The Man has served as the symbol for Burning Man since its very beginning in 1986 when Larry Harvey and Jerry James built a stick man to celebrate the summer solstice at Baker Beach in San Francisco. His fate was preordained. He would burn. And, like the Phoenix, he rose again the next year and has been doing so ever since. Here, the 2023 version of the Man is emerging from a dust storm, which is much more common than the rain that captured the world’s attention this past week.
Burning Man always opens at 12 AM on Sunday morning in late August to begin its weeklong celebration of art, music, and lots of other things and ends on Labor Day Weekend. Peggy and I have never joined the midnight madness but we usually do make it in at a more reasonable hour on Sunday. This year we were busy in Sacramento catching up with family and friends so we went in on Monday. The result was that we ended up out in the boondocks of Black Rock City at 5:30 and J street, or Jackalope as J was named this year. Only one street was beyond us, Kraken.
Each year, the powers that be at Burning Man pick a theme for the year that serves as the base for the street names and much of the art. This year it was Animalia, representing the “animal world and our place in it.” The photo below shows the street names.
I took this photo from the map of Burning Man we were given when we entered. The small blue numbers off to the right are the distance from the Man. We were at 5800 feet, over a mile away! The white numbers in black represent art installations. I knew what Jackalope, Kraken and Bigfoot were. My memory of Dingbat was what Archie called his wife in the TV series All in the Family. I had to look the rest up. How about you? The Esplanade is Black Rock City’s Main Street and retains its name every year. It separates Black Rock City from the open Playa.This is the official map of Burning Man 2023, which was home to over 70,000 people. On the top left side, you will see a blue triangle that I added. That was where we lived on Jackalope. The Man is at the center of the map. The small circle south of it is the Temple. Note all of the art installations! The city is organized on a grid pattern with the streets heading toward the Man numbered clockwise and the intersecting streets organized by alphabet and name. Not shown here, is the extent of the Playa that extends much farther to the south.
Our focus today is on the Man and the Temple, which are two locations that almost all Burners visit. But first I want to post one more photo of our ‘escape’ from Black Rock City on Sunday which we found after our last post. Unknown to us, a photo/video was taken of us exiting Burning Man that ended up being shown on NBC 26 news out of Green Bay, Wisconsin (and I suspect other media outlets.) This was the last stream we crossed just before reaching the paved road. It gives a new meaning to ‘streaming media.’ I’m glad I couldn’t see us doing this in real time— and even more glad that Peggy couldn’t. LOL.
Peggy found this photo of us escaping from Burning Man 2023 posted on the ImagineMKE17 Trailer Facebook page.
One of the first things we do when we arrive at Burning Man is head out to see the Man and Temple. Usually it’s by bike. But the crank on my rented bike was being cranky, so we walked. The following photos represent our journey. They were all taken by either Peggy or me.
The Man was surrounded by a beehive-like structure that was in line with the Animalia theme. This photo also places the Man in his dramatic backdrop of the Black Rock Desert.A close up of the beehive with the Man in the background. Note the object dangling from the beehive.It served as Burning Man’s concept of a wind chime. Grin.The ground level of the beehive included xylophones that people could play!
Leaving the Man we hiked out another half mile to the Temple. We’d revisit the Man at night. Our hike out to the temple was delayed:
By this dust storm. No kidding, this is what a Burning Man dust storm looks like. The wisest thing to do is just hunker down and wait for it to blow over. Not doing so will get you lost. Peggy and I once spent over two hours along with at least a thousand other Burners trying to find our way home when we had been to an event way out by the fence on the outer edge of the Playa. When we could finally see the the Man, we discovered that we had walked in a huge circle. Thankfully, Burning Man keeps a fence around the area. Otherwise, we might still be wandering. Or worse.The Temple finally began to emerge from the dust storm.The Temple is a special, sacred site for Burning Man participants. Thousands leave messages to loved ones, friends, and even pets who have passed on. Several are shown on the front here. When the Temple burns at the end of the event, the messages are released to the sky, giving a degree of closure to those who left the messages. Year after year the Burning Man organization and volunteers design and build beautiful temples, each one unique.
As I mentioned above, Peggy and I revisited the Man at night. In addition to being a symbol of the event, the Man serves as a beacon for Burners. As shown on the map above, three major routes that are lined with lamp posts lead out to the Man from Black Rock City . During dust storms Peggy and I tend to stay on the routes since the posts provide valuable landmarks.
