Greetings from… Pensacola, Florida!
On Friday, September 1st, it started to rain.
The rain did not come as a surprise. We saw the rain in the forecast and there had been a few rumblings and talk about it for a few days beforehand.
Even though it started to rain and even though I had been warned, that in the event of rain in the desert, it’s best to just stay in place… there was a really fun party going on in the other side of town!
I decided that the adventure and the risk were worth it! I hopped on my e-bike and darted across the desert in the rain. I made it to my friends camp, locked my bike up there and then walked a few blocks away to the party!
Under the tarps of the party, the spirits were high! The music and energy were wonderful! Everybody was so happy as we watched the rain come down. Even though we were under the tarps, there was no escaping the mud that would get tracked back in anytime somebody went ventured out in the rain to go to the porto. We all giggled with delight even though the number of slips and falls into puddles of mud started to increase!
After several hours of having the time of my life, it dawned on my that the sun would be setting in the next hour. When that happens, it would get very cold and if the rain kept up, it wouldn’t be a fun trip back to my van. I didn’t want to get stuck at this camp or my friends when I had a perfectly dry van with a built in heater across the desert!
I knew it was time to get my shit together and figure out the best of getting back to my van asap. There was no way to make it back to my camp with my bike. The ground had become a muddy trap, it would be hard enough just walking back. I felt pretty good that my bike would be safe for a day or two where it was at. I said goodbye to my friends at the party & started making the long trek back! I devised a strategy to make a straight line back, out of the streets where the camps are and go to the very last street. It took me about 30 minutes to do that & it put me at about 40% of the way back. This strategy pulled off because I immediately saw a pick-up truck headed my way & driving in the direction I needed to go! Once it got near, I flagged it down, they stopped & agreed to let me stand on their back bumper, hanging on the tailgate with my life! This bumper ride fast tracked me to 90% of the way back to my van in about 5 minutes! Worth it! I made it back to the van, cranked the heat, microwaved dinner & called it a night.
Saturday, the rain would come and go in small spurts. The main event of the man burn was postponed to TBD.
Sunday by mid-day, there had been no rain, the sun came out & started drying out the mud! I decided now was the perfect time to walk back into town & rescue my bike! However, luck was not on my side: Half way through the walk to get my bike… it started to rain again! Drats!
I pushed on. Pushing the bike through mounds and mounds of mud. Mud that had dried but was back to its normal muddy self thanks to the quick downpour of rain. It took around an hour but I finally made it back to my van with my bike and my shoes totally caked in mud!
Monday, Labor Day. This is usually the last day of Burning Man however, the sun came out and they decided they would burn the man that night!
Tuesday, more sun! The Temple burn happened & I did a lot of reflecting on the week I just had. I decided that besides my first Burning Man, this one might have been one of my favorites.
Wednesday morning, I woke up before the sun and headed away from Black Rock City.
When I left Burning Man, I darted back down to Las Vegas, left my van at the airport and flew out on a work trip to the Hershey, Pennsylvania RV show.
It’s rare when I make the trek to the east coast so I decided to extend it by getting a hotel room for a week in Baltimore and exploring the city.
Unfortunately, I underestimated the need to decompress after Burning Man. Sometimes your don’t realize you are sensory overload out there and you just need to chill. I ended up just being lazy the entire week in Baltimore and not really doing much of anything (besides working and watching Dateline).
On September 24th, I flew back to Vegas, got my van and then two days later, I went to ANOTHER festival: Wasteland.
Wasteland was awesome! It was very similar to a Renaissance festival with camping. Instead it the theme being from the Renaissance-era, it was a post-apocalyptic theme. Lots of inspiration from the Mad Max movies.
Wasteland is going on my list of festivals that I will probably try to attend on a reoccurring basis!
My travels this month! (Not pictured: my flight to Hershey & Baltimore)
Summon the mud!
Let’s get weird!
My friends enjoying the man burn
The gate @ Wasteland!
A casket turned into a bar with taps installed @ Wasteland!
The Wasteland gate @ night!