Gathering of the Clans

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The Gathering of the Clans

The original Amtgard camping event, the oldest, grandest, and at times the biggest amtgard event. Run each year by the Burning Lands.

The Gathering of the Clans XXXVI (2018)

For all the official event info for this year's event, please see our website or Facebook Event

Event History

Originally the "Amtgard Camping Trip" to the Sleepy Grass campground in the Sacramento Mountains just east of Alamogordo, New Mexico, about two hours (one hour to Alamogordo and one hour up the mountain) from El Paso.

In time it grew, and as Amtgard grew it was the one place where people from the farflung corners of the Amtgard world would come together to meet, up in the cool mountains in the middle of the heat of summer. With the Kingdom of the Emerald Hills joining the Kingdom of the Burning Lands at this camping event in 1988, it was finally named. First "The Gathering," and then expanded the next year to "Gathering of the Clans" which it has remained. The events were not numbered until 1994. Which led to the odd occurrence of "Gathering of the Clans 10th year" being followed by "Gathering of the Clans XII."

The stories from Clan are the stuff of legend. Even today, the classic Amtgard story begins, "No Shit, there I was, Thursday night at Clan...." (This story is actually based on the real-life experience of Sir Jhonus of the Empire of the Iron Mountains. But the phrase, "No shit there I was" is actually an SCA-ism")Photo proof.

Since 1993 Gathering of the Clans is typically scheduled from Thursday through Sunday late in July. As the event grew larger people started showing up earlier and earlier. It was not uncommon to find people camped out the prior weekend. The timing of the event coincides with the normal monsoon season for New Mexico, typically there would be drought conditions with fire bans right up to a few weeks before clan, when they would almost always be lifted. This is a very "wet" time period by New Mexico standards.

The event reached its heyday in the late 90s, attendance swelled to over 1000 and the campsites stretched all the way down the Sleepy Grass campground, where Clan stayed most of its first 20 years, with only one departure to a Waterfall Site nearby. However, a number of factors eroded the events attendance, including the emergence of other large events throughout the country, especially Rakis which is only a month before, and the loss of the Sleepy Grass campground when the native Checkerspot Butterfly was declared to be at risk and it was deemed the Clan might have a negative impact on its population by trampling the grassy meadow where its main food-source grew.

In 2000, Clan moved to the Atkinson Field about a mile or two from the Sleepy Grass site. This site, while larger, was not as ideal for a number of reasons, including the road, the fact that offroad motorcyclists used a trail passing through the center of the field, the inability to drive to most of the campsites and the spread out nature of the meadow kind of lead to a less cozy feeling than was known at Sleepy Grass. In 2003, facing increased costs, Clan moved to Bonito Lake campground near Ruidoso, New Mexico. In 2011-2012 it moved to a new site near Weed, New Mexico.

From 2013-Present, the Gathering of the Clans is held at the Sacramento Retreat in Mayhill, New Mexico.

While it is no longer the end all of Amtgard events, it is still undeniably one of the premiere Amtgard events. It is where the Kingdom Circle of Monarchs meets and the Burning Lands holds it court.

Dates, Name, Number (retroactive), and location by year

  • 1983 July 9-10, Amtgard Camping Trip (I), Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1984 Aug 18-19, Amtgard Camping Trip (II), Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1985 June 21-23, Amtgard Camping Trip (III), Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1986 Aug 22-24, Amtgard Camping Trip (IV),Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1987 June 19-21, Amtgard Camping Trip (V), Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1988 July 22-24, The Gathering (VI), Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1989 July 21-23, Gathering of the Clans (VII), Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1990 July 20-22, Gathering of the Clans (VIII), Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1991 July 26-28, Gathering of the Clans (IX), Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1992 July 31-Aug 2, Gathering of the Clans (X), Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1993 July 22-25, Gathering of the Clans 10th year (XI), Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1994 July 21-24, Gathering of the Clans XII, Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1995 July 20-23, Gathering of the Clans XIII, Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1996 July 17-21, Gathering of the Clans XIV, Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1997 July 17-20, Gathering of the Clans XV, Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1998 July 22-26, Gathering of the Clans XVI, Cloudcroft, NM
  • 1999 July 22-25, Gathering of the Clans XVII, Cloudcroft, NM
  • 2000 July 19-23, Gathering of the Clans XVIII, Cloudcroft, NM Atkinson Field
  • 2001 July 18-22, Gathering of the Clans XIX, Cloudcroft, NM Atkinson Field
  • 2002 July 24-28, Gathering of the Clans XX, Cloudcroft, NM Atkinson Field
  • 2003 July 23-27, Gathering of the Clans XXI, Bonito Lake, NM
  • 2004 July 28- Aug 1, Gathering of the Clans XXII, Bonito Lake, NM
  • 2005 July 27-31, Gathering of the Clans XXIII, Bonito Lake, NM
  • 2006 July 19-23, Gathering of the Clans XXIV, Bonito Lake, NM
  • 2007 July 18-22, Gathering of the Clans XXV, Bonito Lake, NM
  • 2008 July 23-27, Gathering of the Clans XXVI, Bonito Lake, NM
  • 2009 July 22-26, Gathering of the Clans XXVII, Bonito Lake, NM
  • 2010 July 21-25, Gathering of the Clans XXVIII, Bonito Lake, NM
  • 2011 July 27-31, Gathering of the Clans XXIX, Weed, NM
  • 2012 July 25-29, Gathering of the Clans XXX, Weed, NM
  • 2013 July 24-28, Gathering of the Clans XXXI, Mayhill, NM
  • 2014 July 23-27, Gathering of the Clans XXXII, Mayhill, NM
  • 2015 July 22-26, Gathering of the Clans XXXIII, Mayhill, NM
  • 2016 July 20-24, Gathering of the Clans XXXIV, Mayhill, NM
  • 2017 July 19-23, Gathering of the Clans XXXV, Mayhill, NM
  • 2018 July 18-22, Gathering of the Clans XXXVI, Mayhill, NM

Pictures

Links

Sources

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