by Paul LeFevre
The weather wasn't the best ever, the seeing wasn't the best ever, and I didn't do a Messier Marathon...but I had a wonderful weeked at Dinosaur Point!
Friday was the big-crowd night...and it was great to see the gang again. Bear hugs from Rashad, steak and potatoes with Mark, apo-comparisons with Richard, last-minute scope fixes with Phil; Albert, Jim, Pete, Bruce, Denny, and a host of others all made the trip and made it a great night.
Seeing was quite soft on Friday, and the wind a constant impediment to astrophotography/CCD imaging. I may have gotten one good film shot -- I'll know later today when the film comes back. I spent the bulk of my own observing time doing a drift alignment (which takes on a whole new meaning in 15-20 mph wind gusts) and trying to get some film shots autoguided...meanwhile I shared views with Phil and Rashad. The crowd broke up around 11:30 or so when the fog started to come in and ruin the already mediocre views. Not much astronomy, but wonderful company!
Those who let the weather forecasts keep them at home Saturday night missed out on some real fun at Dino. I arrived early (about 2:30 PM) to an intense blue sky, and despite a few boaters in the lot managed to nap for a couple of hours. Jamie showed up just after sunset with Liam in tow, and a fine garlic pizza to share. This time I set up in the lee of the hill on the west side of the lot, to shield myself from the wind. It mostly worked, and only the strongest gusts got to my setup (though the wind on average was much less intense than Friday night).
There were clouds, make no mistake, but lots and lots of long-lasting holes to look through. Many more stars visible than on Friday night, and the seeing seemed better as well. None of that mushy moisture that made the views so soft on Friday.
I had my 10" LX200 set up for CCD work, Jamie had Felix the 11" dob out, and Lucy, Jamie's 90mm Short-tube, was doing duty as a wide-field quick-peek scope. I was shooting galaxies in Leo, while Jamie was chasing down targets in Canis Major, the bowl of the Dipper, and some Leo treats as well. I had a great time showing Liam how CCD imaging was done, and managed a good shot of M96 that showed Jamie and Liam structure they hadn't seen visually. The parking lot was a bit empty with just the two of us set up at the western end, but we interspersed observing and imaging with good talk and Jamie's coffee-milk. One of the oddity highlights of the evening for me was stepping on a rabbit around 11:00 PM, as the little guy had parked himself near the back wheel of my car to apparently munch on part of a cookie I must have dropped...startled both of us :)
Fatigue and the prospect of a long drive home got the best of me around midnight, and we packed up quickly and headed out. I hit Tejon Pass (the summit near Gorman on I-5) around 3:15 AM, and got out to stretch and dispose of some used coffee...Scorpius was riding high in the South, and conditions looked great there. I might just try Mt. Pinos one of these days, it's quite dark when the fog covers the LA valley. I pulled into my garage at home at 6:02 AM, tired but quite satisfied. Some fun indeed.
Most folks here at work think I'm nuts for turning down a plane ticket and driving up/back to San Jose for this trip. I suppose I probably am...but two nights out with my old pals, some of which came to Dino despite poor conditions just to say hello, were worth much more than 12 hours of sore buttocks. Nights out under the stars with you big dogs are priceless...a hearty WOOF as thanks for coming out and making me still feel at home.