+Sparrowhawk Posted December 24, 2003 Share Posted December 24, 2003 Hey all... One of the things I want to do before my life is over is to be able to stare at a deeeeeeeeep dark sky full of stars stretching from horizon to horizon. I will be in LA in the spring, and I figure that maybe a night trip thru the desert might do the trick. Maybe 5 or 6 hours driving from LA to the destination, at most. Oh yeah, and get some good geocaches, too. Anyway, SoCal cachers, what is a good remote-as-all-heck, no-one-else there desert destination I can go to in a rental car for this purpose? And what are some good geocaches I should hit along the way? Yeah... I plan to sleep in the car when I finally get tired of looking at the stars... me too cheap to camp! Thanks in advance... Quote Link to comment
+Dave_W6DPS Posted December 24, 2003 Share Posted December 24, 2003 (edited) Lucerne Valley is not that far away, and has a nice wide horizon and fairly dark sky. Look around this cache, for example. It is BLM land, and camping is allowed. Just no campfires directly on the ground. Also, within your 5 hour radius is Mount Palomar (you may have heard of the observatory there) where local clubs hold regular star parties. There are also some around the Griffith Park observatory, but the sky isn't as good. Hope this is what you are looking for.... Dave_W6DPS Edited December 24, 2003 by Dave_W6DPS Quote Link to comment
+9Key Posted December 24, 2003 Share Posted December 24, 2003 100 miles or so east from downtown LA is Palm Springs. The cold weather alternative ~the Coachella Valley Preserve area. Maybe some SoCal locals can fill in details? The Joshua Tree area is wicked kewl too. I bet there are some great camping areas around. Quote Link to comment
+Sparrowhawk Posted December 24, 2003 Author Share Posted December 24, 2003 The cold weather alternative ~the Coachella Valley Preserve area "Cold weather alternative"? What? Quote Link to comment
mikeh420 Posted December 25, 2003 Share Posted December 25, 2003 The cold weather alternative ~the Coachella Valley Preserve area "Cold weather alternative"? What? It's hardly ever cold in the Coachella Valley, being in the low desert. Quote Link to comment
+Sparrowhawk Posted December 25, 2003 Author Share Posted December 25, 2003 Ah, I get it. Hmmmnm... Mt. Palomar looks too cool. Is there a spot there where you can look at stars from horizon to horizon, like a blg, flat place at Palomar? If not, I will just have to divide my time between one of these lovely flat desert locations and a separate Palomar trip. Which of the aforementioned desert locations have the flattest horizon and the darkest sky? Quote Link to comment
+Dave_W6DPS Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 Ah, I get it. Hmmmnm... Mt. Palomar looks too cool. Is there a spot there where you can look at stars from horizon to horizon, like a blg, flat place at Palomar? If not, I will just have to divide my time between one of these lovely flat desert locations and a separate Palomar trip. Which of the aforementioned desert locations have the flattest horizon and the darkest sky? There are a couple of places on Palomar where you can get almost clear horizons, but none completely, unless you hike to the peak. (Very do-able by the way...) As for wide horizons and as dark a sky as you'll find around here, my vote it still Lucerne Valley. You can get some great views of big parts of the sky from the area at the top of the Palm Springs Tram. None horizon to horizon, but with LA/OC in full bloom it doesn't matter much how well you can see to the west. A good pair of binoculars can give some good viewing. I think the last tram down is usually about 10PM. Check out This Cache and others nearby for more info. Dave_W6DPS Quote Link to comment
+bthomas Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 The Mojave is a big place, but not too big for the mileage you indicate. If you have a couple days, you can even make a triangle out of LA, Palm Springs, and Vegas. Pee Wee Desert Lawn Jockey is north of Palm Springs and Joshua Tree, and requires a high clearance vehicle and a willingness to scramble up a rock. http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_detai...d2-bfa0489a19a4 Joshua Tree is interesting in it's own right, and has clear night skies. The mysterious Desert Phone Booth is outta the way, and has been physically removed by the Federal govt, but it's story remains. http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?ID=2273 If you do a little research you may find alternative Desert Phone Booths for you to place as a cache. Quote Link to comment
