Exotic observing locations

Though it has been more than twenty years ago, I will never forget the
night I took my scope to observe from a remote corner of the parking lot of
Paradise Lodge on Mt. Rainier in the northwest corner of the United States.

I had spent a few nights before at the lodge and knew that the parking lot
emptied out of most all tourists as darkness approached and the guests of
the lodge and park rangers were all that remained. At about a mile in
elevation and far away from significant light pollution, it is dark and
seeing is favorable when cloudfree skies prevail.

I don't really remember what I observed that night. It was the trip and
the location that I will not forget. Very spur of the moment. Just asked
my wife if she wanted to go and off we went less than 30 minutes later. On
the way down, sometime after midnight, there were deer in the road so
caution was the rule.

Though I have often wanted to repeat the experience, I never have. Perhaps
someday I will but if I do not, I only have to close my eyes and hit the
memory button on my brain to relive it again and again.


--
Martin R. Howell
"Photographs From the Universe of Amateur Astronomy"
http://members.isp.com/universeofama...nomy%40isp.com

Martin R. Howell wrote:

Though it has been more than twenty years ago,
I will never forget the night I took my scope
to observe from a remote corner of the parking
lot of Paradise Lodge on Mt. Rainier in the
northwest corner of the United States.

Just goes to show, in the words of Kipling, that "the
wildest dreams of Kew ... are the facts of Kathmandu."

To anybody living in the American West, a National Park
parking lot is just about the most obvious place to pursue
astronomy. Not could be less exotic.

For me, the most exotic night was exploring the southern
sky from Tres Cruces National Park in Chile next to a
salt lake covered with flamingos, 12,000 feet above sea
and 50 miles from the nearest electric light. Second most
exotic was attempting to observe the Leonids from Jim
Corbett Tiger Reserve in the Himalayas. I didn't see
many meteors, but I saw *lots* of eyes reflecting the
porch light of my bungalow. Alas, one's not allowed to
stray from the lighted areas at night in the Tiger
Reserve, and for once in my life, I saw good reason to
obey the rules.

- Tony Flanders

My most exotic was the Swiss Alps, on a summer camping trip.
We were just lying on our backs on the grass at night
when a meteor storm happened. This was during my teenage years.
I wasn't counting, and can't remember the exact date (I think it
was August 1971), but my memory has them coming faster than
1/second. Perhaps the prettiest thing I've ever seen in the sky.

--
Glenn Holliday

Glenn Holliday wrote:
My most exotic was the Swiss Alps, on a summer camping trip.
We were just lying on our backs on the grass at night
when a meteor storm happened. This was during my teenage years.
I wasn't counting, and can't remember the exact date (I think it
was August 1971), but my memory has them coming faster than
1/second. Perhaps the prettiest thing I've ever seen in the sky.



Sounds incredible. Sometimes the passage of time can enhance a memory
but I don't think it did so here to you. I believe it was every bit as
special as you describe it and to have had the wonder of it fall in your
formative teenage years is even better.

My dictionary defines exotic as being or from or characteristic of
another place or part of the world and my trip up on Mt. Rainier offered
me as close of experience to your Swiss Alps sojourn as this poor boy is
ever likely to have. Thanks for sharing.

--
Martin R. Howell
"Photographs From the Universe of Amateur Astronomy"
http://members.isp.com/universeofama...nomy%40isp.com