Drive to Burning Man: Burning Man Part 1

**Due to the amount of pictures I took, our Burning Man photos will be split up between multiple posts.**

Shaun and I finally rolled out of bed to be on our way to Burning Man somewhere in the neighborhood of 6am. Honestly, I haven’t seen 6am wake up calls since I left my job in July so getting up this early is a big deal. I must like what we’re doing or something. 😉

6am on a Monday morning in Las Vegas is a ghost town. We made our way to the front of the non-existent check out line and while chit chatting with the receptionist guy/man he mentioned that he had been up to Burning Man a few years ago.

“It is a long drive and there is absolutely NOTHING to look at.”

He couldn’t have been more wrong. The drive from Fernley up to the Gerlach Empire was one of the most beautiful drives I had been on. There was everything from trees, to desert, to scrub brush and rainbows! I am really starting to think that the art of road tripping is lost of a good majority of my generation. Is it that our ADD keeps us from being able to enjoy the subtle beauty of the countryside?

Here are a few pictures from our drive up from Vegas to Burning Man – all 13 hours of it (more explanation below):

You know how I mentioned in the post, “Road Trip to Burning Man: Arizona” how rain seems to follow Shaun and I everywhere on our travels?

Lo and behold it was raining at freaking Burning Man – in the Black Rock DESERT.

Due to the amount of playa dust and the copious amount of rain that incurred, they stopped letting people into Burning Man while we were waiting in line. The mud was sticking to everything and due to the “no trace left behind” attitude we were asked to wait it out so that the cars would not cause permanent damage to the desert. We waited at a stand still for 2 solid hours. People started dancing in the street, drinking their beer, and having a good ol’ time waiting for the gates to reopen. A DOUBLE RAINBOW even decided to peek through! It was amazing how much positivity was in the air. Much to my dismay I could not partake in the preliminary beer drinking due to my pea sized bladder. I was fearful of the consequences had they asked us to wait too long and since this was my first burn, I was pee-funnel-less.

Remember: No peeing on the playa! Bring a pee-funnel (or pick one up inside Burning Man for future use) and a bottle if things get rough!

I was getting antsy in the car and Shaun was NOT about to let me drag inches of mud into his car. After seeing a brilliant idea from another motorist, I quickly strapped on two grocery bags onto my bare feet and leapt out of the car. The mud did not stick to the bottom of the plastic and I became free to move around with ease. I apparently became quite the trendsetter as several other people followed suit. Shaun even decided to come and hang out outside for a bit. 🙂

By the time we got into Burning Man and found Camp Nomadia, it was past dark. Luckily Shaun and I had previous experience setting up the tent and did so in the pitch black with ease!

Important note for people wanting to go in the future: Flimsy 12 inch metal spikes from your local sports store will NOT work. The playa is packed solid and will bend your stakes. Always bring REBAR (and some tennis balls to cover the tops)!

***Looking for Burning Man supplies, costumes, and goodies? Make sure to head to our shop for the best in Burner supplies!***