+Yar?Yar! Posted January 5, 2004 Share Posted January 5, 2004 Sounds like a cool trip! I would suggest heading out of LA north on I-5, then east on 138. The Perkyperk caches along 138 are wonderful, and I enjoyed all the ones I snagged at night as well as the wonderful starry sky. From there, I would head north on 14 to Mojave (lots of caches in the area), then east on 58 towards Barstow. North of Barstow on ft. irwin road might be a nice detour (nice valley with deep darkness. Then head east on 15 and exit at Baker towards Death Valley on 127 north. Keep on to Shoshone, then east to Pahrump 178 east. East of Pahrump there are plenty, and great views out there as well. When you're all done on this run, you can then head south to Vegas and return to LA via I-15, or keep on south to Laughlin/Needles and head back west on I-40, hitting many different caches. Thanks for the opportunity to dream of the desert .. I might have to make this run myself some day! Quote Link to comment
+Sparrowhawk Posted January 6, 2004 Author Share Posted January 6, 2004 (edited) This upcoming trip of mine is getting reeeeeeeeal interesting! Definitely will be astronomy-themed to make my heart happy. JPL is holding an open house in May, so I've decided I am going THEN, not April. Palomar beckons, so does Mt. Wilson. I bet there are other astronomy-related things in LA I gotta know about. When I go there, I will have finished creating a new t-shirt featuring my nice StarCollage. That should be rather interesting to a few folks while I am there. Edited January 6, 2004 by Sparrowhawk Quote Link to comment
+Kite and Hawkeye Posted January 7, 2004 Share Posted January 7, 2004 This upcoming trip of mine is getting reeeeeeeeal interesting! Definitely will be astronomy-themed to make my heart happy. JPL is holding an open house in May, so I've decided I am going THEN, not April. Palomar beckons, so does Mt. Wilson. I bet there are other astronomy-related things in LA I gotta know about. When I go there, I will have finished creating a new t-shirt featuring my nice StarCollage. That should be rather interesting to a few folks while I am there. Doesn't Palomar have some trouble with the light pollution from San Diego? Quote Link to comment
+Dave_W6DPS Posted January 8, 2004 Share Posted January 8, 2004 Doesn't Palomar have some trouble with the light pollution from San Diego? San Diego isn't nearly as bad as LA/OC and Las Vegas. Palomar actually has fairly decent seeing, compared to other accessable areas. You can see the light pollution from one or both of these for several hundred miles in any direction. The good thing about Palomar is that you can drive right to many good observing spots. Dave_W6DPS Quote Link to comment
+Sparrowhawk Posted March 30, 2004 Author Share Posted March 30, 2004 My vacation plans are shaping up nicely! I've never been to San Diego before (any good Thai food places there?) so exploring an unfamiliar city on my own will be fun. This will happen midweek. Question: near the main route between Lucerne Valley and San Diego (I hope that's a nice drive!) are there any seriously georgous locations with caches that are extremely worth it? Quote Link to comment
+HappyFrog (& gang) Posted April 1, 2004 Share Posted April 1, 2004 Sounds like a cool trip! I would suggest heading out of LA north on I-5, then east on 138. The Perkyperk caches along 138 are wonderful, and I enjoyed all the ones I snagged at night as well as the wonderful starry sky. From there, I would head north on 14 to Mojave (lots of caches in the area), then east on 58 towards Barstow. North of Barstow on ft. irwin road might be a nice detour (nice valley with deep darkness. Then head east on 15 and exit at Baker towards Death Valley on 127 north. Keep on to Shoshone, then east to Pahrump 178 east. East of Pahrump there are plenty, and great views out there as well. When you're all done on this run, you can then head south to Vegas and return to LA via I-15, or keep on south to Laughlin/Needles and head back west on I-40, hitting many different caches. Thanks for the opportunity to dream of the desert .. I might have to make this run myself some day! From Barstow take Hwy 247 to Lurence Valley. There are some interesting caches in the Apple Valley, Victorville area, then you could take Hwy 18 over Big Bear get some caches up there. then down to I 15 to San Diego. You can also check the Southern CA website, there was a run to Las Vegas and I know there are some lists of caches on the way to Las Vegas from Barstow. The zip code for Apple Valley is 92308 or 92307, and there are some interesting caches in this area. Quote Link to comment
+GeoGunslinger Posted April 2, 2004 Share Posted April 2, 2004 (edited) I would like to recommend That you consider Saddleback Butte state park, or even Red Rock Canyon state park. Both are N. of LA, Red rock probably being the preferred place to star gaze of the two. I spend a lot of time out there with my 8 inch reflector scope stargazing. You might consider contacting somebody from the Antelope Valley Astronomy Club see website: http://www.avastronomyclub.org (I'm a member) there may be other areas listed that may appeal to you. Both are around 2+ hours to get to from LA. Tons and tons of Caches heading towards the Red Rock Canyon state park Too. Regards, DFB Edited April 2, 2004 by Desert Big Foot Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.