Michael, The "gravel pit" in question is just east of Park City. Here are some directions: Take I-80 to the Park City/Kamas Exit 4. At the bottom of the exit ramp, go East towards Kamas. Take this road for 1.6 miles to the Peoa - Oakley turn-off. This turn-off will be on your left. You know you are approaching it because there are several "Deer-Crossing Ahead" signs. Since the Deer Crossing is at the turn off, the distances on the signs are also the distances to the turn-off. This is Browns Canyon, but the sign says Peoa - Oakley. Take this road for 4.2 miles, to the Park City Harper Gravel Pit road and sign on the left. (About 1000 feet before you get to the gravel pit road, there will be an orange sign on the right that says "truck entrance ahead".) At the gravel pit sign, turn in. Watch out for the speed bump at the entrance! Go about one and a half miles up this road. There is a "mobile home" weighing office off to the left. Just after the office there is a parking area (for the office), which is where we set up. There are no amenities, no toilets, and no camping. This is not a "spend the night and camp out" location. I and others have been waiting for the weather to cooperate so we can do some winter observing here. Maybe we'll get lucky in the coming week... And yes, I've only dealt with dew once or twice since I moved to Utah from Southern California in 1990. Welcome aboard, Rich --- Michael Carnes <moogiebird@earthlink.net> wrote:
Greetings to all. I've been a lurker on the list for a while and now it's time to come clean. My wife and I've recently moved to the SLC area (East bench, between the Cottonwoods) from Boston. I was (still am, actually) a member of ATMOB, the primary Boston astronomy club. I've recently joined SLAS, and I've already met a few of you on the list. I apologize for bringing New England cloudiness with me. Perhaps someone would be kind enough to answer just a couple of questions. Just where the heck is the gravel pit? I've noticed that gravel pits aren't exactly rare around here. Anything I should know before I go there? And are there any other suggestions for winter viewing? The slice of sky I can see from my house isn't bad, maybe 5 mag on a good night. But are there any other sites where the snow isn't 3 feet deep and I might find some astronomical company? Oh, and one last thing. Back in New England, you can't observe for more than 30 minutes without bringing out the hair dryer (10 minutes if you don't have a dew shield). I get the impression that it's just a mite easier here.
Best to all, Michael Carnes
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