The Man can be seen from anywhere on the Playa or Black Rock City. It is lit up at night and even more special than it is during the day.The beehive begins to come into focus as we neared the Man. The bright square is the Xylophone.A close up of the beehive that I thought was pretty cool.These lit steps provided a pathway into the structure under the Man. They turned red when someone stepped on them.A final view of the 2023 Man for this post. Our next blog will begin featuring the great art from this year. You won’t want to miss it.
Have you found that the temples seem to have more detail than ‘The Man’?
The Man is always the same, G. So the answer is yes. The structure around the Man changes every year, however, and is often quite elaborate. –Curt
I had that thought this year, but I’d have to review photos before I could be sure my hunch was right. But possibly the temples are intentionally more detailed and/or elaborate?
I think they are due to what the people use the temple for.
It’s a tough call, Crystal. 🙂 There have been a number of great ones.
I’m glad you were able to attend, and I’m glad you made it out safely. This year’s event certainly provided some ‘extra added attractions’ — or at least some wild memories. The roof of the temple reminds me of an ‘ivory’ folding fan I had as a kid. I’m certain it was faux ivory, but the carving was equally detailed and lovely.
Great photos, Curt! Glad you were safe too. The photos looked chaotic on the news, and a dust storm doesn’t look like fun either. Hunkering down sounds smart. 🙂
Thanks, Lauren. Yet another Burning Man adventure! The good thing about dust storms is they are usually over in a relatively short period of time, unlike the rain storm that kept us ‘house bound’ for two days until we escaped. Our trailer is nice and cozy however. I really felt for the Burners who were in tents. –Curt
Oh hey, I’m wondering if coming in late and getting stuck out on Jackalope might have helped you escape the mud. Less community to move through in any case. I loved the image that you showed, and looked and looked till I found a news cast using it. Send the YouTube to Pedro. :o) I agree, I do not recognize the names of those other animals and I thank you for reminding me of Archie using the word Dingbat! Oh my goodness, what a great show.
Your first dust storm of the Man is my fave of the bunch, and almost every single image of the Temple is my favourite. Wow. What a magnificent construction and idea: to write messages and burn them.
I am grateful for your photos and stories prior to the rain, otherwise we would all forget that there was something in addition to the rain. That map of Black Rock City is a work of art in itself.
Definitely, Crystal, i.e. we could escape before 70,000 other people, had we left when most of them did. We were ever so lucky to get out early on Sunday, however, with only a handful of others, relatively speaking. When Burning Man finally turned the rest loose, it was taking 12-13 hours compared to our 30 minutes! 🙂 I haven’t seen the YouTube but would love to. We picked up the photo from an Imagine Trailer Facebook site that Peggy follows. Do you have the info on where you saw it? We’s love to see it as well. I simply haven’t had the time to search for it.
The Man and the Temple are alway impressive, and I think the Temple especially so. Each year, it is totally unique and beautiful. We always spend at least an hour wandering through and reading the messages people leave. Many are quite touching.
Dave Ply out of Seattle mentioned the same thing in terms of being glad to see something other than mud and misery. Unfortunately, the media being the media, always focuses on what they think will generate the most views, which is usually something bad— like all of the Portland stories it did. The map is beautiful. I’ll be doing several more posts on Burning Man, even though I am so far behind on other posts I will never catch up! Sigh. Thanks. –Curt
It seems like all the media about Burning Man this year is negative, focusing on the mud and mess, and giving the impression it’s peopled solely by millionaires. Not a hint of the art installations or any good that may have occurred. Thanks for the alternative, boots on the ground view.
The media does what the media always does, Dave: Focus on what they think will give them the best ratings, which is usually something bad. And I can guarantee that the millionaires were vastly outnumbered. The cost of going is a disincentive for people who don’t have much money, however. And it continues to increase. Thanks. –Curt
Very cool to see the beautiful map, hear about how everything is laid out, and read how you tackle it. It’s really fascinating, and even though I’ve never really had the urge to go, I love reading about it. Glad you were in a spot to escape quickly when you needed to, and as others have written, thanks for giving us the good stuff about the event this year!
Hi Lexi. It is a fun map, absolutely crammed with information. Imagine having to put in all of those art locations. On the back, they also have where all of ‘tribes’ are located, hundreds of them, which is vital information if you belong to them and need to know where to go. Being an independent, we were free to camp wherever the tribes weren’t. More ‘good stuff’ coming. 🙂 How did you survive your summer of heat? By being somewhere else? -Curt
Thanks for the orientation, Curt. I’d heard of Burning Man before, but didn’t really know what it was about. I was most impressed by the temple. That was beautiful. And the symbolism is powerful. As are those dust storms (wow). I’m looking forward to your next post. 🙂 And welcome back!
