Free camping

[nycrollas]

While starting a post in another thread, I looked to see where the couchsurfers were camping. After finding their website, I discovered they were looking to collect a fee of $800 per person. With that said, what are my options on the playa if I'm not looking to pay anything to set up my tent?

[BBadger]

Find an open piece of land? There's lot of it.

Or do you also mean setting up a tent and having access to camp amenities? You'll have to negotiate with a camp for that.

[Elderberry]

As long as you have a ticket to the event, you can pitch your tent at any open spot from G and beyond.

This is official from The JackRabbit Speaks:

In order to spread the art and love throughout the city this year, if you're not already with a registered theme camp, we ask that you please camp between G street (GDP) and the outer rim. So yes ... no general camping between Esplanade and G street unless you're with pre-registered theme camp in that area, please!

[nycrollas]

Just out of curiosity is there a camp that collects no dues or fees?

If so are there any spots available?

[danibel]

As long as you have a ticket to the event, you can pitch your tent at any open spot from G and beyond.

This is official from The JackRabbit Speaks:

In order to spread the art and love throughout the city this year, if you're not already with a registered theme camp, we ask that you please camp between G street (GDP) and the outer rim. So yes ... no general camping between Esplanade and G street unless you're with pre-registered theme camp in that area, please!

I am pretty sure the G and beyond is for early arrival. After the general population is let in (Sunday at 6pm) all areas in WHITE on the map are open for anyone to camp. It's possible that if you are a single person with just a vehicle and a tent you will be able to find space further in than G. You would just have to be arriving very close to open time. The quote above is for people that get early arrivals and but are not camping where the theme camp/art is located. I believe this is being enforced a bit more this year due to other EA's land grabbing WHITE areas BEFORE the gates are open to all.

There are white areas all the way up to C block.

The quote from TODAY's JRS actually says:
"Arriving pre-event? In order to spread the art and love throughout the city this year, if you're not already with a registered theme camp, we ask that you please camp between G street (GDP) and the outer rim. So yes ... no general camping between Esplanade and G street unless you're with pre-registered theme camp in that area, please!"

[BBadger]

Certainly there are camps with no dues or fees, but a camp that collects no dues or fees is a camp that usually provides no camp amenities. You'll essentially just be parking your tent in the vicinity of other people. That can be fun too, especially the company, but expect to provide everything you need.

You can usually just plop down your camp in vacant areas that dot the playa. Don't expect to find a place on the inner rings, but there is plenty of space all around everywhere else. You can even just ask people if there is room for you to squeeze in next to their camp. Sometimes just the wind shelter is enough to make things nice.

If you don't find a camp to attach to, and you've just decided to plop yourself down somewhere, get to know the people around you. Usually you'll find them to be welcoming and people are often willing to share stuff. However, remember to ask, and there are no guarantees.

[Elderberry]

Yes, i saw that, but it's a bit confusing. Plus, I didnt think people not with a camp got early entry passes. So, i could easily be wrong.

As long as you have a ticket to the event, you can pitch your tent at any open spot from G and beyond.

This is official from The JackRabbit Speaks:

In order to spread the art and love throughout the city this year, if you're not already with a registered theme camp, we ask that you please camp between G street (GDP) and the outer rim. So yes ... no general camping between Esplanade and G street unless you're with pre-registered theme camp in that area, please!

I am pretty sure the G and beyond is for early arrival. After the general population is let in (Sunday at 6pm) all areas in WHITE on the map are open for anyone to camp. It's possible that if you are a single person with just a vehicle and a tent you will be able to find space further in than G. You would just have to be arriving very close to open time. The quote above is for people that get early arrivals and but are not camping where the theme camp/art is located. I believe this is being enforced a bit more this year due to other EA's land grabbing WHITE areas BEFORE the gates are open to all.

There are white areas all the way up to C block.

The quote from TODAY's JRS actually says:
"Arriving pre-event? In order to spread the art and love throughout the city this year, if you're not already with a registered theme camp, we ask that you please camp between G street (GDP) and the outer rim. So yes ... no general camping between Esplanade and G street unless you're with pre-registered theme camp in that area, please!"

[BBadger]

Yes, i saw that, but it's a bit confusing. Plus, I didnt think people not with a camp got early entry passes. So, i could easily be wrong.

What I'm thinking happened was that they changed the policy where camps couldn't reserve space outside truly reserved spaces (the purple regions of this map) once the gates opened, and yet now they're dealing with the backlash of that policy.

