Burning Man is the countercultural artfest held the week before Labor Day every summer on the floor of the Black Rock desert, about 120 miles north of Reno, NV. Launched in 1986 at San Francisco’s Baker Beach, the event and culminates in the burning of a wooden sculpture—which the SFPD banned four years later. Burning Man then moved to its present Black Rock desert location near the town of Gerlach, NV. Now, roughly 25,000 people attend from all over the world. Advance tickets for Burning Man are $225. If you just show up, it’s $300. Outside of portable toilets, not much is provided. You are expected to bring plenty of water, food, your own shelter (either camping equipment or an RV) and whatever else you think you might need for a week in the desert. Attendees are strongly urged to go as participants, i.e. to be part of a musical, dance, theater or art presentation. Showing up as simply a passive bystander is frowned upon. For one reason or another, this is the fourth consecutive year that Daily Planet correspondent Paul Kilduff has managed not to attend after first going in 1998.
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