Thanks, D. I should even be a round for a month. Grin. Then Peggy and I will be heading for Africa.
I’ve always found Burning Man fascinating, mainly because of the creativity that’s involved. I first went in 2004 and have been back at least 12 times. 🙂 I’ll be featuring art from this year in my next four posts. I think you will like it. –Curt
I’m sure I’ll enjoy it. And Africa!! How fascinating. I can’t wait to hear about that adventure too. You two are living it up!
We’ll slow down for a bit after the Africa trip, D. 🙂
Every time you do a Burning Man post I’m blown away by the enormity of it, by the detailed organization, by the sense of community, and by the extraordinary creativity. The temple this year is sooo beautiful.
How do they power the lights – are there generators off at the edge of the playa?
As for that shot of you leaving 😳😳😳 That is all.
Alison
Laughing about leaving. It was definitely a ‘get out of Dodge’ situation. There is no where else quite like Burning Man in the world in terms of sheer size, creativity, and temporary existence, Alison, although there are several mini-Burning Mans now. As for generators, they are on site providing the light. There are lots of them. Most camps have them as well. In fact, from an environmental perspective, there are far too many. We did see many examples of solar power this year, however. It’s what we were using. And right across from us was a small windmill! The Playa wind blew it over. 🙂 –Curt
ahhh, the desert dust storms. I would hate to be out in the open when one hits! lol! I love that you were on the news. I haven’t spent too much time learning about BM, so thanks for all the posts about it. The talent that goes into all of it is just incredible.
That was a great tour and love the tour. It really is spectacular and I can imagine how surreal it must be. Kind of like Disneyland for kids on steroids. It is quite amazing the length that people go to create, dress and party.. best art show ever it seems minus the dust💓
Surreal is a good choice of words, Cindy. It’s like entering another world, even more so at night than during the day. The dust just adds to the show in terms of surreal. 🙂 Thanks.
Wandering through Time and Place 
THANKS FOR THE TOUR—THE MEDIA SHOWS SO LITTLE THESE DAYS! 😀
Cool pictures.
It’s not clear to me Curt. When did the rain start.
This year’s temple really is outstanding!
I agree with you, GP. It’s maybe my favourite that Curt has ever shown.
Have you found that the temples seem to have more detail than ‘The Man’?
The Man is always the same, G. So the answer is yes. The structure around the Man changes every year, however, and is often quite elaborate. –Curt
I had that thought this year, but I’d have to review photos before I could be sure my hunch was right. But possibly the temples are intentionally more detailed and/or elaborate?
I think they are due to what the people use the temple for.
It’s a tough call, Crystal. 🙂 There have been a number of great ones.
I’m glad you were able to attend, and I’m glad you made it out safely. This year’s event certainly provided some ‘extra added attractions’ — or at least some wild memories. The roof of the temple reminds me of an ‘ivory’ folding fan I had as a kid. I’m certain it was faux ivory, but the carving was equally detailed and lovely.
Great photos, Curt! Glad you were safe too. The photos looked chaotic on the news, and a dust storm doesn’t look like fun either. Hunkering down sounds smart. 🙂
Thanks, Lauren. Yet another Burning Man adventure! The good thing about dust storms is they are usually over in a relatively short period of time, unlike the rain storm that kept us ‘house bound’ for two days until we escaped. Our trailer is nice and cozy however. I really felt for the Burners who were in tents. –Curt
Oh hey, I’m wondering if coming in late and getting stuck out on Jackalope might have helped you escape the mud. Less community to move through in any case. I loved the image that you showed, and looked and looked till I found a news cast using it. Send the YouTube to Pedro. :o) I agree, I do not recognize the names of those other animals and I thank you for reminding me of Archie using the word Dingbat! Oh my goodness, what a great show.
Your first dust storm of the Man is my fave of the bunch, and almost every single image of the Temple is my favourite. Wow. What a magnificent construction and idea: to write messages and burn them.
I am grateful for your photos and stories prior to the rain, otherwise we would all forget that there was something in addition to the rain. That map of Black Rock City is a work of art in itself.
