Flat Camp 2023

Statamic has a way of doing things differently, and Flat Camp was no exception!

Flat Camp was Statamic’s first ever conference. Well, retreat. Well… actually, a summer camp for adults is probably the best way to describe it.

Flat Camp 2023 saw Statamic devs from around the world descend on the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina, with developers from Europe, the UK, US, Canada and the Mity team bringing the Australian flavour (seriously though, we took a custom-made “Statamic” jar of Vegemite - that's just good visitor etiquette, right?).

The aim of Flat Camp was to build relationships – and of course, immersed with all things Statamic – and not be just the usual “conference” of presentations and lectures, but relationships, discussions, chats and listening.

Hosted in a private a suite of cabins in the mountains (yep, those huge multi-family-size log cabins), and with the full array of all of the US snacks (that was listed under “dietary requirements” for me), Flat Camp offered a really unique approach to a retreat.

With some campers innovating fresh ideas (with direct real-time input and advice from Statamic’s core engineers), others hiking, exploring and bonding, and more just learning and absorbing the rad-ness (surely that’s a word, Jack would back me up) of being surrounded by such a friendly, skilled and welcoming and inclusive group of individuals.

Having spoken with so many of the other campers - plus the core Statamic team - in Partner Calls over the past few years, it was absolutely stellar to be able to sit down face-to-face, and have some really meaningful conversations about Statamic (of course), Australia, bears, vodka, Twinkies, fast food, BBQ, cameras, language, whisk(e)y, code, the coolest swag, hills, fitness, mobility and accents, but also finding out more about each other and our own developer experiences - and that we're all so similar no matter where we call home. And learn more about how we all work, think and tick – it was just such a rewarding experience.

We’re really excited for the news of Flat Camp 2024 – some eager campers right here!

Here’s a fun fact too:

To get us there, the Mity team flew via Singapore, and jumped on an A350 for the world’s (current) longest non-stop flight from Singapore to New York City. That’s 9,537 miles (over 15,348km) and an estimated flight time just shy of 19 hours. OK, “fun” may not be the right word for such a long flight, but it did get us to New York City, Singapore, and of course, North Carolina.