Travelogue

Beautiful sunset the evening of The BurnWhen we had stopped by to say Good Bye to “The Man” last night, I had asked the security guards what time “The Burn” would start the following night, I got a rather vague answer. Like everything at Burning Man, events are not on a strict schedule, but sort of just happen when they happen.

One guard did tell me though, that when “The Man’s” arms go up, you’re too late. Wow! I never even noticed that his arms were down by his side, nor that they were going to move up above his head.

Secured great viewing spotBefore heading out on the playa, we stopped at Treble Makers, for one last time, for some wine and cheese. From there, we could get a good view of the playa and what was going on.

It was a bit dustier out there tonight, which can be annoying, but does have the benefit of a more dramatic sunset.

Although sunset was at 7:30, it began to dip behind the mountains at 7:00, so we hopped on our bikes, hoping to find a good place to view “The Burn.”

What a brave buckarooThere are over 70,000 people at this year’s Burning Man, and I am pretty sure 99% of them are going to be doing the same thing we were, but surprisingly the playa wasn’t too crazy yet.

We headed directly towards the front of “The Man,” and amazingly got great seats (which means on the hard playa), about 15 feet from the perimeter line, with just one group of people in front of us.

When we parked our bikes, we made sure to take note of exactly where we put them, because when this thing ended it was going to be a zoo. It’s not like we could just look for the two bikes with the LED lights on the wheels, because every single bike looked the same in the dark.

Enthusiastic participantsWe also locked them together, not because we worried about someone intentionally stealing them, but more because it would be very easy to grab the wrong bike in the chaos at the end.

We started chatting with a very friendly guy in the group in front of us, who was obviously a more experienced “Burner” than us. At one point, he kind of whispered to us that he didn’t want to name drop, but Jen Lewin, the designer of the 2024 Man Pavilion was part of their group. So, we obviously must have chosen good seats, if she was sitting just 10 feet away from us.

El Pulpo MagnificoThough we had gotten settled into our positions by 7:30, nothing really got started until 8:30, when it was completely dark. Still there was plenty of stimulus to keep us occupied while we waited - including people in costumes walking on stilts and hundreds of mutant vehicles equipped with colossal sound systems parked along the perimeter, creating a 360-degree wall of music.

Fortunately for us, El Pulpo Magnifico, the iconic 28-foot-tall, colossal, fire-breathing octopus that we had been hoping to see all week, was parked right behind us. It was putting on quite a show - blasting fire from its tentacles, moving his 8 legs up and down, chomping with mouth open and shut, and moving his googly eyes back and forth.

The Procession of the Ceremonial FlameMeanwhile, the Black Rock Rangers and Burn Perimeter Support volunteers had formed a solid human ring, facing away from the Man and toward the crowd. Their job was to hold this safety line for the entire duration of the event, to prevent anyone from rushing the fire.

Event organizers have reported that people have tried to run into the fires in the past, viewing it as a spiritual act of rebirth. One man actually died in 2017 when he broke through two levels of security and actually reached the flames.

His Arm Are Up!!Okay, so everyone near the front rows, like us, remain calm, and sit back and enjoy the show from afar.

Being “Virgins” (first time “Burners,”) we had no idea what to expect.

Around 8:30, the crowd grew quieter and there was anticipation in the air. The elaborate ceremony was about to begin.

First came the Pre-Show: “The Procession of the Ceremonial Flame”.

El Pulpo Magnifico is very excitedWell actually, there was one very important step in the Burning Man ceremony ritual that took place in Center Camp last Monday evening. The process involves using a magnifying glass to focus sunlight onto kindling in a large cauldron, called El Diabla, symbolizing the start of the event.

For the following week, the fire in the cauldron at Center Camp is tended by the Fire Conclave, a group of fire performers.

Fire DancersOn Saturday evening, this “first flame” is transferred into a lantern known as the "Luminiferous".

A procession of people carries the Luminiferous from Center Camp to the Great Circle, where the Man stands. The procession is accompanied by the Lamplighters, torchbearers on stilts, who ceremonially light lanterns along the pathways of Black Rock City.

The Lamplighters transfer the flame from the Caudron to each fire group in the Fire Conclave, who stand solemnly by, ready to receive the flame.

The Angel LookAt this point, “The Man’s” arms are raised towards the sky, a traditional signal for the fire conclave performance to begin, which happens right before the main burn.

Some have interpreted the gesture of the Man raising its hands as a final act of surrender before his destruction. For others, it's a cue for the crowd to prepare for the wild spectacle that is about to begin.

For the next hour, they perform a spectacular, choreographed, show of fire spinning, breathing, and dancing as a "gift... in service to the Man." It takes place in the "Great Circle" inside the perimeter, between the Rangers and the Man.

Pyro showThis is not a quiet, solemn performance, but rather a spectacle of "controlled chaos," with hundreds of performers spinning every fire tool imaginable, all at once. There is no single, unified soundtrack; performers move to their own troupe's drummers and the roar of the crowd, The only light comes from the neon on the Man and the thousands of spinning flames.

What an exciting and energy-filled show it was. It was even better than the opening ceremony of the Olympics.

Pyro showWhen the Fire Concave finished and safely retreated from inside the perimeter, a hush of anticipation fell over the crowd, as the Pyro show was about to begin.

The pyro show starts with what is called the “Angel Look,” a series of dazzling fireworks and white sparkle fountains that surround “The Man” with light before he burns.

About halfway through the pyro show, the fire is lit in the Man’s chest and legs the interior of which was packed with wood soaked in flammable fuel to ensure a hot and quick burn.

Pyro showThis ensures that the structure begins to burn from the inside, a necessary step before the entire effigy is engulfed in flames.

Then the full show begins, with a deafening show of explosions, rockets, and massive fireballs erupting from the Man himself, and continues until the Man is fully engulfed in flames as the fireworks reach their peak.

All I can say is Wow!!!

But it was not done yet. As the crowd oohed and aahed and cheered, the massive structure, which had been the center of Burning Man life all week, crashed to the ground.

Just before the collapseEveryone kind of sat silently watching the flames continue to consume the beautiful pavilion that had formed his base.

Gradually, the crowds began to disperse and take on the difficult task of finding their bikes among the literally thousands that were out on the playa. Thanks to some careful checking and rechecking beforehand, it didn’t take us too long, allowing us to get a head start on the chaos that would ensue, as tens of thousands of bikes would soon be zigging and zagging across the playa.

It has been quite a finale to our first Burning Man. I guess we weren’t virgins anymore.

Drive home safely everyoneWe had decided (or I had negotiated) that we would not stay another night to see the Temple Burn, but rather leave very early in the morning to avoid the long line of tens of thousands of cars trying to leave at the same time.

I’m glad Herb had convinced me to come, because it really was quite the experience, but with all the prep involved and how conditions could have been much worse than the beautiful weather we had, we both agreed that once in a lifetime was enough.

There are so many places in the world we haven't seen yet that we have this rule that if we have experienced a place at its absolute best, to not go back and try to repeat an already perfect experience, but to create another perfect experience somewhere new.