidetracked editors and writers have put together four different writing workshops over the weekend to help you unlock your creativity, find your voice, and even explore practical advice for working as a writer. Our sessions are hosted by published author Jenny Tough, and aided by our Editors Alex Roddie and Emily Woodhouse, as well as published travel writer Daniel Nielson. Please bring your own writing tools if you wish to do some writing of your own! The first workshop is on the Single Moment – a popular feature in Sidetracked Magazine of 500-word stories accompanying a single photograph. Join us for a masterclass on how to perfect this style of writing.

Friday 11:30

  • Clara Jonas is an artist, illustrator and graphic designer based in Cornwall, UK. She will be leading very special lino printing art classes, with the opportunity for you to leave with a new print on your festival tote bag. Clara believes in lifestyle based creativity and working practises, as well as building community and connection amongst those who are helping invest in a better, more balanced and sustainable future for ourselves and the earth. Her art and ethos are deeply connected to the natural world.

  • Local fire chef specialist Ben Quinn will be demonstrating the art of cooking over fire, using the finest local ingredients and skills gleaned from his travels

Friday 12:00

  • Throughout the Elements Festival, Howl will be providing our bushcraft sessions, including skills like firestarting, carving, foraging, and more. The aim of HowlBushcraft is to provide the elementary skills needed to spend time outdoors without the clutter of modern gadgets and gear. Howl looks to nature to provide what we need, and the skill of our hands to craft it. These are really fun hands-on sessions.

  • Summit Fever Media are one of the premier filmmaking studios for outdoor documentaries in the UK. Join founders Ellie and Matt to learn about creating great short films and finding work in the industry.

Friday 12:30

  • Our surf sessions are taken down at a fantastic nearby beach, just a very short drive from Kudhva (shuttles provided). These sessions are open to all abilities from complete beginners to advanced. Wetsuit hire is £10 per session. If you are bringing your own board, please let us know in advance so we can transport it to the beach for you!n text goes here

  • Gilly McArthur (open water swim coach and lifeguard) describes her swim style as 'non-competitive, inquisitive and adventurous'. She is an afficianado of cold-water swimming and time in water for mental health benefits, and we're lucky to have her leading our swimming sessions. Each session will begin with a talk from her and she will be on-hand with advice and encouragement for swimmers.

  • Our team of Sidetracked editors and writers have put together four different writing workshops over the weekend to help you unlock your creativity, find your voice, and even explore practical advice for working as a writer. Our sessions are hosted by published author Jenny Tough, and aided by our Editors Alex Roddie and Emily Woodhouse, as well as published travel writer Daniel Nielson. Please bring your own writing tools if you wish to do some writing of your own! For this session, join our team in a casual fireside chat where we share what we've learned about adventure writing and answer all of your questions about telling great stories, exploring different mediums as a writer, and getting published.

  • Item description

  • Cat Vinton is an award-winning ethnographic photographer whose work has appeared in Sidetracked numerous times. Her work focuses on nomadic groups, many facing the threat of losing their traditional ways of life. She also spent lockdown at Kudhva, so she knows the area intimately. Join her for a walk and talk where she will share some of her favourite portraits from her series.

    Generously supported by www.tempo-pce.com

Friday 13:30

Friday 14:00

  • Ian Finch has traveled the world as an expedition photographer, often taking his camera equipment on long-distance treks and canoe expeditions to remote corners of the world. His work has appeared in numerous Sidetracked Magazine editions, and we're really lucky to have him hosting an adventure photography masterclass. Join him to learn about getting the shot in challenging outdoor environments, cultural interactions, wildlife, and storytelling.

Friday 14:30

  • A casual, fun, social trail run at a no-drop pace. Please dress appropriately and bring your own water.

  • Throughout the Elements Festival, Howl will be providing our bushcraft sessions, including skills like firestarting, carving, foraging, and more. The aim of HowlBushcraft is to provide the elementary skills needed to spend time outdoors without the clutter of modern gadgets and gear. Howl looks to nature to provide what we need, and the skill of our hands to craft it. These are really fun hands-on sessions.

  • NEW - Abi Waudby shares her immense knowledge of local nature from a foragers perspective

Friday 15:00

  • Ted Simpson is a documentary filmmaker fascinated by stories from the wild edges, where people and nature collide. He is the co-founder and director of UK based production company Scout Studio. Join his workshop to learn about creating compelling films in the natural world.

Friday 15:30

  • Our yoga sessions are lead by local local supplier of sustainable health & wellness products Movewell and hosted by Stanley. Come for a quick flow 'apres' class after a day of adventuring to reset and realign before kicking off the evening entertainment.

Friday 16:30

  • There are a variety of food trucks as well as freshly made pizzas by a local chef to fill you up after a day of adventuring. The bar is serving beers from Harbour, non-alcoholic drinks from Pentire, and a range of cocktails and wine. And we'll have the Solo Stoves burning all evening for you to gather round and toast a few s'mores.

    Either relax and unwind with our live acoustic session or get stuck into the bar games provided by the ever enthusiastic KAVU crew.