So yes, there is general camping anywhere that is open (non-purple areas) once inside, but expect the establish-camp people to bitch and moan that you're squatting on "their" property despite having no recourse to deal with you.

[Elderberry]

Yes, i saw that, but it's a bit confusing. Plus, I didnt think people not with a camp got early entry passes. So, i could easily be wrong.

What I'm thinking happened was that they changed the policy where camps couldn't reserve space outside truly reserved spaces (the purple regions of this map) once the gates opened, and yet now they're dealing with the backlash of that policy.

So yes, there is general camping anywhere that is open (non-purple areas) once inside, but expect the establish-camp people to bitch and moan that you're squatting on "their" property despite having no recourse to deal with you.

That, or they are trying to avoid people actualy trying to setup on a placed camp's space. We usually get there Thursday or Friday and get placed. When you are placed the "placer" actually walks your asigned camp space with you so you know exactly what space is yours. So, even though we have the entire infrastructure of the camp setup, and have our perimiter marked, there is a lot of space that still is open waiting for camp members, RVs, etc. to arrive and set up. It hasn't been unusual to wake up to find strangers camped in our assigned space and it has taken Rangers to get them to move.

So who knows what the new announcement in JRS speaks is actually trying to address. But it always works out in the end anyway.

[Rice]

Yes, i saw that, but it's a bit confusing. Plus, I didnt think people not with a camp got early entry passes. So, i could easily be wrong.

Some people with EA passes are with certain departments (Gate, DPW, Rangers, Arctica, Centre Camp, etc.). The ORG had told everyone not camping in their department's official area (aka, by themselves) that they had to either register their camp or only camp at G and beyond. I think this is an attempt to reduce/eliminate land grabbing.

I volunteer with Perimeter. Before I found out I could not attend, I decided that I was not camping with the Perimeter/Gate camp. So, I had to fill out the complete theme camp application (OMFL: yes, all of it. {twitch}). We have 1 Kodiak 10x15 tent and a car. All that so that I could camp at my preferred location. - I am usually on-playa 1-2 weeks before the gate opens, so I only really want to set my gear up once, and am usually to busy to be moving stuff around. I was told, in no uncertain terms, that if I camped between G and A - and was not placed, that I would be told to move. (We would never hold land for anyone else, sure - we would love our friends to camp beside us, but they had to take their chances like everyone else on getting a spot.)

On a side note, I cannot believe how many questions one has to answer in order to apply to be placed as a theme camp.

[itaintwhatitseems]

While starting a post in another thread, I looked to see where the couchsurfers were camping. After finding their website, I discovered they were looking to collect a fee of $800 per person. With that said, what are my options on the playa if I'm not looking to pay anything to set up my tent?

Only $800 per person.....just pay the camp boss. He will be your friend for a whole week and provide you with hot meals cooked directly from a can and lots of alcohol to make you forget you're getting ripped off. And dont forget to tell everyone back home about your anti consumerism/establishment behavior for the week BUT first get your shopping done at Walmart so you dont go without.

Did I just about cover the hypocrisy of BM??

[BBadger]

Only $800 per person.....just pay the camp boss. He will be your friend for a whole week and provide you with hot meals cooked directly from a can and lots of alcohol to make you forget you're getting ripped off. And dont forget to tell everyone back home about your anti consumerism/establishment behavior for the week BUT first get your shopping done at Walmart so you dont go without.

Did I just about cover the hypocrisy of BM??

No actually, you only demonstrated your sad, hippie illusions that BM is somehow supposed to be "anti-consumerism" or "anti-establishment".

Nothing is further from the truth.

Don't equate "decommodification" with "anti-consumerism". That "principle" is just to prevent the transaction goods at the event itself to maintain a certain atmosphere at the event itself and to avoid the need to collect taxes and such. As for "anti-establishment": there is nothing even alluding to it, but rather quite the opposite: we try to ensure that the event interacts well with legal authorities and the surrounding communities.

So drop your empty holier-than-thou act. It misses the mark entirely.

[AntiM]

Someone is pissed they didn't have a good time at Rainbow and is taking it out on Burning Man. Poor form, sir!

[dragonpilot]

While starting a post in another thread, I looked to see where the couchsurfers were camping. After finding their website, I discovered they were looking to collect a fee of $800 per person. With that said, what are my options on the playa if I'm not looking to pay anything to set up my tent?

Kind of ironic that Couchsurfers doesn't charge anything off the playa, AFAIK...