Here’s a travel post from one of our members, Jeffrey, who recently spent a week off-grid (and delightfully offbeat) at Electric Wonderland — a 7-day international maker/hacker camp in the Croatian countryside. Combining art, technology, science, nature, and community, the camp is built around DIY, DIWO, and DITO culture. Think campfires and coding, soldering and skywatching.
Electric Wonderland is run by Radiona, a hackerspace we’ve built strong links over the years through exchanges, visits, sharing of ideas, and plenty of friendships.
But before we get to the forest…
🎥 Pre-Camp: Days -3 to 0 – Zagreb Warm-Up
Day -3 (Friday 18)
Back in Zagreb, a city I’ve grown to love visiting over the years. This time, I was travelling with my mother again (link to FAB25 trip). I dropped into FabLab Zagreb to see my friend Richard and the crew — always great to catch up.
The last time I spent time with them was during my island-hopping trip along the Croatian coast (link).
Day -2 (Saturday 19)
Beat the heat with a morning gym session, then squeezed in some geocaching, ice cream, a tasty vegan lunch, and a visit to the Zagreb Cat Café — where I made more furry friends than I could count.
Day -1 (Sunday 20)
Started with a wander around Jakuševec Flea Market — lots of “stuff,” in the best way. Later, we explored the Grič Tunnel, a piece of WWII history tucked beneath the city.
Day 0 (Monday 21)
Another early gym session, then a bit of work: I found a lovely place to get some remote hours in at the National Library of Croatia. In the evening, I said goodbye to my mother, wrapped up the city break, and got ready to head into the woods.
🏋️ Day 1 – Arrival & The Sleepy Hippy (Tuesday 22)
Time to hit the road! I took a lift with Igor and his family from Zagreb to Camp Velebit, the home of Electric Wonderland. The drive took us through a shifting landscape of forests, hills, and changing weather.
At the camp, I settled into my new home — a converted VW van named The Sleepy Hippy. It was a cosy little hut and saved me from bringing all the usual camping gear. A real bonus.
The rest of the day was spent meeting fellow campers (see who’s who) and easing into the rhythm of the camp — off-grid, open, and buzzing with creativity.
Another lovely part of camp life? A team of chefs cooking all the meals! No planning, shopping, or washing up — just sit down and enjoy a warm plate of delicious food every day. Heaven.
📻 Day 2 – Pi Projects & Ruins (Wednesday 23)
I dove into my own tech project: setting up a Raspberry Pi 4, wiring up a CM108 USB Audio I/O Controller, and starting to learn how to use Direwolf for SSTV. Radio nerd mode activated.
That evening, I went exploring the nearby “town” (a few buildings, really) and ended up poking around an abandoned hotel — spooky and fascinating.
🧸 Day 3 – Gym & Coding (Thursday 24)
Thanks to the Radiona crew, I got access to a private gym space provided by the camp owners. After a morning workout, I went back to working on my Pi SSTV project and more Python coding. A quieter, focused day on tech.
🏖️ Day 4 – Making PCBs (Friday 25)
This was a rest day for many people, with others heading off for swimming or hiking. I decided to stay local and keep working on my coding project.
In the evening, I designed the Dublin Maker 2025 maker badges and got chatting with Goran about his DIY method for making PCBs.
With his help, I gave it a go:
- Spray acrylic paint onto a copper board
- Use a laser cutter to remove the areas to be etched
- Drop it in a homemade etching bath (built over 20 years ago in Goran’s shed!)
Goran also pitched an idea for a flexible transparent PCB using copper tape and acetate. We prototyped one on the spot — soldering would come later.
🔬 Day 5 – Soldering & the Camp Cat (Saturday 26)
Time to solder!
I broke out the iron and tried finishing the boards — but SMD 0603 packages are tiny. I ended up lifting some traces and made a bit of a mess, but that’s camp life. The boards will survive and earn a place on the TOG wall.
Also: I made friends with Morana, the camp cat. A true highlight.
🍥 Day 6 – Python, Prints & Yo-Yos (Sunday 27)
Back to coding on the SSTV project with my Pi and CM108 setup. In the afternoon, I took a break and joined a screen printing session.
Later, thanks to Igor’s suggestion, I stepped away from the tech completely and learned how to use a yo-yo. It was a blast. I even learned the Robin Hood trick — not bad for a first attempt!
As the final night set in, things got weirder (in the best way). Deep in the woods, we tried to stage a strange live video/audio performance using two microscopes and homemade synths.
After finding my way back, I stumbled across Fran and his laser visuals setup — had to give it a go.
🛆 Day 7 – Packing Up & Saying Goodbye (Monday 28)
Time to pack up and say farewell to the forest.
One thing I didn’t mention earlier was just how well-equipped the camp was: laser cutters, vinyl cutters, 3D printers, electronics workbenches, creative gear, and more — all set up in a geodesic dome.
A few final shoutouts:
✨ Onda, the lovely dog from Milan
✨ Morana, our camp cat and MVP companion
Then it was back to Zagreb to help unpack the gear at hackerspace Radiona, one final solo night in the city, and a flight home to Dublin.
🧠 Reflections
I don’t normally go to smaller hacker camps. I tend to stick to events with 2,000+ people, so this felt like being invited to an extended family reunion. Everyone was so welcoming, and it felt like they’d all known each other for years.
It was completely new for me to go to an event and not have to give a workshop or lead a talk. I got loads of work done on my backlog: paperwork, reports, admin tasks for TOG, and a bunch of personal projects.
Big thanks to Deb, the Radiona family for making it a great camp.
This post can’t fully capture how nice it was to slow down and spend a week at a smaller camp. You can check out more photos in our gallery, or read my Mastodon thread for more snippets from the trip.