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Camping While On The Road

Jean W,

Thanks for the tip about the roads. I'd hate to to be leaving undercarriage hardware strung out all over the desert. I guess the secret is to avoid county highways/roads.

Hutch
 
Jean,
That's one of my biggest fears - size we aren't high-riding. We have street level and a mini-van, so we won't venture too far off the beatn path if any.

Leo,
Bill has a brand new telescope I got him for Christmas and we'll be taking it along for those type trips - can't wait to see the joy on his face - we helped put the first man on the moon and so start gazing is something he especially likes to do.
 
A telescope is an excellent toy to take along on desert trips. We have a vacation place in the northern Jemez Mountains here in New Mexico and a telescope was one of my first gifts, once we pick up our teardrop in early spring it will become a must have, along with a good set of binoculars. When you look at one of those light maps taken from a satellite of North America you will notice that large areas of the desert are dark areas, that makes star gazing very productive and rewarding. Besides the low humidity the lack of ambient light pollution from nearby population centers is also very helpful.

If you happen to be in the desert or high country in August, don't forget the Perseid Meteor Shower, I remember one year while in the high Sierra Nevada Mountains of California where it actually rivaled a 4th of July fireworks display.

Bill and Linda, how is it that all the guys I know who served can forget birthdays, anniversaries, but never our discharge date. I am a graduate of the 25th Infantry Div. AKA The Electric Strawberry, Tet Class of 68. Discharge date 3/15/70. Congrats on your purchase.
 
Leo,
Thanks! I think a guys sign up and discharge dates are sorta like a mother giving birth - she never forgets her kids birthdays and it's sort of a birthdate for guys too - the birth of a man.

Bill worked for Lockheed/Martin at NASA for almost 33 yrs. and he's a star gazer from way back. I got him a NEWER telescope for Christmas but he hasn't had much chance to use it yet. That Raindrop's sure gonna come in handy to help us get out to use it better.

I understand the desert - we lived in Alamagordo, NM the first 4 mos. after we married and the stars outside Alamo were awesome!
 
Leo,

I have a great set of binoculars I'll have along. If I weigh the purchase of a good telescope vs. a 2000 watt Honda generator, I believe the generator is going to win out. I can appreciate the benefits of having a good telescope though.

Regarding the Perseid meteor shower in August, I will likely be in Canada or perhaps Glacier in Montana. I can probably find a nice high vantage point there for meteor shower gazing. Thanks for another good event to put on my calendar.

Hutch
 
Hutch,

Glacier Or The Canadian Rockies should be very good. My brother lives on the BC side of the Rockies opposite Banf and he also has great skies. I agree on the generator v/s telescope arguenment, especially if you already have a good pair of binoculars. When you are in Glacier ask the campground host at St. Marys about the campsite know as the Golden Staircase. A lot of the parks grizzly bears come down from higher elevations through that campsite. It's an exciting show, especially when your in a tent like we were. We were assured by the ranger that these bears were vegetarian. Ja sure.
 
Jean,
Very good advice, and that is when the roads are dry. If you travel in the summer those 4WD tracks will turn very slick with the afternoon thunder showers. The composition of the roadbed is adobe clay which sticks to everything including tires. You may start out with a 14 inch tire, but after a couple of miles you will end up with a 26 inch tire. Stick to the pavement or a well graveled road and you will be ok.
Leo
 
My best meteor shower experience was about 10 years ago when all my brothers and I were still at home (6 of us). We camped out at a small lake near Cushman on the Olympic Peninsula in August. The three oldest of us decided to spend the night by putting our sleeping bags in the inflatable Tahiti kayaks and tying them off to shore with 100' of rope. Laying there in the middle of the lake looking up at the stars, we saw the most incredible meteors I had ever seen. It looked like someone was drawing on the sky with a silver pencil - about every 2 seconds. I found out later that it was the peak night of the Perseid shower. That's an experience that will probably never happen again, as my wife has no intention of letting me sleep in a kayak. :)
 
Evan if your wife is like mine she probably told you that the next time she would be tempted to cut the rope. We once climbed to the top of a mesa that had a 1000' sheer drop on one side I sat down on the edge and let my legs dangle over the abyss, I still hear about that every time I look at a shear rock face.
Leo
 
Hutch
Since you will be traveling to Glacier I almost forgot to tell you about a must stop place for pie. In St. Mary which is a little town at the eastern side of the park there is a restaurant that makes the best pies in the world. The friend who told me about it would actually detour 100 miles one way to stop there. On our way to Glacier we naturally had to stop, I gazed, and then I ate not one but two pieces. During the 4 days we were in Glacier our breakfast consisted of a ride into town to have a piece of that pie, actually I'm lying to you, my wife had one piece I had two. You can't miss it, its the only place to eat in town. Due to the high demand, pies are coming out of the oven all day long. Hot wild berry pie with a tall glass of cold milk is about as good as it gets.
 
Well Leo... St. Mary's and hot wild berry pie with a cold glass of milk has now been added to my "To Do" list. I will be sure to go there while in Glacier. That's quite a testimonial about a place when your friend would drive a 100 miles out of the way just for the pie!! Another great tip. Thanks!

Bear... I'll be in Death Valley for the star gazing too. Leo already has me psyched up about the star gazing in New Mexico, now I have Death Valley to look forward to as well.

Thanks to you both.

Hutch
 
The next Perseid meteor shower event is scheduled for the night of August 13,2011. Unfortunately the moon will also be full on that date which means the light of the moon will obstruct faint meteors. Best viewing time is usually after midnight looking towards the northeast. Typically you will see an increase in meteor activity starting about 2 weeks before the actual event and then wane for about 2 weeks after.
 
Hutch said:
Bear... I'll be in Death Valley for the star gazing too. Leo already has me psyched up about the star gazing in New Mexico, now I have Death Valley to look forward to as well.
Click to expand...

I was in Death Valley end of January for one day. Very neat place, huge. I would recommend staying in Death valley because of the distances between towns and geological features.

A friend and I watched the sunrise on the sand dunes, which is an experience strongly recommended. The silence is wonderful, then if a person listens carefully you will hear the very faint sound of moving sand in the gentle breezes.

Bewarded gas is expensive in Death Valley. One place in Furnace Creek charges close to $4.50. We found gas around $3.60 at Stovepipe Wells.

Time to go to work!!

Jean
 
Hutch,

Addendum to the Glacier Pie stop:

The name of the cafe is "The Park Cafe" located in St. Mary's their motto is "Pie For Strength". Need I say more.
Leo
 
Jean W.

Death Valley sounds like a very tranquil, peaceful location. I'm looking forward to it.

Can you recommend a campground there?

Thanks for the tip on gas prices. I'll try to be filled up going in. However, the way gas prices are climbing lately, no telling what they'll be when I get there. My fuel cost estimates for this trip have already been totally blown from what I had projected last August.

Hope you had a good day at work.

Hutch
 
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