Dear Elephant Camper!
You are about to embark on an otherworldly adventure at Burning Man, where the desert sands become a canvas for your soul's most profound journeys. Prepare to transcend the ordinary and step into a realm where every moment excites and heals on a cosmic scale.
Allow us to introduce you to your sanctuary in this celestial gathering: Elephant Camp. Nestled within the vibrant tapestry of Black Rock City, this is where you'll find your oasis of tranquility amidst the cosmic chaos.
As you journey through the multiverse of Burning Man, remember that Elephant Camp is your home base—a nexus of chill vibes and cosmic camaraderie. Prepare to expand your horizons, connect deeply, and let the playa's magic elevate your spirit.
😘 Burn on!
If you don’t have a profile, get online and fill out a Burner profile. Here’s the link. Create your Burner Profile | Burning Man Profiles. Keep your profile updated.
Then spend some time watching all the YouTube videos you can about Burning Man. There are literally hundreds of Burning Man videos on YouTube.
Go here and read all about going to Burning Man the first time. First-Timer’s Guide | Burning Man
Build Week
Wednesday - Saturday, August 21-24, 2024
We call it a week, it’s not really a week, just four days. You get the drift. This is your chance to join our vibrant build or support crew and help bring our camp to life. If you're part of the build crew, you'll score an early arrival pass to Elephant Camp. Get ready for some serious playa action and physical work. We've got roles for everyone, from food prep wizards to fluffers (those magical beings who keep our work crews hydrated and snacked up). We've got tools on hand but bring your own perfectly fitting gloves to make the magic happen.
The Burning Man Festival
Sunday, August 25, 2024 – Monday, September 2, 2024.
Where We are Located:
Elephant Camp Clean-up (Mooping…MOOP = Material Out of Place)
Sunday, September 1 – Monday, September 2, 2024
Everyone is highly encouraged to stay and help. We really get down when we MOOP. Watch this. Leave No Trace: MOOP Is on the Rise!
Alright, beautiful soul, here’s the lowdown on joining the I Love Elephant Camp tribe. The camp cost is $650, which covers your cozy spot to pitch your tent and three delicious meals a day. Your Burning Man ticket, which includes all fees and taxes, is $660. This is the face value allocated to our camp.
You'll also need a Burning Man vehicle pass, which is $170, also payable to Philip. Whether you’re rolling in an RV or bringing a tent, you’ll need a vehicle pass to get to our camp. Parking your vehicle and then camping requires the same pass as an RV, and these passes are as rare as unicorns on the playa, so we highly recommend carpooling.
Once we’ve received your total payment—$1,310 or $1,480 if you're buying a vehicle pass—Philip will email you a link to download your ticket and vehicle pass. You’ll check in at "Will Call" to get your wristband and vehicle pass.
To join in on the magic, send your payments to Big Bird AKA Philip Price via PayPal at paoniaphil@gmail.com.
Sleeping: You’re in charge of your own crash pad. Whether you’re rocking a tent or chilling in an RV or trailer, it's all part of the experience. Hundreds of us camp out under the stars, and hundreds more find their groove in their mobile abodes. For the tent campers we do create a walled in (fabric walled in) area to keep wind and sand at a minimum. You are also not on the dirt; we provide a covered ground area.
Showers: Yes, we have showers! Beautiful cool, clean, showers! But you’ll need to bring your own water to Elephant Camp. Believe it or not, you can get squeaky clean—hair, conditioner, the whole shebang—with just two gallons.
Food & Stuff: We’ve got you covered with three scrumptious meals a day, plus snacks, drinks, coffee, tea, music, dance, yoga, and endless fun. It’s all about those good vibes and communal spirit. Our head culinary wizard, who once crafted divine dishes at the sacred Breitenbush Hot Springs, will now be guiding our kitchen crews. Together, they will conjure up vibrant, soul-nourishing feasts that celebrate health and vitality.
Kitchen Duty: We're all about that communal spirit, so we take turns helping out in the kitchen. This means food setup, getting the plates and tables together, actual food prep (chopping, cooking, the works), and, of course, kitchen clean-up and garbage duty. You'll get to sign up with friends and concoct meals based on an extensive menu plan made especially for our camp. The recipes are detailed, and many meals are served buffet style, and campers will dish up their own and garnish to tickle their palate. Got some plastic gloves you can bring along? They'll come in handy!
Garbage Duty: Keeping the camp clean is a team effort. If you see a full garbage bag, do the playa a favor—pull it out, tie it up, and take it to the designated area. It's crucial to sort correctly into recycle, wet waste, and other. Part of your camper fee goes toward managing our mountain of garbage. Let’s make sure we leave no trace! You might want to bring a few extra garbage bags of your own to manage your personal trash. Last year, garbage bags were a hot commodity—and they even made impromptu rain shoes. Better to have a few extras just in case.
MOOPING Duty: MOOP is material out of place. This is somewhat related to garbage, but garbage that isn’t in the trash can. At the end of the festival, we all hang out and clean the place. Like get down on our hands and knees and pick out paint chips” clean the place. We take two days to do it and hopefully leave our camp spot spotless!
Connect: Join our Facebook group, I Love Elephants, to stay in the loop and vibe with fellow campmates. This is how we keep the communication flowing. Check it out: I Love Elephants Facebook Group.
