Welcome Black Rock Citizen!
Welcome to our Burning Man Survival Guide. We hope our tips help it make The Best Burn EVER!
Welcome to our Burning Man Survival Guide. We hope our tips help it make The Best Burn EVER!
Getting your shelter prepared means you won't be homeless in the desert. Camping on the Playa is different from normal camping. Here are some articles to help you stay cool and sheltered out on the Playa. Below we have links to stores where you can buy different shelter gear.
These small pocket ashtrays have lasted me for many Burns. They are small and easy to pack, and extinguish any fires.
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This unique Solar lantern is completely powered by the sun, no additional batteries needed. Set it in Direct sunlight for 7 hours and LUCI color Essence lasts up to 8 hours on a single charge. Collapsible and compact, weighs just 4.4 ounces.
If you have a cup with LED Lights, the flashing lights draw attention faster to your cup to get a quicker refill. If you happen to drop them as you are walking or riding from bar to bar, they are also easy to spot.
A cup with a handle is handy to be able to fasten to your belt or backpack. Usually a leather strap or carabiner can connect your cup to your bag. A Keychain Ring and some Gaffer tape can also do the trick. This stainless steel mug is insulated and comes with a handy clip on carabiner for a handle. Just clip it on your belt, bag or ear.
Sometimes a ziptie just won’t do it.
The number of uses for a Carabiner at Burning Man are endless. From putting up shade structures, to attaching water bottles to your bike, it’s better to have a bunch of them in your pack.
Sometimes a ziptie just won’t do it.
The number of uses for a Carabiner at Burning Man are endless. From putting up shade structures, to attaching water bottles to your bike, it’s better to have a bunch of them in your pack.
Sometimes a ziptie just won’t do it.
The number of uses for a Carabiner at Burning Man are endless. From putting up shade structures, to attaching water bottles to your bike, it’s better to have a bunch of them in your pack.
Ratchet straps are sturdy and effective ways of making sure things don’t fall off your car getting there and back, but also making sure your camp doesn’t blow away in the wind once you are there.
Make sure to get some industrial strength ZipTies. The winds are strong, and everything is beaten down on the playa. These are a good set that will help you out in so many ways. Some people have even made their shade structures from them. Avoid the clear / white zipties as they are hard to find doing MOOP patrol. Get the colored or black ones as they are easier to spot.
One of the more popular shower choices is using a solar shower. Add water, hang it in the sun, and you have a warm shower. Make sure to collect your grey shower water! Children’s pools are a popular easy choice to collect your grey water.
This is the RISEPRO Solar Shower Bag, which holds 5 gallons/20L of water. And it also has a thermometer gauge to check how warm the water is.
Navigate Burning Man on two wheels with ease! Our guide covers everything from selecting the right bike, and maintaining it on the Playa, to customizing for style and safety. Discover essential tips for electric bikes, scooters, and community biking etiquette to make your Burn experience unforgettable.
Discover the ultimate Burning Man toilet hack: the Toilet Bag. Transform your porta-potty experience with this essential guide featuring eco-friendly tips, bathroom necessities, and community care tricks. Learn how to pack your Toilet Bag with toilet paper, biodegradable wipes, air freshener, hand sanitizer, and more for a stress-free, hygienic festival experience. Embrace Burning Man's spirit of self-reliance and community support with our comprehensive porta-potty survival tips.
Besides food and water, one essential aspect of a good Burn is to make sure you have your power and fuel needs met. Whether you are powering a scooter, camp stove, led lights, or speakers, you are gonna need to get your fuel/power from somewhere, or bring it with you. Here are some of the common Power and Fuel tips.
What is the best tent for Burning Man? Look at this guide to the different types of homes found on the playa. Links and “how tos” for Shade Structures, Tents, Yurts, Geodomes and more.
