The Camps Elisis of Lleida host this weekend the 45th edition of the Aplec del Caragol, an event that brings together 124 groups, nearly 17,000 participants, and about 200,000 visitors. The celebration once again occupies the fairgrounds with a dimension very far removed from that first collective lunch that gave rise to the festival in 1980.
The distance between the two moments summarizes the evolution of the Aplec. What began with a proposal from 12 groups and 300 people by the Segre River, and even received initial disapproval, has become one of Lleida's major popular gatherings with massive presence in the Camps Elisis.
The Aplec went from 300 people to 200,000 visitors in 45 editions
The origin of the festival dates back to 1980, when José Luis González, Antoni Costa i Sumell, and Manolo Calpe promoted the idea of bringing several groups together for a collective lunch. The proposal started with 12 groups and 300 participants.
Then, Manolo Calpe informed the city council of the intention to hold the gathering by the Segre. The idea was initially disapproved, although the lunch eventually took place in the poplar grove.
From that first gathering, the first group of the Aplec, L'Ordre del Caragol, was also born. The transition from an organized meal with disputed permission to a call that mobilizes thousands of people today explains a large part of the festival's deep roots in the city.
The founding groups maintain a family legacy in the Camps Elisis
This weekend's edition brings together 124 groups and nearly 17,000 participants in the Camps Elisis, with an estimated 200,000 visitors. Among the historic clubs still linked to the Aplec are L'Esquellot, El Xiulet, and La Conya.
Their continuity sustains an intergenerational transmission that links the origin of the event to its current format. In these groups, a family legacy is maintained that has accompanied the growth of the Aplec from its early years to its 45th edition.
Among the formations born at that start is L'Ordre del Caragol, the first group to emerge after the lunch held in the poplar grove by the Segre in 1980.