BajaGeoff
Super Nomad
Posts: 1727
Registered: 1-11-2006
Location: San Diego and Campo Lopez
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Mood: Heading To Baja!!!
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San Pedro Martir trip
I had a chance to go up to the observatory last week and do a bit of a tour, as well as stop in to meet fellow Nomad "astrobaja" at the Baja Dark
Skies Inn. Great trip!
San Pedro Martir Trip
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TMW
Select Nomad
Posts: 10659
Registered: 9-1-2003
Location: Bakersfield, CA
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Great stuff. I haven't been to the observatory in probably 7 or 8 years. I haven't yet been to Astrobaja's place yet either but I will. Beautiful
country.
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BornFisher
Super Nomad
Posts: 2107
Registered: 1-11-2005
Location: K-38 Santa Martha/Encinitas
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Thanks for the report-- Great pic of the desert and sea!
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bajajurel
Nomad
Posts: 276
Registered: 6-17-2009
Location: San Diego
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Mood: Fishing for fun
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Really neat report! I've been by that turnoff so many times and wanted to do it so now I will after reading about your trip.
How much is the B&B?
Can you go up there at night and see through the telescope?
bajajurel
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BajaGeoff
Super Nomad
Posts: 1727
Registered: 1-11-2006
Location: San Diego and Campo Lopez
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Mood: Heading To Baja!!!
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Gracias!
Here are the rates for the B&B:
Baja Dark Skies Inn Rates and Reservations
I am pretty sure Mike lets people use his telescope....but I think the big ones at the top of the park are off limits to visitors.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64855
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Geoff... Did you drive to the end of the road (big observatory) or stop at the sign/ gate? and wait for someone to lead you in?
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J.P.
Super Nomad
Posts: 1673
Registered: 7-8-2010
Location: Punta Banda
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Mood: Easy Does It
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A couple years back after passing the turn off like so many do we left punta banda early one morning and drove up I dont know what my expectations
were but we both were totalt in awe. we stopped at the visitors center and talked to a nice young man he told us about the condors,mountian lions and
deer.then we drove up to the observatory met one of the gus coming down the hill he told us it was past visiting hours, but he turned around and took
us up and opened it up and took us to the top WOW what a view.
Ever since we tell people its a must do when you go or come south. all and all it made for a very enjoyable day from here.
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Ken Cooke
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8947
Registered: 2-9-2004
Location: Riverside, CA
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Mood: Pole Line Road postponed due to injury
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I remember before the road was built. That about a rough journey! I can't wait to go back. Thank you for all of the great photos, Geoff.
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BajaGeoff
Super Nomad
Posts: 1727
Registered: 1-11-2006
Location: San Diego and Campo Lopez
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Mood: Heading To Baja!!!
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| Quote: | Originally posted by David K
Geoff... Did you drive to the end of the road (big observatory) or stop at the sign/ gate? and wait for someone to lead you in?
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We were meeting up with one of the guys that works up there, so he met us at the gate and gave us the tour.
Ken....I can't imagine what it must have been like before the road was built!
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64855
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Ken Cooke
I remember before the road was built. That about a rough journey! I can't wait to go back. Thank you for all of the great photos, Geoff.
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The road was built in the late 1960's... the observatories (2 small ones) were up in 1970...
Maybe you meant when the road was PAVED (2004-2007)?
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Ken Cooke
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8947
Registered: 2-9-2004
Location: Riverside, CA
Member Is Offline
Mood: Pole Line Road postponed due to injury
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| Quote: | Originally posted by David K
Maybe you meant when the road was PAVED (2004-2007)? |
Paved is a much better term, David. 
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64855
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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10-4 amigo... You know me... details, details! 
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shari
Select Nomad
Posts: 13048
Registered: 3-10-2006
Location: bahia asuncion, baja sur
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Mood: there is no reality except the one contained within us "Herman Hesse"
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thanks Geoff, great report...I am soooo impressed and proud of my paisanos Mike & Pam's accomplishments up there. We cant wait to visit to see it
for ourselves...perhaps around apple harvest???
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astrobaja
Senior Nomad
Posts: 952
Registered: 5-22-2006
Location: near San Pedro Martir Park
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Mood: beam me up
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Geoff,
It was a pleasure to meet you and Erick! Did you guys end up staying the night in one of the observatorio cabanas?
Bajajurel: for sure I give guided tours of sky objects in my 18" and 30" telescopes. I also have a pair of 20X90 binoculars for wide field tours of
the night sky, they are mounted on a parallelogram mount for comfort.
I would say 99.8% of the time professional observatory intruments are used with CCD cameras and other instrument packages. Very few are ever used
visually! One of the few observatories that actually gives a visual tour of deep sky objects (galaxies, nebulae, star clusters, etc) is McDonald
observatory in west Texas. Although for now the programme is suspended. Not a surprise there when I did it some years back it was in total darkness
with twin split level half moon shaped platforms that were sometimes 25 feet above the floor level. Very cool experince though!
http://mcdonaldobservatory.org/visitors/programs/82SVN.html
Shari: Thanks paisana! Hey you are no stranger to lots of hard work either! The hardest part was always getting the raw materials in here, one pickup
truck load at a time!
Sure apple harvest would be a good time of year, less bugs, cooler nights!
Let us know!
cheers
Mike
\"There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear
and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable.There is another theory which states that this has already happened\"
Douglas Adams
our website: http://bajadarkskies.com |
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bajadock
Super Nomad
Posts: 1219
Registered: 12-20-2006
Location: Punta sur de \'Nada
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Geoff,
Thanks for the excellent trip report. I still have not been up there. Thanks for motivation.
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BajaGeoff
Super Nomad
Posts: 1727
Registered: 1-11-2006
Location: San Diego and Campo Lopez
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Mood: Heading To Baja!!!
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Hey Mike!
We ended up heading down the mountain and staying in Colonet. We had quite a bit of ground to cover on Saturday, so we thought an earlier start would
help out. It was really great to meet you and Pam, and I can't wait to get back up there when we can spend the night and relax a bit!
Thanks shari and bajadock!
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Marc
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2802
Registered: 5-15-2010
Location: San Francisco & Palm Springs
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Mood: Waiting
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On my to do list.
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Mexitron
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3397
Registered: 9-21-2003
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
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Mood: Happy!
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| Quote: | Originally posted by David K
| Quote: | Originally posted by Ken Cooke
I remember before the road was built. That about a rough journey! I can't wait to go back. Thank you for all of the great photos, Geoff.
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The road was built in the late 1960's... the observatories (2 small ones) were up in 1970...
Maybe you meant when the road was PAVED (2004-2007)? |
What I remember as being the worst part of the road in 1978 was having to drive up the San Telmo riverbed---deep sand and 2-wheel drive----about every
mile there'd be a cow in the road so we'd have to stop, scare the cow out of the road, then push ourselves out of the sand (eh, I didn't know about
airing down back then.....).
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