BeyondIndigo wrote:Hello all. I have a question.
How exactly does "Leave no trace" work for international participants?
I'm from England and I'm considering attending this year, but I'm struggling to work out the logistics of "leaving no trace." For Americans, although they might have a really long drive, surely anything they need to take away from the campsite can be packed into the car and taken with them. However, for those of us flying...what on earth do we do with anything we don't need at the end of the week? I mean we can hardly take everything (camp stoves, tents, empty gas bottles etc) back on the plane with us...baggage restrictions, ya know?
Please help!
it works exactly the same as it does for the 15,000+ burners who fly in (or take the train,.. or bus) for burning man from the USA.. no different.
I can fit my entire camp in to two bags (one of which could be accepted as a 'carry on' in the USA).... I don't really see why anyone else wouldnt be able to do the same (barring availability of items and cost.. of course)
in the past I have used a slightly larger bag and brought nearly all of my food with me (sealed shelf stable stuff which should be fine for international travelers) in one of the bags (which means all of the "trash" from that food would also fit in the bag.. with extra room to spare)
I don't see why you would throw away or want to get rid of camping gear that had basically been used once...
Yes.. you can take your tent with you if its small enough. And, at least within the USA (dont know about international departures) you can bring used or new gaseous fuel based stoves with you (propane, butane..etc) .. and
UNused brand new liquid fuel based stoves with you in your baggage (kerosene, gasoline, white gas..etc)
You'll need to arrange for purchase/pick up of fuel at your destination whether your international or on a domestic flight.. (I send mine legally via USA postal mail to burning man and it gets delivered to my camp at the festival)
As for trash.. anything thats paper/cardboard can be burned (or probably shouldnt be brought to the event in the first place). One person, in my experience.. is likely to create at most about 2-3 cubic feet of trash.. This is well within a respectable and acceptable limit to leave at the hotel many people are likely to stay at.. about 3 'grocery bags' worth.
As for your recycling stuff, such as water containers and aluminum cans.. in the past my helpful neighbors who ARE driving in a car were more than willing to help me out by hauling out the 3 or 4 plastic water containers.. and the aluminium cans can be taken to the recycling camp at the event itself.
Basically.. you have to treat it as if youre going mountain climbing.. You buy small stuff, you plan to have as little amount of waste as possible... and where you can do it respectfully you have some people with greater means help you out.
Excluding clothing, food and water.. This is my entire camp.. tent, sleeping bag, kitchen..etc
all of this crap goes into the small cooler... (toiletries, gloves..burner gear..)
my kitchen...
At the end of the burn I bring ALL of my stuff home with me.. I leave 2-3 small grocery bags of trash in my hotel and I have very little feeling that I am missing anything with the minimal amount of stuff i bring..
You can do it!!! You just gotta.. learn how to pack lightly.. buy small stuff meant for backpacking/mountaineers and use yer head.
Here is a thread i started talking about the crap I pack for flying in/training in to burning man in about 65pounds worth of gear (including buncha camera crap)
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=45646&p=718471 it might help you invision how someone does this.
If there is anything burning man will teach you (well.. not everyone has to learn this) it is that you have to be careful about how much you bring and how you utilize your resources..