Stay Grounded: If you’ve got a smartphone, grab the iBurn app. It’s a lifesaver! It’ll show you exactly where you are on the playa, so you won’t get lost—even in the deep dark of night when everything looks the same. Plus, you can explore the incredible art and read about the artists. Dive into the history of the art installations and see photos of what each artist has brought to share. It’s the ultimate guide to playa art. You can even download it now to check out last year’s highlights. Get it here: iBurn App. The app also pinpoints amazing camps offering fun activities or free goodies—yes, food! Just search for iBurn in the app store.
Air Waves: Burning Man has their own radio station, BMIR 94.5. You can stream it on your phone throughout the festival. And you can listen to it as your sojourn to Black Rock City, Nevada!
Offline Communication: We won’t have internet service at Black Rock City, so WhatsApp is out. Instead, we’ll use a trusty whiteboard next to the food line. It’ll keep you updated on daily happenings, kitchen duty, and any pearls of wisdom we’ve got to share.
What to Bring?
Camping Gear: Bring your usual camping essentials—tent, sleeping bag, toilet paper, and anything to make your tent cozy and fun.
Personal Cup: Bring a reusable cup for free drinks and coffee. Label it with your name in case it goes on its own adventure. We’ve got plates and utensils covered.
Light-Up Clothing: Illuminate yourself with glowing clothing or hats. The playa is pitch black at night so staying visible is key.
Tutu Tuesday: Don’t forget a tutu for Tutu Tuesday! Grab one on Amazon and join the fun.
Weather Gear: Be prepared for the extreme temps—cool nights and blazing days. Pack long sleeves, tank tops, white cotton, a brimmed hat, and your fabulous tutu.
Water: Bring plenty of water for drinking and showers—estimate about 2 gallons per shower. Hydration is crucial, so drink like a fish, especially during build week.
Noise: It's a party! So, there will be music and sound 24/7. Hopefully some of the music will be coming from you! But in the event, it gets to be too much, prepare to deflect the sound. Bringing a small speaker that can stream brown noise, or pink noise, or whatever color noise, really works great. Ear plugs---eh...but brown noise, YES!
Hydration Powder: Keep some hydration powder handy for your water. Stay super hydrated to thrive on the playa.
Bike: A bike is essential for getting around. E-bikes are the best! Adorn your bike with lights so you're visible at night. Decorate it uniquely and attach something tall to help you spot it in the sea of bikes.
Foot Care: Spray your feet with a vinegar and water mix to combat the alkaline sand. Bring socks, Vaseline, waterproof shoes, or plastic bags and tape to protect your feet—just in case it rains.
Sand Protection: Pack coverings for your eyes, nose, and throat to guard against the dust.
RV Prep: If you’re bringing an RV, reflective coverings and painter's/gaffer’s tape are a must to reflect the scorching heat.
Creative Cards: Bring fun "business" cards with your name and number. You’ll meet the most amazing people and want to keep in touch.
Gifts: Share the love with little gifts. It doesn't have to be a material gift. It could be a hug, telling someone a joke. PS - Only hug someone if they seem interested in being hugged.
The Burning Man organization absolutely adores us. This year, we've been placed front and center at 4:30 and the Esplanade—almost the same spot as last year. Check out Attachment A. Our camp is all about creating art, playing freely, and fostering a deeply connected community. We're grounded in Burning Man's core principles, which bind us together and help us navigate any adversity. Attachment B showcases last year's shining example of our unity.
Taking care of each other is what we're all about. I’ll be your mentor and sponsor—if you have any questions or problems, hit me up and I’ll help you figure it out. And remember, if you see someone not having the best time, jump in and lift their spirits!
Welcome to the adventure! Get ready to have your mind blown!
Attachment B.
The Ten Principles of Burning Man
(Copied straight from the BM web site)
The Ten Principles of Burning Man, established by co-founder Larry Harvey in 2004, are guidelines meant to embody the spirit of the event and its global community. Here they are:
Radical Inclusion: Anyone may be a part of Burning Man. There are no prerequisites for participation in the community.
Gifting: Burning Man is devoted to acts of gift giving. The value of a gift is unconditional. Gifting does not contemplate a return or an exchange for something of equal value.
Decommodification: In order to preserve the spirit of gifting, our community seeks to create social environments that are unmediated by commercial sponsorships, transactions, or advertising. We stand ready to protect our culture from such exploitation. We resist the substitution of consumption for participatory experience.
Radical Self-reliance: Burning Man encourages the individual to discover, exercise, and rely on their inner resources.
Radical Self-expression: Radical self-expression arises from the unique gifts of the individual. No one other than the individual or a collaborating group can determine its content. It is offered as a gift to others. In this spirit, the giver should respect the rights and liberties of the recipient.
Communal Effort: Our community values creative cooperation and collaboration. We strive to produce, promote, and protect social networks, public spaces, works of art, and methods of communication that support such interaction.
Civic Responsibility: We value civil society. Community members who organize events should assume responsibility for public welfare and endeavor to communicate civic responsibilities to participants. They must also assume responsibility for conducting events in accordance with local, state, and federal laws.
Leaving No Trace: Our community respects the environment. We are committed to leaving no physical trace of our activities wherever we gather. We clean up after ourselves and endeavor, whenever possible, to leave such places in a better state than when we found them.
Participation: Our community is committed to a radically participatory ethic. We believe that transformative change, whether in the individual or in society, can occur only through the medium of deeply personal participation. We achieve being through doing. Everyone is invited to work. Everyone is invited to play. We make the world real through actions that open the heart.
Immediacy: Immediate experience is, in many ways, the most important touchstone of value in our culture. We seek to overcome barriers that stand between us and a recognition of our inner selves, the reality of those around us, participation in society, and contact with a natural world exceeding human powers. No idea can substitute for this experience.