La Palma here I come! Looking for advice and tips.

[Mark_D]

Hey guys, I'm very excited! We've just booked a week in La Palma in October. Does anybody who's visited have any tips or sage advice to offer a La Palma virgin? We're staying in Puntagorda in the NW of the island. I'll be taking my AM5 with a William Optics GT-81 (who needs clothes eh!) along with a mirrorless camera and wide lens.

I'll be there with my girlfriend who will definitely have some choice words for me if I try to convince her to go to the top of the volcano every night. So I'm hoping to be able to set the scope up outside our villa on evenings that we're going out to do couple things and just let it run, weather permitting!

Questions:

• Are there any places I should go or things we should do that really shouldn't be missed? Day or night. It looks like the volcano route trail hike is incredible and I'm 100% going to visit the telescopes.
• I'm based in the UK. Are there any DSO targets which I might be able to shoot in La Palma which wouldn't be visible from the UK? Yes I am going to do my own research on this one, but any inspiration welcome!
• This one's a long shot, but for the one or two nights I do manage to drive up the volcano for astrophotography sessions, are there any companies on the island who offer equipment rentals? I'd be interested in renting a power bank because I'm not keen on the idea of powering everything from the hire car's battery in case I end up stranding myself at the top of a mountain 😆

Thanks in advance!

[Annehouw]

For rentals look here: http://www.athos.org/

I have been there a number of times. Wind can be strong on top of the Roque de los Muchachos, so bring warm clothes. You might try the parking lot of the visitor centre to find some shelter from the wind. 

[Mark_D]

Thanks very much for the info. I fully intend to pack some cold weather gear. In fact I'll probably end up wearing it all on the plane because I won't have enough room to pack it! 😄

[kirkster501]

My counsel and my experience with foriegn astro and girlfriends and I accept that YMMV:  there's a time and a place for everything.  Don't ruin your holiday and upset her on the basis of some astronomy when you are meant to be on holiday with her.  I just pack a pair of bins and do some wide angle stuff with a camera on a regular tripod and fast exposures    Now then, if in your case she is fully supportive then happy days.  But if she shows pushback then I'd counsel caution.  I limit myself to using the bins or my camera on the balcony whilst she is getting ready (hours 😂).

I also want to do dark skies astro in a southern locale and will do so on my own or with astro minded buddies when she has a girly weekend. 

[Mr Magoo]

I spent three weeks hiking in La Palma last year. It is a very steep island, everywhere, even short walks can be a challenge. I stayed in Garafia in the north of the island, which is mainly rural with rugged terrain.

My desire to go to La Palma stemmed from the many reports and videos about the amazing night skies. I'm a visual observer, no astrophotography. I took good 10x42 binoculars for the night sky and nature, plus a mirrorless camera and one do-it-all zoom lens. It was very tempting to take a small scope, but not at all practical. Personally, I didn't want to be weighed down with astro gear while travelling.

For first few nights I was out into the early hours scanning the Milky Way, and it was amazing, dark skies, thousands of stars blazing away in every direction. But I wanted the gear I had at home to do the night sky justice. 10x50 1.5kg Fujinon astro bins, 7 inch Mak, a large dob, 100mm Tak, filters for nebula. I knew what was up there but didn't have the tools. It was somewhat frustrating.

My visual astronomy took a backseat. I decided to focus on enjoying the rugged terrain, pine forests,  people, places, and a well earned sleep at night after hiking all day. 

As you plan to visit the telescopes at Roque de los Muchachos, take sunscreen and a wide brim hat with a chin strap. There are strict light pollution rules in force around the observatories and approach, you will need to check for night time visits by car.  Two visits in a week would dominate your 1 week holiday I feel.  

If you plan to hike the volcano route trail be advised it is totally exposed, sun and wind. If you are not accustomed to mountain trekking, don't try it. I did most of my trekking in the treeline.

For hire gear, I would check for places in Santa Cruz.                         

[clarkpm4242]

You will need to check how to get to these locations during the day!  Above cloud inversion.

Almost directly up the volcano from Puntagorda.

