The best and worst Burning Man 2023 photos

The yearly event in Nevada attracts roughly 80,000 attendees, who this year faced a challenge seldom seen in the Black Rock Desert: rain. Muddy conditions, along with an early climate protest, became the narrative of this year’s Burn. But despite shocking early videos of flooded tents and mud-caked toilets, veteran Burners still had high spirits, according to on-the-ground reports from SFGATE California parks editor Ashley Harrell.

Even though the rain halted much of the partying, the elaborate art and creative costumes that the festival is known for were still ubiquitous on the playa. Veteran Burning Man photographer Jane Hu captured scenes of the art before things got soggy.

“This year’s rain and mud obviously threw a huge wrench in my week, both in terms of survival and photography. Generators were turned off in the rain, portos filled up quickly, and the mud caked in layers on my shoes, making it challenging to walk even short distances,” Hu wrote to SFGATE in an email. “That said, Radical Self Reliance was an apt principle this year — our camp of 40 worked together to pool available resources, ration remaining hot food, and secure our shade structure from constant gathering pools of muddy rainwater. You won’t see any muddy photos in these galleries because, once the rain hit, I spent my time working and helping folks around our camp.”

Meanwhile, Harrell spent much of her time documenting adaptations people made to thrive in the harsh conditions, and the cathartic moments, along with fellow Northern California-based photographer and graphic designer Jonah Page.

Scroll down to see more photos of what both sides of the Burn looked like.