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Date: 21 Aug 2006 10:44:17
From: Thomas A. Fine
Subject: Good site near North Conway, New Hampshire?
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Hi,
I don't get many opportunities to show my five-year-old son the night
sky, because it's late in the summer and cold in the winter, and we
live in very light-polluted Cambridge, MA.
This coming weekend we'll be up in the White Mountains, staying in
North Conway, New Hampshire, and if the weather cooperates we'll take a
look up. We'll just be using our eyes and binoculars. I want a
site that's close to North Conway but still very dark and with a
wide-open view of the sky.
I remember there were some terrific scenic overlooks on the Kancamangus,
but as I recall they're not terribly close to North Conway. Is there a
closer choice that would be as good?
tom
P.S. Two years of work and nobody thought to Google the word "plutons"?
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Date: 21 Aug 2006 09:27:45
From: Tim Killian
Subject: Re: Good site near North Conway, New Hampshire?
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Thomas A. Fine wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I don't get many opportunities to show my five-year-old son the night
> sky, because it's late in the summer and cold in the winter, and we
> live in very light-polluted Cambridge, MA.
>
> This coming weekend we'll be up in the White Mountains, staying in
> North Conway, New Hampshire, and if the weather cooperates we'll take a
> look up. We'll just be using our eyes and binoculars. I want a
> site that's close to North Conway but still very dark and with a
> wide-open view of the sky.
>
> I remember there were some terrific scenic overlooks on the Kancamangus,
> but as I recall they're not terribly close to North Conway. Is there a
> closer choice that would be as good?
>
> tom
>
> P.S. Two years of work and nobody thought to Google the word "plutons"?
>
Sounds like a fun evening. You might reconsider viewing from a very dark
site though because the number of stars visible will be overwhelming and
pointing out constellations might be difficult. In our club's public
viewing sessions it seems small children are fascinated by very simple
things like craters on the Moon, the rings of Saturn, or finding the Big
Dipper, and their interest wanes if we try to observe or explain more
complex objects. Green laser pointers are good for adult groups but
small children tend to be more interested in the pointer than the
objects in the sky, so the pointer becomes more of a distraction than a
tool.
One teacher we worked with had students draw pictures of constellations
and to finish the assignment they had to find them in the night sky.
Your son might be a little young for that but it's worth a try.
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Date: 21 Aug 2006 08:09:40
From:
Subject: Re: Good site near North Conway, New Hampshire?
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Thomas A. Fine wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I don't get many opportunities to show my five-year-old son the night
> sky, because it's late in the summer and cold in the winter, and we
> live in very light-polluted Cambridge, MA.
>
> This coming weekend we'll be up in the White Mountains, staying in
> North Conway, New Hampshire, and if the weather cooperates we'll take a
> look up. We'll just be using our eyes and binoculars. I want a
> site that's close to North Conway but still very dark and with a
> wide-open view of the sky.
>
> I remember there were some terrific scenic overlooks on the Kancamangus,
> but as I recall they're not terribly close to North Conway. Is there a
> closer choice that would be as good?
>
> tom
North Conway itself is the major source of light pollution in the
region,
so you won't find dark skies until you get some distance away from it.
Though truth be told, even in the heart of North Conway, skies are dark
compared to Cambridge.
The real problem is finding a big clearing that doesn't have any nearby
lights. Probably the easiest thing would be to head up Rt. 16 past
Jackson, and find a pulloff off the main highway. There are some
extremely scenic ones as you approach Pinkham Notch. Unfortunately,
you'll have to contend with lots of headlights from passing cars. And
the
state police might stop to question you, as they're rather touchy
about enforcing the no-camping rule. No harm done -- they're quite
polite -- but there goes your dark adaptation. There are a few
trailheads where you can park without attracting any attention at all,
though the clearings aren't quite as big there.
Closer to North Conway, you might try West Side Road. Again,
though, there's tons of traffic.
If you don't have motel reservations yet, I know a nice place in
Bartlet
with a large, completely unlit beach backing onto the Saco River. I
saw the best Northern Lights of my life there.
- Tony Flanders
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Date: 22 Aug 2006 14:18:22
From: bob
Subject: Re: Good site near North Conway, New Hampshire?
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<tony_flanders@yahoo.com > wrote in message
news:1156172980.344581.317480@74g2000cwt.googlegroups.com...
> Thomas A. Fine wrote:
>
> >
> > This coming weekend we'll be up in the White Mountains, staying in
> > North Conway, New Hampshire, and if the weather cooperates we'll take a
> > look up. We'll just be using our eyes and binoculars. I want a
> > site that's close to North Conway but still very dark and with a
> > wide-open view of the sky.
> >
> > tom
>
>
> The real problem is finding a big clearing that doesn't have any nearby
> lights. Probably the easiest thing would be to head up Rt. 16 past
> Jackson, and find a pulloff off the main highway. There are some
> extremely scenic ones as you approach Pinkham Notch. Unfortunately,
> you'll have to contend with lots of headlights from passing cars. And
> the
> state police might stop to question you, as they're rather touchy
> about enforcing the no-camping rule. No harm done -- they're quite
> polite -- but there goes your dark adaptation. There are a few
> trailheads where you can park without attracting any attention at all,
> though the clearings aren't quite as big there.
>
You might want to try Dolly Copp Campground, which is just a couple of miles
North of the Pinkham Notch visitor center. There is a group camping area
there, which is basically a wide open field. It's not a huge area, and the
horizon will be cut off by trees, but the overhead view is quite vast. As
mentioned, you will have to contend with headlights, but it's still a really
good place to observe, and there won't be much traffic going in and out.
