43 replies to this topic

[PJBilotta]

3 1/2 hour drive to Dayville, Oregon, in the middle of a Bortle 1-2 dark sky sanctuary. Absolutely stunning country, with a few small towns within 20-30 minutes for dining and supplies.

For a long night out, I set up 20 min north at a park service viewing point for a cool feature in the John Day Fossil Beds. For shorter nights, the unused high school football field makes a perfect dark spot closer to town and my bed.

Beautiful, ancient land with as many natural wonders to explore during the days as there are in the sky at night.

[ABQJeff]

El Malpais National Monument, Lava Falls trailhead.  

 

Large, graded smooth parking lot, bathroom, picnic table and grill.

 

SQM-L 21.9 on average, 20-30% humidity, over 60% of nights are totally clear (my schedule is the limiting factor), 7120 ft elevation (located near continental divide.)

 

1 hour 45 mins drive away.  One of the prettiest drives in all of New Mexico to get to it driving by Ventana Arch, Sandstone Bluffs, large domineering cliff walls.

 

Only downside is it is chilly: 30s at night even Memorial Day weekend, but shivering a little is welcome when home day time temps reach 90s and even 100 degrees (I can get odd looks when I arrive back home with ski coat, pants, gloves, and stocking caps.)  Last photo is the coldest I have ever observed (single digits F, focuser grease rated to 14 F started gumming up).

 

 

 

 

 

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[SubaruB4]

I have a location saved but haven't gone to it yet but once I have my setup dialed in I plan on visiting it, my current location is a park not so bad only a single light from a barn but without driving too far (25 min) and the park is open 24/7 (something I was looking for) I did get a few good views while taking my setup out for the first time.

 

Tonight's going to be the second time I plan to refine it a bit more.. only issue was getting to polairs I'm in like a 5-6 bortle zone

[Tony Cifani]

My favorite dark site is not super dark but easy and accessible. Mpsas in the low to mid 21's and under 1.5-hour drive from home and oddly a 45-minute drive from work. I work far from home in a rural location so sometimes I pack up the car before work and head out after for a night of observing.

 

This spot is along the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia, in the Rocky Knob Recreation Area. The photo I posted here was not before a successful night of observing!

 

There are darker dark sites further north in W. Virginia in the Monongahela National Forest and it's wonderful but a much longer drive. I do this once a year if weather and time off work out.

 

And there are closer semi-dark sites to where I live in the Piedmont-Triad NC but with more light pollution, light domes and distractions like traffic and people.

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Edited by Tony Cifani, 29 June 2025 - 03:50 PM.

[Dave Mitsky]

Cherry Springs State Park is one of my favorite observing sites.  I've been going there since the late 1990s.  The park has changed quite a bit since then and in some respects not for the better.  This may be the last year for the Cherry Springs Star Party and the Black Forest Star Party.

I've had some great times there over the years and have seen things in the heavens that very few human beings have ever witnessed.

https://www.cleardar...light pollution

 

https://csspdarkskyf...ent-conditions/

 

https://elibrary.dcn...ode=2&overlay=0

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[Sarkikos]

My favorite dark site is my yard.  It's SQM 20.83, Bortle 4.  When I lived in the bright suburbs, I would travel an hour to reach a park a few miles from where I live now.  That used to be my favorite dark site.  Now, my favorite - only! - dark site is my yard.  My days of driving to dark sites are over.  

 

Mike

Edited by Sarkikos, 30 June 2025 - 08:28 AM.

[Alay]

Parque Nacional de Monfragüe in Spain

 

It has everything; uber dark skies at night, great hiking during the day, and birds... so many birds!!!  The vulture roosts easily have hundreds catching up drafts.

[NinePlanets]

This was the favorite of my 4 most-used sites until about 3 years ago when family obligations took away my ability to leave home.

Situated on the Colorado/Wyoming border at 10,000 feet altitude, M33 is easily seen naked eye on most nights when smoke from the California fires are at an ebb. The Horse and Pipe are pretty easy too.

 

When the breeze is calm from the south (just to the left in this SW view) there is a smooth, laminar flow up the ~1,500-foot incline and the seeing can settle down to just about as good as you would like, but it isn't common.

