Tips - Getting Back to Your Camp Easier

butterscotch · Post by **butterscotch** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 6:31 pm

Dear fellow burners and virgin-burners,

"Erm... where is our camp again?"
"I could have sworn it was down here somewhere"
"Hmm... okay... this way?"

To help avoid lots of extra trudging around trying to find your camp*... Here's some tips (Please add your own!):

-Place something colorful/distinctive on your encampment to make it stand out... Colors... blinking lights... etc.

-Find the nearest street sign crossings. Repeat their names three times. Make up a silly phrase about them. Imagine yourself walking to your encampment from them. The more ways you learn to remember them the better the chance you will remember them...**

-Understand your own directional abilities. Are you the kind of person who goes left when the party is right? If you are, remember to rely on buddies and the people around you.

-Meet the encampments around you (Heck... important to do anyways! So many new amazing people to meet!). New friends and more landmarks.

Learn the streets around you and special encampments...

-Get an idea where your encampment is from the Man and/or the Temple.
(Learn what special encampments are in the innermost ring from your camp... etc...)

-Remember that "radical self-reliance" means being prepared. Bringing extra water or a snack with you can make "being a bit lost" less stressful. Ditto on a flashlight with extra batteries.

-Ask for Help! (May sound silly... But can be one of the most difficult things for people growing up in our independent-minded society)
Because disorientation happens... You run around in circles around the burn... and...

-Know that with some people... Increase in alcohol decreases directional ability... heh..

Another plug for having buddies with you.

-Watch where you are walking. Unfortunately, there can be many unmarked metal tent stakes or other objects protruding from the land.
(I personally got knocked to the ground... only to find an unmarked set of six or seven foot long inch-thick metal spokes protruding from the earth... just inches from my body)

-And Most Important:

Burning Man Changes Rapidly!
Especially right after the Burn... Street Signs Dissapear!!!!**...
(See 2004 - Problem of Vanishing Street Signs after the Man Burns - WTD?
http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic. ... highlight= )

Structures quickly come down... so those precious landmarks you were relying on may no longer be available.

Thanks all for listening!

If you have any other thoughts/suggestions/tips... Please post them!

Plus... Anyone have any good/not so good stories about being lost! Please tell! Thanks again!

Burn Happy!

~Aimless

*P.S. I'll admit its sometimes fun to get lost... Burning man is one of those places where you'll never know where you'll "end up" or what you'll find...

**Random Project Ideas:

1. Necklaces for yourself and random new friends that read: My camp is at (blank) & (blank) <time to use that sharpie!>. Please return me there if I get lost... (or something for the like).

2. Bring along cardboard + sharpies and post up a few handmade signs of your own on the surrounding streets when signs start dissapearing (as previously suggested after the 2004 Burn)

Badger · Post by **Badger** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 6:36 pm

FWIW: it'll be a new moon on the playa this year. Pretty dark and all that. Consider the simple task of familiarizing yourself with the North Star (Pole Star) in reference to a BIG landmark - such as The Man - and your camp spot.

Works ever time.

Lassen Forge · Post by **Lassen Forge** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 6:43 pm

Use the sharpie, write on the back of your non-watch-bearing wrist the nearest intersection to your camp (with the frontage street first, the nearest cross street (or 1/2 cross street) second (e.g. "Ego @ 7:15")). That way, too, if you go unconscious or something, someone knows where to start looking for your campmates. And if you forget where you're camped, look at the time. The other wrist, dummy.

And if you're totally discombubolated, using this method, you go to the one guaranteed visible landmark (yeah... HIM). turn so you're facing the city. To your left is 3:00, to your right is 9:00, and the streets past the Esplanade are A-whatever. You can make a mini-map on the back of the same hand - call it your AEZ GPS unit. >>grins<<

Between that and your bike lock combo on your left foot, you don't gotta worry about forgetting nothing. No matter how blitzkreiged you get from our PBR.

BBS

butterscotch · Post by **butterscotch** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 6:44 pm

Thanks Badger!

Know any websites that will show you what the night sky will be like (constellations and all) at Burning man?

I'd forgotten how beautiful the skies could be... and would love to quickly identify the North Star.

Thanks again!