  • It’ll be fun, trust us.

  • We'll be bringing some of our favourite Sidetracked contributors up onto the stage for a simple task - to show us their five favourite photos and tell us about them. After two minutes, the slide changes and the next photo comes on. With global adventurers like Lizzie Daly, Ian Finch, Gilly McArthur, Rachel Keenan, Mike Guest, and Martin Hartley, it’s bound to be a really fun session that will take us around the world in some really incredible stories.

  • It wouldn’t be right to have a party in Cornwall without seeing a traditional Sea Shanty band. We’re really excited about this.

  • Sync&Tonic are bringing beloved and forgotten classic tunes to a modern dancefloor, playing outstanding revisions, remixes and re-edits of International Disco, Soul, Funk, Afro, Latin and House favourites.

  • Chill out around the fire and watch some of our favourite films from the Creators Tour whilst enjoying a few S’mores

Friday Evening Sessions from 18:30

Photos by KAVU & Blundstone

Halfway there!

Continued

*Indicates pre-bookable session.

  • Our yoga sessions are lead by local local supplier of sustainable health & wellness products Movewell and hosted by Stanley. Join us for sun salutations to start the day!

Start times: Saturday 8:00

  • Our yoga sessions are lead by local local supplier of sustainable health & wellness products Movewell and hosted by Stanley. Join us for sun salutations to start the day!

  • Join From Trees for a unique workshop adventuring into the use of organic pure plant teas. Learn to slow brew, savouring the leaves and honouring the trees. Explore a new daily ritual that benefits collective health – for you and the planet. The session will start and end with a short Qigong practice to help you feel grounded and present.

Saturday 9:30

  • Our surf sessions are taken down at a fantastic nearby beach, just a very short drive from Kudhva (shuttles provided). These sessions are open to all abilities from complete beginners to advanced. Wetsuit hire is £10 per session. If you are bringing your own board, please let us know in advance so we can transport it to the beach for you!n text goes here

  • Our festival partner Voited are hosting a beach clean! Join them heading down to the local beach to get involved in protecting our wild nature.

  • Throughout the Elements Festival, Howl will be providing our bushcraft sessions, including skills like firestarting, carving, foraging, and more. The aim of HowlBushcraft is to provide the elementary skills needed to spend time outdoors without the clutter of modern gadgets and gear. Howl looks to nature to provide what we need, and the skill of our hands to craft it. These are really fun hands-on sessions.

Saturday 10:00

  • Come climbing at local landmark Roche Rock with its ruined chapel on top, with expert local instructors Charlie Chambers and Darren Swift. During your climbing session you’ll learn about about placing traditional protection as well as experiencing some of the popular classic climbs at Roche.

  • Gilly McArthur (open water swim coach and lifeguard) describes her swim style as 'non-competitive, inquisitive and adventurous'. She is an afficianado of cold-water swimming and time in water for mental health benefits, and we're lucky to have her leading our swimming sessions. Each session will begin with a talk from her and she will be on-hand with advice and encouragement for swimmers.

  • Foundation Training provides the building blocks for lifelong fitness, either as a stand-alone program for pain relief or a jumping off point for more advanced exercise. Mora & Mike from FT instructors UK will be leading the workshop

  • Our team of Sidetracked editors and writers have put together four different writing workshops over the weekend to help you unlock your creativity, find your voice, and even explore practical advice for working as a writer. Our sessions are hosted by published author Jenny Tough, and aided by our Editors Alex Roddie and Emily Woodhouse, as well as published travel writer Daniel Nielson. This session explores the elements of a good story - all the ingredients you need and how to put them together to create your best work.

Saturday 10:30

  • Local fire chef specialist Ben Quinn will be demonstrating the art of cooking over fire, using the finest local ingredients and skills gleaned from his travels

  • Our team of Sidetracked editors and writers have put together four different writing workshops over the weekend to help you unlock your creativity, find your voice, and even explore practical advice for working as a writer. Our sessions are hosted by published author Jenny Tough, and aided by our Editors Alex Roddie and Emily Woodhouse, as well as published travel writer Daniel Nielson. Please bring your own writing tools if you wish to do some writing of your own! The first workshop is on the Single Moment – a popular feature in Sidetracked Magazine of 500-word stories accompanying a single photograph. Join us for a masterclass on how to perfect this style of writing.

Saturday 11:30

  • Our founder and director, John Summerton, leads this masterclass on what makes a great photo. Join him (and a gaggle of Sidetracked photographers) for tips on storytelling through the lens and gain some insight into what he looks for in a 'cover shot'.

  • Founder and owner of Kudhva

Saturday 12:00

Saturday 12:30

  • Throughout the Elements Festival, Howl will be providing our bushcraft sessions, including skills like firestarting, carving, foraging, and more. The aim of HowlBushcraft is to provide the elementary skills needed to spend time outdoors without the clutter of modern gadgets and gear. Howl looks to nature to provide what we need, and the skill of our hands to craft it. These are really fun hands-on sessions.