 

Nowadays, I observe from home exclusively, which is at about 4,200 feet altitude just outside a very small town in fly-over country. M33 is only visible to the naked eye on rare occasions, and The Horse and Pipe not so much. 

 

EDIT: At home, forrest fire smoke is my worst impediment - that and a baseball field nearby; but when the night time baseball games are over, deep sky is pretty good. Seeing at home is generally better than my old dark sites.

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Edited by NinePlanets, 30 June 2025 - 10:05 AM.

[daveb2022]

My favorite spot is about 1.5 hours away and a camping site I frequent. It's remote, and has reasonable access to the eastern southern and western skies. The site supports stable skies more often than not, and and is rated about class 2. 

 

 

 

[Jon Isaacs]

My favorite dark sky site is the Canyon View Campground at the Navajo National Monument.  It is at 7300 feet and the skies are very dark.  The last time I was there I measured 21.8-21.9 mpsas with an SQM.  My wife and I have been camping there for almost 40 years.  My interest in amateur astronomy was triggered by camping under the dark skies of the Navajo reservation.

 

Finding the Navajo National monument was a miracle.. It was around the 4th of July and hot. A radiator hose had sprung a leak, I had been able to patch it and then replace the hose, that was quite an ordeal and I was dirty, hot and ready to rest.  But motels around Kayenta were all filled and on the Navajo reservation, you cannot just camp anywhere. 

 

Not knowing what to do, we started driving.  Around sunset, my wife saw a sign that said, Navajo National Monument 9 miles, camping.  It was the best thing we had seen so we took a chance. When we got there, it turned out the campground was full.  Francis, with more courage than me, decided to ask someone if we could share their spot.  I will never forget his reply.

 

"It would be OK with me but I don't think the Rangers would like it.  Have you tried the Overflow campground?"

 

It turned out, there was a second campground, the Canyon View, but for whatever reason, the critical sign needed to get there was missing, you had to know about it.  And so, what had been a moment of desperation was transformed into a glorious moment of relief and discovery.  Some photos:

 

The nearby Sunset campground:

 

 

A view of Tsegi canyon:

 

 

Camping with the 12.5 inch:

 

 

One Christmas camping trip, there had been heavy snow and the Rangers told us just to park at the Ranger station.  That night it was 6 degrees F and in the morning we headed out for Death Valley only to stumble up the Mojave Preserve.  At bit warmer and also a favorite site.

 

 

My other favorite dark sky site is our 4 acres in the high desert in the mountains east of San Diego.,  The skies are not the darkest but they are dark enough that the Milky Way blazes away.  And the skies are most often clear and transparent.  In normal years, I spend about 10-14 nights a month out there centered around the new moon.. 

 

 

 

 

Neowise rising:

 

 

Jon

 

[moefuzz]

 

My favorite dark sky site is the Canyon View Campground at the Navajo National Monument.  It is at 7300 feet and the skies are very dark.  The last time I was there I measured 21.8-21.9 mpsas with an SQM.  My wife and I have been camping there for almost 40 years.  My interest in amateur astronomy was triggered by camping under the dark skies of the Navajo reservation.

 

Finding the Navajo National monument was a miracle.. It was around the 4th of July and hot. A radiator hose had sprung a leak, I had been able to patch it and then replace the hose, that was quite an ordeal and I was dirty, hot and ready to rest.  But motels around Kayenta were all filled and on the Navajo reservation, you cannot just camp anywhere. 

 

Not knowing what to do, we started driving.  Around sunset, my wife saw a sign that said, Navajo National Monument 9 miles, camping.  It was the best thing we had seen so we took a chance. When we got there, it turned out the campground was full.  Francis, with more courage than me, decided to ask someone if we could share their spot.  I will never forget his reply.

 

"It would be OK with me but I don't think the Rangers would like it.  Have you tried the Overflow campground?"

 

It turned out, there was a second campground, the Canyon View, but for whatever reason, the critical sign needed to get there was missing, you had to know about it.  And so, what had been a moment of desperation was transformed into a glorious moment of relief and discovery.  Some photos:

 

The nearby Sunset campground:

 

 

 

A view of Tsegi canyon:

 

.....