~Aimless

Lassen Forge · Post by **Lassen Forge** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 6:45 pm

Badger wrote:FWIW: it'll be a new moon on the playa this year. Pretty dark and all that. Consider the simple task of familiarizing yourself with the North Star (Pole Star) in reference to a BIG landmark - such as The Man - and your camp spot.

Works ever time.

Wow - Brilliant! (like the north star!)

BBS

butterscotch · Post by **butterscotch** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 6:50 pm

Thanks Bay Bridge Sue!

Looks like when I return from Burning Man (back to hot weather in California... bare flesh... t-shirts, swimsuits and all...)... people will either know where I've been... or will ask... for a couple of weeks at least...

Hmm... wonder if anyone will imprint the location for me in henna at BM?

~Aimless

Badger · Post by **Badger** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 7:05 pm

Know any websites that will show you what the night sky will be like (constellations and all) at Burning man?

Hey Butterscotch, here you go ya knucklehead...

http://www.jimloy.com/astro/polaris.htm

butterscotch · Post by **butterscotch** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 7:36 pm

Heh.. thanks again Badger!

This knucklehead

decided to do a bit of Googlin...
www.google.com

Using the Keywords: night sky "your location"

The 1st site was this lovely one:
Your Sky -
http://www.fourmilab.ch/yoursky/

Quick quote:
"You can produce maps in the forms described below for any time and date, viewpoint, and observing location."

Not sure what the longitude and latitude is for Burning Man, Nevada... but one of the cities you can set it to is: Reno, Nevada.
http://www.fourmilab.ch/cgi-bin/uncgi/Y ... 11&ew=West

Ohhh... Pretty.

~Aimless

butterscotch · Post by **butterscotch** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 7:43 pm

P.S. Like Badger said... the North Star goes under the name "Polaris"

which can be found at the site under:
http://www.fourmilab.ch/yoursky/catalog ... stars.html

Hmm... now to convert this info and the entire site to a working printable Burning Man Star Map...

~Aimless

Badger · Post by **Badger** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 8:55 pm

Not sure what the longitude and latitude is for Burning Man,

I believe it might be...

Lat: 40.753857,

Longitude: -119.236379

gawul · Post by **gawul** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 9:44 pm

great tips!

one thing that worked well for us the past couple years was to get some inexpensive solar lights. while they arent bright enough for using as camp lights, we set them in front of our camp, so when walking home at night, we could easily see them there, and knew we were home.

butterscotch · Post by **butterscotch** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 10:33 pm

gawul wrote:great tips!

one thing that worked well for us the past couple years was to get some inexpensive solar lights. while they arent bright enough for using as camp lights, we set them in front of our camp, so when walking home at night, we could easily see them there, and knew we were home.

Great idea Gawul!
Hmm... Solar Lights.... Did another google search..

Something like this?
http://www.siliconsolar.com/garden_spot_light.htm

Hmm... 1 would be $24.95 + $10 UPS ground shipping...

Where were you able to find cheap ones? Love to know the websites or stores....

Thanks!

~Aimless

witchy · Post by **witchy** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 10:44 pm

The Man will be turning this year... This, I believe, will make using him as a reference point a little trickier...

Using the sky = Brilliant.

butterscotch · Post by **butterscotch** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 10:50 pm

Hmm... still plugging around for solar lights...

Cheap?
http://www.overstock.com

For example:
http://www.overstock.com/cgi-bin/d2.cgi ... _id=849139

Grandview Solar Lights... pack of 4... $29.99 (list $59.99) ... no tax... plus they have a $1 shipping special going on...

Or?
http://www.solarlightstore.com/solar-pa ... key=IMC015

Solar Deck light for $24.95 (list $29.99) plus free ground shipping

http://www.solarlightstore.com/solar-pa ... key=IMC048

Solar Driveway marker for $29.97 (list $39.99) can get in different colors... clear.. blue.. red... or amber...

Sounds interesting...

