Many of the HAA members are going to be observing out of town this weekend. For those so inclined, you might want to consider joining them at either of these 2 locations.
This weekend is Starfest (Aug 19-23) at River Place Park, just north of Mount Forest (off Hwy 6). This is an annual right-of-passage for many amateur astronomers.
With skies that are darker than Binbrook, far from any major city, it boasts a very large open camping field with lots of room to observe the night sky. And since it’s a star party, there are 3 days of speakers, presentations and demonstrations for the beginner and more experienced astronomer. Many astronomy dealers will also be there with bargains to help you fill any gaps in your gear. This is about a 2 hour drive from the Hamilton/Burlington area. Go for the day or camp overnight.
Information, fees and directions to Starfest can be found here:
Starfest Info
Alternatively, some other HAA members are heading down to Cherry Springs, PA, USA for a long weekend of observing in even darker skies.
This is the home to the Cherry Springs star party in June, and the Black Forest star party in Sept. Beautiful country and very dark skies, with a very well set-up astronomy field for observing and camping. Camping is $10US a night (very reasonable). It’s about a 5 hour drive (including border crossing, etc). With many Canadian and American astronomers heading up to Starfest, this field should be quiet, but with great observing.
Information about Cherry Springs can be found at:
http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/stateparks/parks/cherrysprings.aspx
And Google directions:
Cherry Springs State Park