Saturday 13:00

  • Cat Vinton is an award-winning ethnographic photographer whose work has appeared in Sidetracked numerous times. Her work focuses on nomadic groups, many facing the threat of losing their traditional ways of life. She also spent lockdown at Kudhva, so she knows the area intimately. Join her for a walk and talk where she will share some of her favourite portraits from her series.

    Generously supported by www.tempo-pce.com

  • Our team of Sidetracked editors and writers have put together four different writing workshops over the weekend to help you unlock your creativity, find your voice, and even explore practical advice for working as a writer. Our sessions are hosted by published author Jenny Tough, and aided by our Editors Alex Roddie and Emily Woodhouse, as well as published travel writer Daniel Nielson. In our final session of the weekend, we're going to explore adventure storytelling, including readings from our published work from past adventures; how each of us write on the road (Alex brings notebooks, JT can't justify the weight); using different medium to tell stories (like film or social media); and how to balance being on an adventure while still capturing the details for your later edit.

  • Our surf sessions are taken down at a fantastic nearby beach, just a very short drive from Kudhva (shuttles provided). These sessions are open to all abilities from complete beginners to advanced. Wetsuit hire is £10 per session. If you are bringing your own board, please let us know in advance so we can transport it to the beach for you!n text goes here

  • The 8km trail run will be at a fun, social pace, and we will keep the group together. Please bring your own water and dress according to the weather.

  • Our team of Sidetracked editors and writers have put together four different writing workshops over the weekend to help you unlock your creativity, find your voice, and even explore practical advice for working as a writer. Our sessions are hosted by published author Jenny Tough, and aided by our Editors Alex Roddie and Emily Woodhouse, as well as published travel writer Daniel Nielson. Please bring your own writing tools if you wish to do some writing of your own! For this session, join our team in a casual fireside chat where we share what we've learned about adventure writing and answer all of your questions about telling great stories, exploring different mediums as a writer, and getting published.

  • Clara Jonas is an artist, illustrator and graphic designer based in Cornwall, UK. She will be leading very special lino printing art classes, with the opportunity for you to leave with a new print on your festival tote bag. Clara believes in lifestyle based creativity and working practises, as well as building community and connection amongst those who are helping invest in a better, more balanced and sustainable future for ourselves and the earth. Her art and ethos are deeply connected to the natural world.

  • Lizzie Daly is a biologist, presenter, and film-maker, and has been involved in creating wildlife documentaries around the world. She has a wealth of knowledge for tracking, filming, and interacting with nature and telling stories with impact.

Saturday 14:00

Saturday 15:00

  • Throughout the Elements Festival, Howl will be providing our bushcraft sessions, including skills like firestarting, carving, foraging, and more. The aim of HowlBushcraft is to provide the elementary skills needed to spend time outdoors without the clutter of modern gadgets and gear. Howl looks to nature to provide what we need, and the skill of our hands to craft it. These are really fun hands-on sessions (for those who want to) located at Tipi One.

  • Gilly McArthur (open water swim coach and lifeguard) describes her swim style as "non-competitive, inquisitive and adventurous". She is an afficianado of cold-water swimming and time in water for mental health benefits, and we're lucky to have her leading our swimming sessions. Each session will begin with a talk from her and she will be on-hand with advice and encouragement for swimmers.

  • Local fire chef specialist Ben Quinn will be demonstrating the art of cooking over fire, using the finest local ingredients and skills gleaned from his travels

Saturday 15:30

  • Our yoga sessions are lead by local local supplier of sustainable health & wellness products Movewell and hosted by Stanley. Come for a quick flow 'apres' class after a day of adventuring to reset and realign before kicking off the evening entertainment.

Saturday 16:30

  • Jack Bessant takes to the stage to kick of our Saturday evening. There are a variety of food trucks as well as freshly made pizzas by a local chef to fill you up after a day of adventuring. The bar is serving beers from Harbour, non-alcoholic drinks from Pentire, and a range of cocktails and wine. And we'll have the Solo Stoves burning all evening for you to gather round and toast a few s'mores.

    Either relax and unwind with our live acoustic session or get stuck into the bar games provided by the ever enthusiastic KAVU crew.

  • We'll be bringing some of our favourite Sidetracked contributors up onto the stage for a simple task - to show us their five favourite photos and tell us about them. After two minutes, the slide changes and the next photo comes on. With global adventurers like Lizzie Daly, Ian Finch, Gilly McArthur, Rachel Keenan, Mike Guest, and Martin Hartley, it’s bound to be a really fun session that will take us around the world in some really incredible stories.

  • Led by local superstars, the Brim Ceilidh Band, you can dance the night away

  • Stepping up a gear, local DJ Collective The Antidotes will be taking us into the night

  • Chill out around the fire and watch some of our favourite films from the Creators Tour whilst enjoying a few S’mores

Saturday Evening Sessions from 18:00

Sunday Morning 8:00

Sunday Morning 9:00

  • Our yoga sessions are lead by local local supplier of sustainable health & wellness products Movewell and hosted by Stanley. Join us for sun salutations to start the day!

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If you’d like to get involved, please contact us