 

Jon

 

 

 

I especially like the story of the Canyon View happenstance,

These are the kinds of things that happen when you just decide to follow your nose

even under the duress of extenuating circumstances.

 

In mixing a life spent in both stargazing and in travelling around in my ever changing selection

of antique trucks and cars I often see myself half ascii stranded in the middle of nowhere

with some sort of persistent car trouble and the day getting long.

 

In the case of driving old trucks across country a person must always be prepared

with a selection of tools and small parts tucked away behind the seat..

 

The thing is my old trucks have often given me a little grief on long hot days

but never have they failed to eventually get me home, only to delay the trip

and or take me off course.

 

These trips always seem to turn into once in a lifetime

experiences that I wouldn't give up for anything.

 

..Go out, hit the road, if the going gets tough, just follow your nose, take it all in while enjoying the fruit of your labour, steaming radiator be dammed

 

Between this truck (highly modified 52 chevrolly) and my 34,000 mile 49 Mercury, I have laid waste to many a mile and winding dirt road often to

be left out in the dark with a non charging battery or in one instance in the 49 merc, a good condenser gone bad as sunset ruled the nest on a lonely highway in 21.90 territory.

(These trucks are survivors)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A 1949 MERCURY M-47 CANUCK TRUCK WEARS ITS HISTORY

 

 

(that's me in the link to this article with the windex bottle behind my back after making it to a car show that was a good 3 hours away and after arriving with a steaming radiator)...

 

https://mystarcollec...rs-its-history/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A 1949 MERCURY M-47 CANUCK TRUCK WEARS ITS HISTORY

 

https://mystarcollec...rs-its-history/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 49 mercury gets around and is getting fair well known having had her picture taken many times for magazines and articles (and on the net) as well as the years and thousands of miles visiting out of the way places, plus it joined my white over burgundy 68 Mercury 1/2 ton in creating the the original wikipedia article for Mercury M Series Trucks (some years back) as there was no wikipedia article regarding Canadian Only Mercury Trucks Division way back then.

 

https://en.wikipedia...ercury_M-Series

 

 

 

Through all the miles and all the winding roads,

The good thing is I always made it home and sometimes even enjoyed an unscheduled sleep over sometimes under clear well settled skies

 

And as I'm more of a naked eye observer during these all night twilite northern nights, the best views are always just me broke down somewhere in the dark using a bic lighter to diagnose the lack of   motor no go  conditions

I wouldn't change things for the world

 

cheers,

 

moe

 

 

.

Edited by moefuzz, 01 July 2025 - 10:12 PM.

[photoracer18]

We’ve been thinking about going camping up in Conejos Canyon, looks like beautiful country.

I had many memories of trout fishing on the Conejos and also at Chama in New Mexico. No matter where my dad was stationed at we always found either good streams and rivers or lakes to fish at. By the time he retired we had accumulated both a 15' Terry camping trailer and a 14' aluminum boat and Evenrude motor. Colorado stocks brown and rainbow trout in the Conejos mostly because a lot of Texans come up or did come up in those summer days to fish. but if you have a boat or you can hire someone, the headwaters above the reservoir have native cutthroat trout.

[Jon Isaacs]

 

 

In mixing a life spent in both stargazing and in travelling around in my ever changing selection

of antique trucks and cars I often see myself half ascii stranded in the middle of nowhere

with some sort of persistent car trouble and the day getting long.

 

Moe:

 

Your photos and stories of traveling around in your old trucks are great... It makes out 1986 Motor home seem modern.

 

In the 1960's, I was a teenager and we would vacation in Baja. The roads were dirt and it take 3 days just to get to our spot. We had a 1954 Willy's station wagon with a 327 and a 1951 Willy Pickup with a Ford 292. Both 4wd.

 

The skies were very dark..

 

A 17 year old Jon, driving the station wagon on a hunt for firewood spotted at large dead tree..

 

After three good yanks with a chain, it broke.. Not the tree, the rear axle shaft..

 

My dad was so happy..

