Made it out to Rush Valley briefly last night. It was COLD there, at least for late June. DT Time: 2011 June 28 0300-0600 UT.(Monday night MDT) Location: Pit and Pole Rush valley Equiptment: 10x50 and 20x80 binoculars contitions: clear calm and cool temp 70F at sunset fell to 50F by midnight. Transparency fair. Watched Mercury set in the twilight. Observers handbook said it was "south of Pollux". Found it in the twilight before Pollux was visable. Found Castor and two stars between the twins to confirm the identification. At 20x the planet was barely non-stellar. Looked at M104, M68, and M83 as these southern objects will soon be lost in the evening twilight. M68 is found by extending the east edge of the Corvus trapezoid down one length to an isolated star with a smudge to it's upper left. It took full astro twilight for this to be seen. Direct vision in the 20x80's and indirect but definite in the 10x50s. M104 is at the end of a copy of the Sagitta arrow to the upper left of Corvus. It was small and dim but direct vison in both the big and small optics. the orientation of the galaxy was obvious in the 20x80s. M83 from theta CEN scan north and west through a group of bright stars until you are half way to gamma CEN. Called the Southern Pinwheel it is large and spiral structure was dimly visable in the 20x80s. In the 10x50s it was dim but definite. Truly worth looking for with any optical system. Took some time to look at some old familiar friends. M107, M4, and M22 on the south horizon and M13 and m92 straight up overhead. Looked at two favorite binocular doubles. Theta SER and beta Cyg. Lastly I went looking for M80 by taking a zigzag starhop from Antares to sigma SCO to rho OPH to M80. found M80 in both optics but along the way I notice the nebulosity around rho OPH and could easily see IC4603 in the 20x80s.