Friday, March 13, 2009 - City of Rocks State Park, Faywood NM
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Observatory, City of Rocks State Park, Faywood NM, February 19, 2009
Time to hit the road again, back to City of Rocks State Park for a few days.
First State Parks Observatory
A quote from the City of Rocks State Park website:
City of Rocks was first to receive an observatory in the Division. The observatory consists of a 12’ x 16’ building with a roll-off roof and is permanently equipped with a 14" Meade LX-200. The entire facility is solar-powered and will include a 20-inch monitor, which will enable many visitors to simultaneously view the jewels in the night sky, as images are transmitted through the telescope. Click here to find out more about upcoming star parties.
Saturday, March 21
08:15 PM - 10:00 PM
City of Rocks
Star-n-Parks
Join National Public Observatory astronomer Matt Wilson for a guided tour of the spring constellations and planets. Sunset is at 7:15pm and Saturn will be well presented.
Fees: Regular Entrance Fee
Contact: Gabriel Medrano 575-536-2800
Night camp
Site 12 - City of Rocks State Park, Faywood NM
- Verizon cell phone service - fairly good signal - best on west side of the park
- Verizon EVDO service - faster than many places I've camped
- Go to City of Rocks State Park website
- Locate City of Rocks State Park on my Night Camps map
- Check the weather here
Absolute Silence
I remembered hearing of a backcountry Park Service ranger who was cleaning up after dinner one evening when he heard a chilling scream. He ran out of his cabin in time to see a mountain lion standing with a dead deer next to her. The lion saw the ranger and bounded off. The ranger realized this might be a rare opportunity to closely observe a mountain lion, so he stationed himself a short distance away from the deer carcase. He sat in absolute silence, and listened closely as night deepened. After sitting in darkness for well over an hour, he gave up hope of the lion's returning and stood up. In the powerful beam of his flashlight, he could clearly see that the dead deer was no longer there. ...
Caught in Fading Light: Mountain Lions, Zen Masters, and Wild Nature by Gary Thorp