Burn 2003 Setup
Setup (page 1 of 3) | Art | Vehicles | Wedding | People and Play
Preparation
I get really excited each year before heading to the desert. I never know what to expect of my experience, but I've learned to trust it. Each year is filled with growth and introspection and amazing connections with people.I underestimate how much effort it takes to shop and pack though. This year I was hoping to get there early - a couple days before the official start - to help with camp setup. But work kept me from preparing much the weeks before. I used that couple days to finish packing.
Using a spreadsheet I've built with 168 items to pack and purchase each year, I was finally ready to leave Sunday night at sunset, missing a couple things but too anxious not to leave. My friend Joy rode as copilot. I picked her up and we were on our way.
The Drive
The drive to Tahoe was unremarkable, we played George Clinton and Barry White tapes. Once in Tahoe though we started seeing other burners on the road. A rest stop off 80 was filled with burners. We all giggled and chatted with each other and had devilish grins.My heart fills with joy when I pull through Empire off Nevada route 447. That means that we're very close, and any minute I'll be able to see the lights in the distance of Black Rock City - the temporary city we construct for burning man. I could see the lights for Gerlach ahead, the last piece of normal life before our decent into wonderful chaos. And then I saw it - the lights from black rock in the distance to our right. Not many yet, it was early in the week. But plenty enough to see that the desert was now made magic and we were about to enter wonderland.
Arriving Monday at 3:30 am still required an hour wait to get processed / ticketed behind a line of trucks a mile long. After a couple hours of sleep, I started to setup my home for the next week. Pictures to the right are from that first morning.
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My Home (click to zoom)
When I first arrived:
View to North (click to zoom) |
View to West (click to zoom) |
View to East (click to zoom) |
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Campmates had begun construction: 
Creating the Lotus (click to zoom) |
Creating the Tower and Sun Dome (click to zoom) |