Definitely, Crystal, i.e. we could escape before 70,000 other people, had we left when most of them did. We were ever so lucky to get out early on Sunday, however, with only a handful of others, relatively speaking. When Burning Man finally turned the rest loose, it was taking 12-13 hours compared to our 30 minutes! 🙂 I haven’t seen the YouTube but would love to. We picked up the photo from an Imagine Trailer Facebook site that Peggy follows. Do you have the info on where you saw it? We’s love to see it as well. I simply haven’t had the time to search for it.
The Man and the Temple are alway impressive, and I think the Temple especially so. Each year, it is totally unique and beautiful. We always spend at least an hour wandering through and reading the messages people leave. Many are quite touching.
Dave Ply out of Seattle mentioned the same thing in terms of being glad to see something other than mud and misery. Unfortunately, the media being the media, always focuses on what they think will generate the most views, which is usually something bad— like all of the Portland stories it did. The map is beautiful. I’ll be doing several more posts on Burning Man, even though I am so far behind on other posts I will never catch up! Sigh. Thanks. –Curt
It seems like all the media about Burning Man this year is negative, focusing on the mud and mess, and giving the impression it’s peopled solely by millionaires. Not a hint of the art installations or any good that may have occurred. Thanks for the alternative, boots on the ground view.
The media does what the media always does, Dave: Focus on what they think will give them the best ratings, which is usually something bad. And I can guarantee that the millionaires were vastly outnumbered. The cost of going is a disincentive for people who don’t have much money, however. And it continues to increase. Thanks. –Curt
Very cool to see the beautiful map, hear about how everything is laid out, and read how you tackle it. It’s really fascinating, and even though I’ve never really had the urge to go, I love reading about it. Glad you were in a spot to escape quickly when you needed to, and as others have written, thanks for giving us the good stuff about the event this year!
Hi Lexi. It is a fun map, absolutely crammed with information. Imagine having to put in all of those art locations. On the back, they also have where all of ‘tribes’ are located, hundreds of them, which is vital information if you belong to them and need to know where to go. Being an independent, we were free to camp wherever the tribes weren’t. More ‘good stuff’ coming. 🙂 How did you survive your summer of heat? By being somewhere else? -Curt
Thanks for the orientation, Curt. I’d heard of Burning Man before, but didn’t really know what it was about. I was most impressed by the temple. That was beautiful. And the symbolism is powerful. As are those dust storms (wow). I’m looking forward to your next post. 🙂 And welcome back!
Thanks, D. I should even be a round for a month. Grin. Then Peggy and I will be heading for Africa.
I’ve always found Burning Man fascinating, mainly because of the creativity that’s involved. I first went in 2004 and have been back at least 12 times. 🙂 I’ll be featuring art from this year in my next four posts. I think you will like it. –Curt
I’m sure I’ll enjoy it. And Africa!! How fascinating. I can’t wait to hear about that adventure too. You two are living it up!
We’ll slow down for a bit after the Africa trip, D. 🙂
Every time you do a Burning Man post I’m blown away by the enormity of it, by the detailed organization, by the sense of community, and by the extraordinary creativity. The temple this year is sooo beautiful.
How do they power the lights – are there generators off at the edge of the playa?
As for that shot of you leaving 😳😳😳 That is all.
Alison
Laughing about leaving. It was definitely a ‘get out of Dodge’ situation. There is no where else quite like Burning Man in the world in terms of sheer size, creativity, and temporary existence, Alison, although there are several mini-Burning Mans now. As for generators, they are on site providing the light. There are lots of them. Most camps have them as well. In fact, from an environmental perspective, there are far too many. We did see many examples of solar power this year, however. It’s what we were using. And right across from us was a small windmill! The Playa wind blew it over. 🙂 –Curt
Glad to get back to this. We had houseguests for 10 days and I got sidetracked.
Houseguests take priority, Peggy. 🙂
ahhh, the desert dust storms. I would hate to be out in the open when one hits! lol! I love that you were on the news. I haven’t spent too much time learning about BM, so thanks for all the posts about it. The talent that goes into all of it is just incredible.
You would enjoy Burning Man, Pam. And you are only a few hours away! 🙂
Maybe some day?!
🙂
That was a great tour and love the tour. It really is spectacular and I can imagine how surreal it must be. Kind of like Disneyland for kids on steroids. It is quite amazing the length that people go to create, dress and party.. best art show ever it seems minus the dust💓
Surreal is a good choice of words, Cindy. It’s like entering another world, even more so at night than during the day. The dust just adds to the show in terms of surreal. 🙂 Thanks.