How far would you drive?

[PeterW]

Don't drive, hav to use kit that allow me to see faint stuff from my light polluted backyard. Only takes scones from quitting to sleeping and I can always go in and make a cup of tea.. Here are some advantages!

Cheers

PeterW

[Starfisher]

i'm just taking my thermobottle filled with coffee with me as some candy stuff. and a sleepbag. also a mini breakfast. in case i'm to tired to drive i can stay at place , sleeping in my car having my breakfast and driving than safely home without sacrificing valuable time under the stars

[Stub Mandrel]

i'm just taking my thermobottle filled with coffee with me as some candy stuff. and a sleepbag. also a mini breakfast. in case i'm to tired to drive i can stay at place , sleeping in my car having my breakfast and driving than safely home without sacrificing valuable time under the stars

When I went off to watch the Perseids I got home and my steplad had locked me out by mistake. I didn't want to wake up anyone else and he wasn't answering his phone   so night in the car...

[Starfisher]

sounds familliar in the time when i lived with my parrents

[Tuda78]

Most of my observing is from my back garden. Living in northumberland i try to get over to keilder as much as possible, but work and weather means that doesnt happen any where near as much as I would like. Its about a two hour drive from my house and I made it over four times this year, I camp when I go.

[trogre]

 I do a lot of metal detecting and therefore go onto a lot of farms in the UK. When I finally get up & going I will approach a farmer to ask permission if I can set up in one of his fields.

I will take along my telescope to show that I am genuine. For detecting they never want payment but at end of year around Xmas always give him a bottle or 2 of his favourite drink.

 

True a lot of fields will be in crop but my experience is they always have land that is not being used and normally there is a flat bit of land. I would say grass land would be the best as far as flatness is concerned but not best for dew. Again, all farms have a hard surface area and not all of them are visible from lights of house, this would be ideal for setting up gear. Farmers are normally quite accommodating as long as you use the right approach and even invite him to have a look through the telescope.

Normally the skies are very dark and would be perfect without driving a long way. Some farms are in valleys so to speak and the glow from a town is not easily seen. At least you will have experienced a dark sky and if not right for you try another farm or then drive to a truly dark site.

 

If you were going down this route a little drive around into the villages and try to find a spot which might suit and then approach the farmer,just a thought

[Stub Mandrel]

I've found a one-car layby  next to a grassland nature reserve with open access. Looks promising.

[Matt Scunthorpe]

I pride myself on not being afraid of the dark, but after several hours watching Perseids in a place where the only artificial lights were on aircraft a tawny owl let out an horrific screech somewhere in the same field as me. Very scary until I realised it wasn't a human noise!

Haha I bet! I always say that it isn't the animals you need to be afraid of, its the humans...

Matt.