Every year, events like Coachella, Burning Man, and other similar festivals allow people to get together and have some fun while listening to their favorite artists. In the case of Burning Man, people traverse their way into the middle of nowhere and burn a massive literal and figurative statue of “the man” at the end. Sounds fun, right? 

This was not the case for the 2023 festival, where the desert-like terrain of Black Rock City, Nevada became drenched with an onslaught of rain. The ground became thick mud, ensnaring the 70 thousand guests like quicksand. The roads out of the festival were shut off, trapping its attendees with no chance of getting out. Those who were there for the event were trapped for the entirety of the weekend and left to wade through the mud that threatened to exhaust their limbs. At a certain point, people were warned to conserve their food and water due to the desperate conditions. The site itself was so isolated that the only way to get out was either via a mud drenched two lane highway or a private rescue plane, so most people were simply forced to stay. Diplo (A well known DJ who had attended the event) reported through a tweet, “Just walked 5 miles out of burning man with Chris Rock and a fan picked us up.” Accompanying the tweet is an image of Diplo wearing goggles caked with mud. The two stars were then packed with other fellow attendees for a long ride back to civilization. Twitter and TikTok circulated videos and photos of mud caked bars and tents. Many people were left frustrated and struggled to deal with the upheaval of their wellbeing. 

An interesting aspect of this story is that for as many people that were frustrated, tired, and desperate to escape, there were just as many accepting the conditions as another aspect of the festival. Many people still partied, hung out in mud caked bars, and raved. As shown on many videos on Tiktok, people found ways to make the best of the situation. Many found ways to adapt to the crazy weather. The whole theme of burning man is, in a way, to embrace the often unembraced. And so, many visitors embraced the twist and still found a way to let themselves have an amazing time. That was, at least, before they were allowed to leave. Once the sand dried out, attendees forced themselves onto the miniscule two lane highway, hoping to find solace. Or perhaps their next adventure.