 

Jon

[PYeomans]

My favorite sites (2) are both easily accessible places overlooking the Slickrock Wilderness and the Great Smoky Mountains. Hooper's Bald in Slickrock has unimpeded views and a restroom that can come in handy, 90minute drive. The other is much closer, ten miles from the house on the Foothills Parkway. Both are located on high ridges with no appreciable light domes in sight. Only problems are occasional drunks, Russian wild boar, and bears- prepared for all 3. 

[ngc6352]

About an hour east of Boise. Great site except for some ridges/trees.

 

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[ausastronomer]

This isn’t a post to reveal specific locations or anything like that, but more about sharing what makes your part of the astronomical universe special.

I’ll start with mine. I have to drive 1.5 hours away from the city and it’s probably bortle 4 at the very best, but small price to pay to get away from a blinding white zone to finally seeing the Milky Way.

It’s located next to a marsh, so the summers can get extremely buggy, but everything else about this spot is perfect. It’s just a small parking pad in the middle of a deserted field. There are next to no trees on any horizon except reaching at most 10 degrees up, and it’s off an old dirt road that nobody uses. There is no ambient light at all, except for a red cell tower beacon. It took weeks of google earth scouring to find it! It’s great being alone under the stars out here, that’s for sure.

Well I'm going to throw a bit of a spanner in the works here !

 

I think you're going about this a little bit wrong.

 

If the darkest skies that you can find within reasonable proximity are only Bortle 3,4 or 5 or thereabouts, I think you are way better off looking for an area that is enclosed and ringed by trees and or hills, rather than an open flat area. Under Bortle 1 or 2 skies low light domes don't exist and you want a nice low horizon, to aim lower down when necessary.  When I've observed from Bortle 3 or 4 locations, I've always preferred to observe from areas like camping grounds (about the size of a small football field) that are hidden in bushland and ringed by trees.  The trees block out the low light domes and make the overhead skies appear somewhat darker and also help to preserve your night vision.  You give up lower down sky access, but the increase in overhead sky darkness and contrast more than makes up for the few targets you miss out on!

Cheers

Edited by ausastronomer, 05 July 2025 - 11:53 PM.

[ausastronomer]

My preferred observing location is under Bortle 1 skies in a domed slit observatory, wherever that may be !

I used to do quite a bit of observing in the Northern Hunter Valley in a 5 metre dome, which housed a 16"/F4.5 dob.  The domed observatory adds .5 magnitude to your ability to see deep, due to better dark adaption, even compared to a roll off roof observatory.

Outside any Bortle 1 domed observatory, I used to love observing from Timor Cottages at Coonabarabran. It was an exceptional observing location with modern facilities less than a 20 minute drive away. Mount Kaputah is an exceptional observing location, but slightly less accessible and more remote.  Unfortunately, both of the cottages at Timor Cottages burnt to the ground in the 2013 bushfires.

Cheers

[lanndonkane]

Well I'm going to throw a bit of a spanner in the works here !

I think you're going about this a little bit wrong.

If the darkest skies that you can find within reasonable proximity are only Bortle 3,4 or 5 or thereabouts, I think you are way better off looking for an area that is enclosed and ringed by trees and or hills, rather than an open flat area. Under Bortle 1 or 2 skies low light domes don't exist and you want a nice low horizon, to aim lower down when necessary. When I've observed from Bortle 3 or 4 locations, I've always preferred to observe from areas like camping grounds (about the size of a small football field) that are hidden in bushland and ringed by trees. The trees block out the low light domes and make the overhead skies appear somewhat darker and also help to preserve your night vision. You give up lower down sky access, but the increase in overhead sky darkness and contrast more than makes up for the few targets you miss out on!

Cheers

I think this makes a lot of sense. Sometimes it’s nice to get a big open view of the sky and have access to a lot of area.

But I’ve got a bunch of nice locations scoped out with more trees as described, and I’ll give them a go!

[SubaruB4]

I'm going to have to start looking for more sites soon, on July 4th It wasn't too bad but I had a person who thought it was funny, and this is the 2nd time I've had a person do this, they will back up and have their headlights pointed towards my scope for maybe 25-30 seconds, and just leave.. however this person thought it was cool to do donuts in his suv  (dirt and rocks) none of which effected me or my scope but I understand why people say the things you have to watch out for are people with two legs.