I've used the spot on several occasions, and it's pretty damn dark. I seem
to recall there may also be a day-use area a bit South of there, alos on the
16. If you can convince the local authorities, they may not mind you setting
up there for a few hours after dark.
--
Bob
Travel and Astronomy Photos
http://www3.sympatico.ca/bomo
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Date: 22 Aug 2006 03:34:54
From: Jake
Subject: Re: Good site near North Conway, New Hampshire?
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Never been there, but this looks promising:
http://cleardarksky.com/lp/MtWshntnObNHlp.html?Mn=astronomical
"Thomas A. Fine" <fine@head-cfa.harvard.edu > wrote in message
news:44e9c6c1$1@cfanews.cfa.harvard.edu...
> Hi,
>
> I don't get many opportunities to show my five-year-old son the night
> sky, because it's late in the summer and cold in the winter, and we
> live in very light-polluted Cambridge, MA.
>
> This coming weekend we'll be up in the White Mountains, staying in
> North Conway, New Hampshire, and if the weather cooperates we'll take a
> look up. We'll just be using our eyes and binoculars. I want a
> site that's close to North Conway but still very dark and with a
> wide-open view of the sky.
>
> I remember there were some terrific scenic overlooks on the Kancamangus,
> but as I recall they're not terribly close to North Conway. Is there a
> closer choice that would be as good?
>
> tom
>
> P.S. Two years of work and nobody thought to Google the word "plutons"?
>
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Date: 22 Aug 2006 21:01:35
From: Paul Winalski
Subject: Re: Good site near North Conway, New Hampshire?
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The skies would certainly be very dark up there. If they were ever
visible.
The top of Mt. Washington (which is where that clear sky clock is
for) holds the Guinness record for the worst weather in the world.
And hurricane-force winds, even when it approaches being clear.
-Paul W.
On Tue, 22 Aug 2006 03:34:54 GMT, "Jake" <nochance@in.hell > wrote:
>Never been there, but this looks promising:
>http://cleardarksky.com/lp/MtWshntnObNHlp.html?Mn=astronomical
----------
Remove 'Z' to reply by email.
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Date: 23 Aug 2006 00:33:32
From: Jake
Subject: Re: Good site near North Conway, New Hampshire?
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Ooops! Sorry folks. I must have leaped to a conclusion (i.e. if there is an
observatory, then it must be a good observing site ...).
Nevertheless, you can use that link to the Clearsky site, and from there
link to the light pollution site, and from there figure out where the dark
skys are, and then work back to the highways.
"Paul Winalski" <prune@ZAnkh-Morpork.mv.com > wrote in message
news:orrme2pj4p8mm4c1r7f9tbb6k294sfpioh@4ax.com...
> The skies would certainly be very dark up there. If they were ever
> visible.
>
> The top of Mt. Washington (which is where that clear sky clock is
> for) holds the Guinness record for the worst weather in the world.
> And hurricane-force winds, even when it approaches being clear.
>
> -Paul W.
>
> On Tue, 22 Aug 2006 03:34:54 GMT, "Jake" <nochance@in.hell> wrote:
>
>>Never been there, but this looks promising:
>>http://cleardarksky.com/lp/MtWshntnObNHlp.html?Mn=astronomical
> ----------
> Remove 'Z' to reply by email.
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Date: 22 Aug 2006 11:01:53
From: Cousin Ricky
Subject: Re: Good site near North Conway, New Hampshire?
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Jake wrote:
> Never been there, but this looks promising:
> http://cleardarksky.com/lp/MtWshntnObNHlp.html?Mn=astronomical
>From that map, it looks like the best bet is to head up route 16
through Berlin, and keep going.
The annotator seems to assume that one will be observing from atop Mt.
Washington. Hmmm. At night, with a 5 year old, and hurricane force
winds and snowstorms that pop up out of nowhere, and a welcome center
with a wall that has the names of all the people who have DIED on the
mountain, and overcast skies, what is it, 300 days out of the year? :-O
Clear skies!
--
------------------- Richard Callwood III --------------------
~ U.S. Virgin Islands ~ USDA zone 11 ~ 18.3N, 64.9W ~
~ eastern Massachusetts ~ USDA zone 6 (1992-95) ~
--------------- http://cac.uvi.edu/staff/rc3/ ---------------
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Date: 23 Aug 2006 05:07:04
From:
Subject: Re: Good site near North Conway, New Hampshire?
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> You might want to try Dolly Copp Campground, which is just a couple of miles
> North of the Pinkham Notch visitor center.
That's not a bad idea at all. And yes, there's a day-use area just
south of
the campground. There are two disadvantages, though. First, every mile
counts. Jackson's already a significant drive from the center of North
Conway, and Dolly Copp must be nearly as far as Kancamagus Pass.
Second, Dolly Copp is well into the light dome of Gorham/Berlin.
Visibly brighter than the really dark areas of White Mountain National
Forest. But still plenty dark by southern New England standards.
Yet another possibility is the parking lot for the Great Gulf Trail, a
mile or two south of Dolly Copp. It's below the road and cut off from
it by a thick band of trees, so headlights shouldn't be a problem
unless there are locals partying there. And you could walk out
to the suspension bridge over the Peabody River, which is a very
cool spot with a pretty big clearing made entirely by nature.
- Tony Flanders
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