Dealing with Water is a big part of Burning Man and the experience. From drinking water to grey water, Burners are always containing and transporting water everywhere. Seeing the different creative solutions that people have developed,
One of the more defining pieces of your Burning Man gear will be your Your Drinking Cup. It is Essential to the festival experience. Some are reasons are practical, others are spiritual. Here are tips for picking your Burning Man cup.
Campingyurts.com has a number of Yurts for rental, How To Guides & Videos, Build Your Own Kits and is a great resource if you want to know more about Yurts.
Himalaya Bell Tent Canvas 8-12 Person is for the Glampers.
Large space designed to accommodate a dozen people sitting around. Contracted support structure make it simple and convenient to build, and ensure the stability and firm of the tent.
This is a lighter version of the Yurt Tent made by Ozark Trail. Much easier to setup. It’s important that the screens stay closed for the dust. It says 8 person, but really it’s 4 person tent. Unless you are sleeping on top of each other, which is possible.
Designed by former burners, this low cost solution really can handle the elements. Designing one yourself you can adapt the size and dimensions to make it unique and fit your needs.
This tepee tent has served us well for many years. You can easily stand in the middle, it’s easy to setup and sturdy against the elements. It can be difficult to put under a shade structure because of the height.
This construction developed by Buckminster Fuller is a staple of the Burning Man skyline. The design and shape makes it very durable against the elements if built right, and you can customize it like crazy.
This pop-up Ice Tent is used for ice fishing. It’s insulation against the elements makes it great for Burning Man. However, you do need to build a floor, because these tents don’t have floors. Other than that they are a great solution as a shelter.
Burner Bob Dow gives some tips. “Use a ground tarp and a small 10x10 interior tarp on top of that. It runs up the wall about 10 inches and is hooked to the giant grommets that are normally used for ice anchors. Take note that there are no screens on the ice shelter windows, just velcro edged vinyl... for the burn we cut out pieces of a furnace HEPA filter to get airflow when a fan is not blowing.”
If you already have a truck you can always put a tent extension on the back. It’s not going to fly away, and you are off the dusty ground.
These have to be the best shade structures you can get for the price. Designed by burners for maximum strength, shade and stability. At our camp we have different colors to create a nice effect.
Looking for some easy instructions to building your shade structure? Check out these wonderfully designed / ikea style how to build a shade structure for your burn. Really, even a sparkle pony could do it with this guide.
Anne sells a great shade kit. Take it from this veteran Burner who has been out in the dust longer than most people have gone to school. Free pickup if you are in Oregon!
A simple and easy to setup shade structure that can also be used for a kitchen, dining area, whatever is the Carport Canvas Structure. Costco sells a very popular 10' x 20' carport. There are a bunch on Amazon and Ebay as well. Make sure to place down the right Guy Wires to keep it in place with the Winds. Photo via Bitwavy
Using PVC and the right connectors, an easy to pack shade structure can be made. The type of meshing you use varies on your budget. Some people prefer to use Aluminet and then there is the cheaper Shade Cloth alternative.
A popular material for shade structures is Aluminet. It’s of high grade reflective meshing that really cuts down on the sun, but doesn’t fly away with the wind.
The other alternative is Shade Cloth which is cheaper, but of course others say more inferior.
There are lots of different ways to keep your tent cool. Burningtribe has a simple hack to use reflective sheets in your tent as a shade structure.
Tarps are very handy to have at the burn. Place them under your car to make sure you don’t drip oil on the playa. Place under your old carpet to cut down on MOOP. Use it to make a shade structure to keep your campsite cool. There are many uses for tarps at your camp.
This 10'x15' Mesh Curtain EZ Pop Up Canopy is 100% waterproof, and it is also UV-resistance to some extent. Make sure to secure it to the ground, or it might fly away.
This canopy set can be used for a Kitchen area, dining area, cuddle puddle or a shade structure for whatever. It comes in a variety of colors with 4 weight bags and a roller carrying case.
Some of the item links are part of the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program. The advertising fees we earn are used to help pay for site hosting, tickets, camp dues and Burning Man Festival costs.
