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Plan9
sage
Reged: 01/28/08
Posts: 309
Loc: Northern VA
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... my location 
Something of an idle topic, but I suspect that a lot of people have these sort of conversations with their spouse about where they'd eventually like to live (maybe retire to). If you were trying to pick a location for dark(ish) skies somewhere in the general US mid-atlantic region (I know, this suddenly got a lot less interesting  ), what places come to mind? More than just some remote place, if you were trying to find a location in or near a town that actually tried to protect conditions? You could certainly find a farm or something like that, but as many report, you have a car dealership or just a neighbor with bright lights move in, you're suddenly back to square one.
The other thing I'd add is that, although I'm certainly interested in astronomy, it's really not my only consideration. I like places that have attempted to preserve some of the tranquility of natural environments.
Thanks!
Bill
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Celestron 6SE
Celestron Onyx 80 EDF
Vixen Porta Mount
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George N
professor emeritus
Reged: 05/19/06
Posts: 673
Loc: Binghamton & Indian Lake NY
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Well, way back around 1980 I convinced my wife that we should move from our light polluted location in New Jersey (20 miles from NYC) to a rural location out side of Binghamton, NY. I almost certainly could have made more bucks over the years staying were I was, but neither of us regret the move. I also rent a “camp” (3 season house) in the central Adirondacks. That’s pretty remote. My biggest annoyance while observing is from bears, not lights. Last month I got a Sky Quality Meter reading of 21.44 there, and that’s pretty typical. From my front lawn 4 miles for Binghamton NY a typical SQM reading is 20.8, and very rarely 21.0 well after midnight. Add snow and the sky brightens about .3 or so.
Another area that is remote and dark is in the general vicinity of Cherry Springs State Park in PA. I’ve gotten an SQM reading of 21.64 at that location. The closest town has recently installed better shielded lighting.
Basically, look at a map and pick a place as far from any cities as possible!
However, remember the down side: from my Adirondack camp to the nearest emergency room is a 90 minute drive one way in good weather. From my wife’s point of view: the driving time to the nearest Wal-Mart is even longer! While we can buy a bottle of whiskey with a 20 minute round trip, it’s a 4 hour round trip to buy a pair of shoes. Add 15% to the cost of food, with less variety, and $0.25 to a gallon of gas, compared to prices in the cities. Personally, I think it’s all worth it.
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George N
Obsession 20
Optical Guidance Systems 10" F/9 R-C Cass
6" F/5 & 8" F/8 home-made Newts
MI-250 mount
SBIG STL-1301E CCD
Member, International Dark-Sky Association
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ebusinesstutor
sage
Reged: 07/01/09
Posts: 465
Loc: Nanaimo, BC, Canada
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My wife and I had discussed this as well and wanted to make sure our next place was darker skies. The problem is that we love our urban life style with access to funky coffee shops!
Some friends of ours have a home they live in part of the year in Arizona. We were thinking of renting a place somewhere like that in darker skies for a vacation. It would be too hot for me full time though.
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Garland Coulson
Orion XT8i Dob & Celestron 80 ED on a Vixen Porta Mount Mini
Baader Hyperion 8-24mm Click Zoom & Siebert Observatory 36mm
Siebert Black Knight Binoviewers
SkyWatcher Observing Chair
Celestron Skymaster 15x70mm binos
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Montana_Nights
member
Reged: 04/19/09
Posts: 78
Loc: Ennis,Montana
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Cape Hatteras, NC comes to mind. I used to go there to the outlying islands" that are connected by brides only...and in one instance just the ferry. Gets pretty dark there at night. If you didn't say mid-atlantic I'd have said New Mexico, I lived there for a few months and went to City of Rocks state park in the sourthern region...I've never seen so many stars in my life, not even in the middle of Iraq or Kuwait(too much sand in the air their I suppose)
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Southwest Montana Astronomical Society, Bozeman Montana
My Kit:
A "new to me" Celestron Celestar 8
25mm and 10mm widefield EP
2x barlow
Various filters and accessories
Many, many books
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Plan9
sage
Reged: 01/28/08
Posts: 309
Loc: Northern VA
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Sorry to start a topic then walk away - just didn't have a chance to get back to the web.
George - your situation sounds pretty nice; I'm thinking I might need more access to doctors, etc at some point in the future, not to mention keeping nearer to where kids might eventually live (but who knows).
Garland - I think you've hit the nail on the head How am I going to stay up for astronomy without coffee? Seriously, a certain amount of civilization is nice. One thing that struck me - our last vacation to Maine offered pretty nice skies with reasonable access to coffee shops etc (Bar Harbor), although that is more overrun with tourists than I might prefer. Places like that do exist! BTW, how are the skies in Nanaimo? It can't be nearly as bad as the "DC Nebula" (props to RAKing for that phrase) I live in.
Montana - you live in MONTANA! How can it get better than that?  NC isn't bad, as you point out. Stayed in the Outer Banks a few years ago, and had surprisingly good skies. However, there were people nearby who actually drowned out the sky by leaving their LIVING ROOM lights on full blast ALL NIGHT! (  ). It was one of those houses with a great room with a wall of windows and about 8000 watts of light. I've never witnessed anything like it. Which proves that, even with outdoor lighting codes, someone will find a way to make things unpleasant
Cheers to all you lucky guys in dark sky country!
Bill
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Celestron 6SE
Celestron Onyx 80 EDF
Vixen Porta Mount
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George N
professor emeritus
Reged: 05/19/06
Posts: 673
Loc: Binghamton & Indian Lake NY
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Quote:
....George - your situation sounds pretty nice; I'm thinking I might need more access to doctors, etc at some point in the future, not to mention keeping nearer to where kids might eventually live (but who knows).
Garland - I think you've hit the nail on the head How am I going to stay up for astronomy without coffee? Seriously, a certain amount of civilization is nice. .....Bill
Unfortunately, civilization = lights, while wilderness = dark, a truth you can’t escape. The reason there’s no lights is ‘cuz no one lives there….. and that’s for a reason too. There are no jobs, and conditions are harsh. Southwest? My main memory of living there revolves around scorpion stings and poisonous snakes in the yard…. Maine? Ya gotta get away from the coastal cities up into the wilderness and all that cold and snow to avoid lights. If you want coffee there, you better make your own. North-central Pennsylvania? There’s nothing there, and that’s why it’s dark. Outer banks on the Atlantic coast? Think ‘new house’ after each hurricane rolls thru.
All of this assumes you are looking for truly dark sky. A typical ‘green zone’ rural location is nice, but nothing like the profoundly dark sky of a gray or black zone. An 8-inch located in a gray/black zone will show what a 20-inch will in any suburb in the USA.
Now if you’re widening your search, and assuming the Commies will give up soon, I’d bet that the mountains of Cuba would be ideal: no lights (yet), great climate, close to the beaches, southern skies, cool music…...
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George N
Obsession 20
Optical Guidance Systems 10" F/9 R-C Cass
6" F/5 & 8" F/8 home-made Newts
MI-250 mount
SBIG STL-1301E CCD
Member, International Dark-Sky Association
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