To the more disturbing...
http://www.solarlightstore.com/specialt ... key=IMC053

Yep.. that's a Solar Garden Gnome...
$39.98 (list $54.99) plus free ground shipping

Hmm...
~Aimless

gawul · Post by **gawul** » Wed Aug 03, 2005 6:06 am

i'd go for that pack of 4 from overstock

i bought mine on ebay. i paid about 25$ for 3, with shipping.

at first i was disappointed at the low light level, but they really come in handy identifying the camp at night

throughout the year i've seen killer deals at home depot and walmart too

gawul · Post by **gawul** » Wed Aug 03, 2005 6:11 am

definately check ebay. i just did a quick search and there are lots out there, great prices

butterscotch · Post by **butterscotch** » Wed Aug 03, 2005 11:23 am

Thanks Gawul!

Just picked up a set of "{ 12 SETS } LARGE SOLAR GARDEN LIGHTS LANDSCAPE LIGHT" from Ebay from Seller esolarlight (Seems to sell quite a bit of them) for less than $50.
($20 win + $25 shipping/handling).

There are quite a few sellers for solar lights. I'll let everyone know how well these work when I receive them!

Sincerely,
~Aimless

HughMungus · Post by **HughMungus** » Wed Aug 03, 2005 3:28 pm

I assume FRS radios work to some extent.

"Where is our camp?"

"It's right here."

"Where is that?"

"About 500 meters from The Man."

"I'm going to kill you when I get back there."

"When will that be?"

HughMungus · Post by **HughMungus** » Wed Aug 03, 2005 3:38 pm

butterscotch wrote:I'd forgotten how beautiful the skies could be...

I'm really looking forward to this, especially with a new moon. I need to get out of the city more often. In fact, I need to go find out who's bringing a telescope (there's a thread I wrote asking that if anyone's interested).

Nightterror · Post by **Nightterror** » Wed Aug 03, 2005 3:50 pm

Last year the streets were named for planets. I was kick'n it in my camp having a smoke with my hot wife and some friends when some speeder rode up on his bike and asked "is this Uranus?" To which I pointed at my lovely bride and replyed "no this is my wife" but thanks for asking. We still laugh about that. And now any time someone starts a sentence with "is this" we reply accordingly.

We fly flags from the USA and from Rhodesia to represent our birth place and to help us find our way home.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 10:52 am

One of my favorite times at burning man is sitting back at camp after the burn and watching the lost find their way home.

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:05 am

Prices on GPS receivers are really coming down...If you're REALLY concerned with finding your way back to camp they're hard to beat. I carry a Rino 130, which doubles as an FRS radio, and am pretty fond of it although getting lost in BRC can actually be very pleasant sometimes. It has a sun/moon phases calendar, alarm clock and datebook, all of which get used somewhat sporadically.
The first year I attended the Burn I was monitoring the distance from Michigan to BRC the whole way, not realizing how twisty the roads get as you go up into the mountains in Utah and Nevada- The as-the-crow-flies readings from the GPS were off by about 400 miles from the actual road distance! For accuracy, you have to program the trip in legs between relatively linear landmarks. The last leg was exciting, since I'd set THE MAN as my destination waypoint and I could watch the distance drop as we approached. (Jeez, what a nerd.)

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:17 am

You can always play Theseus and Ariadne and use a ball of yarn.

Nightterror · Post by **Nightterror** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:17 am

Is it okay to tell the newbies that their will be no street signs after the burn?

I landmark my car when i go into a 7-11 for christ sakes. So I rarely get lost but my first year after the burn with no street signs and on an enlightened plain of consciousness had me a bit worried. Another reason to make friends with all your neighbors.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:29 am

In a general sence the more we can get newbies to understand things the better the event will go...

Of course I can see the tormenting them angle too....

Bet you didn't know fishes could sit on fences.

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:41 am

theCryptofishist wrote:Bet you didn't know fishes could sit on fences.

And don't forget walleyes!

Nightterror · Post by **Nightterror** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 12:59 pm

stuart · Post by **stuart** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 1:53 pm

it's a bit late in the game but it has worked for me in the past

1. come up with concept
2. enlist minions
3. spend money
4. lobby the org
5. submit questionnaire
6. get esplanade placement
7. put some big ass lightemup somethingorother out front

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 2:03 pm

Yeah, for some reason minions find me off-putting.

blyslv · Post by **blyslv** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 2:47 pm

My solution?

Another hippie bumper sticker!

"Not all Who Wander Are Lost"