Top (same elevation as the GTC)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/URogwj8TQpMGqVRH9

Part way

https://maps.app.goo.gl/ubptyp8cZitXttkx6

Good luck, Paul.

 

[Simon Pepper]

This is a great idea apart from the WAG part lol! I’ll go and inform the Mrs I am off to La Palma! 

[Mark_D]

8 hours ago, kirkster501 said:

My counsel and my experience with foriegn astro and girlfriends and I accept that YMMV:  there's a time and a place for everything.  Don't ruin your holiday and upset her on the basis of some astronomy when you are meant to be on holiday with her.  I just pack a pair of bins and do some wide angle stuff with a camera on a regular tripod and fast exposures    Now then, if in your case she is fully supportive then happy days.  But if she shows pushback then I'd counsel caution.  I limit myself to using the bins or my camera on the balcony whilst she is getting ready (hours 😂).

I also want to do dark skies astro in a southern locale and will do so on my own or with astro minded buddies when she has a girly weekend. 

Thankfully my mileage does vary. My other half is extremely supportive and fully up for coming along on the astro adventures I plan. I don't want to be selfish though! Going to one of the best places in the world for astrophotography naturally means that I'd absolutely love to spend every waking moment making the most of that side of the island. I'm not going to do that though because she deserves to enjoy herself too. That's why I'm hoping to be able to set my equipment up outside our private villa and let it do its thing automatically while we go out to bars/restaurants. So many photos I've seen from La Palma show a cloud inversion taken by people at higher altitudes though, so I'm worried that the evenings might generally be pretty cloudy unless we make an effort to get above it all. What will be will be though! I'm not going to stress about it because it would ruin the enjoyment of our holiday 🙂

 

6 hours ago, Mr Magoo said:

I spent three weeks hiking in La Palma last year. It is a very steep island, everywhere, even short walks can be a challenge. I stayed in Garafia in the north of the island, which is mainly rural with rugged terrain.

My desire to go to La Palma stemmed from the many reports and videos about the amazing night skies. I'm a visual observer, no astrophotography. I took good 10x42 binoculars for the night sky and nature, plus a mirrorless camera and one do-it-all zoom lens. It was very tempting to take a small scope, but not at all practical. Personally, I didn't want to be weighed down with astro gear while travelling.

For first few nights I was out into the early hours scanning the Milky Way, and it was amazing, dark skies, thousands of stars blazing away in every direction. But I wanted the gear I had at home to do the night sky justice. 10x50 1.5kg Fujinon astro bins, 7 inch Mak, a large dob, 100mm Tak, filters for nebula. I knew what was up there but didn't have the tools. It was somewhat frustrating.

My visual astronomy took a backseat. I decided to focus on enjoying the rugged terrain, pine forests,  people, places, and a well earned sleep at night after hiking all day. 

As you plan to visit the telescopes at Roque de los Muchachos, take sunscreen and a wide brim hat with a chin strap. There are strict light pollution rules in force around the observatories and approach, you will need to check for night time visits by car.  Two visits in a week would dominate your 1 week holiday I feel.  

If you plan to hike the volcano route trail be advised it is totally exposed, sun and wind. If you are not accustomed to mountain trekking, don't try it. I did most of my trekking in the treeline.

For hire gear, I would check for places in Santa Cruz.                         

This is great info, thanks very much! We're both pretty seasoned mountain hikers thankfully, so really looking forward to a lot of the trails on the island. Thanks for stressing the need for cold/sun protection.

 

4 hours ago, clarkpm4242 said:

You will need to check how to get to these locations during the day!  Above cloud inversion.

Almost directly up the volcano from Puntagorda.

Top (same elevation as the GTC)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/URogwj8TQpMGqVRH9

Part way

https://maps.app.goo.gl/ubptyp8cZitXttkx6

Good luck, Paul.

 

I'll check both of them out, thanks!

 

4 hours ago, Simon Pepper said:

This is a great idea apart from the WAG part lol! I’ll go and inform the Mrs I am off to La Palma! 

I'm sure she'll be entirely supportive of you buggering off on your own! 🤣