Festival crowd could be down 10 percent, but still better than predictions

Country music festival manager Barry Harley said organisers were happy with how the crowd numbers were building.

"Today's the day, this is the start of the biggest party in Australia and the crowds are rolling in," Mr Harley said.

"There certainly won't be some of the numbers that have been forecast previously - a 10 to 15 per cent impact won't be unexpected.

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"Realistically, we've factored in the drought. A lot of the fans come from the very region's affected by the drought, and now, those most affected by the fires.

"We'd love it not to be the case, but we're realistic to know the impact will flow on. But that still means millions of dollars flowing in to the economy.

"If you look at the glass-half-full side of things, being 10 per cent down is still 90 per cent up if the festival wasn't on."

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Since the stroke of midnight on Friday, a steady flow of campers have poured in to the Riverside ovals.

"Although there was a moderate start to filling up of the temporary camp site, the caravan convey is in full swing and it's coming through thick and fast," Mr Harley said.

"We can accommodate up to 1500 sites. Last year there was about 1300, and we imagine this year's figure won't be too far from that."

Punters filled Peel Street, taking advantage of the comparatively cooler weather - the past few years, fans were greeted with days in the high-30 degrees.

Mr Harley said organisers were delighted with the weather, which was "a great start to a great festival".

"We're trying to encourage some more activity on the street in the early part of the evening with more fringe and busker activity," he said.

"Friday is always a little steady in it's build, but certainly tonight, tomorrow and then through next week you'll see the build to the long weekend, which is the culmination."

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