On Wednesday night I had arranged to take the scope over to a friend's house, deep in the beautiful, dark countryside so show her and her dad the night sky. Everything was packed up in boxes and off I went. Only to arrive 20 minutes later without the tripod and mount! Grrr!

A swift journey home and back again ensued and while there was still some light int he sky, I managed to set up in the back garden, cerfully positioning the scope so the only streetlamp for miles around was obscured by a thick bush. (In any case, it's one of the thoughtful streetlamps that only shines downwards).

I decided to line up on the moon and tour a few sights before ending on Saturn, which they had both expressed an interest in viewing.

I was really pleased by the "wows" coming from the observers as they took their turns. I changed eyepieces to increase the magnification and the "wows" increased. Even the dog was impressed, although he wasn't quite sure what he was impressed about - it just felt right to him.

We ended up looking at Saturn and Titan - with a clear view and no turbulence. Only a wisp of high altitude, thin cloud spoiled the end of the session.

It felt great to be able to share the same sensation I felt when first looking through my telescope.