I have found that unless it is extremely wet, and wet the week before to the day before a trip, the west desert is usually very dry. I have observed at Lakeside up until the snow flies hard and deep in January and I observe all winter long at Pit n Pole and have never ran into mud. It's there as is evident by the mud tracks left by 4x4 and ATVers, but give it a week to dry out after a series of storms, and the main area at the Pit is dry. If Lakeside is too muddy there is always the Knolls. Five Mile Pass is closer and up higher so you avoid the humidity also out that way. One of my best nights at Pit n Pole was with Mat last year when I split Sirius first thing that evening and then later was able to capture the Horsehead/B33 with the filter. It did get cold that February night, down to -6 degrees F before we left, but we never got cold that night. Air was terrific that evening. On Tue, Oct 4, 2011 at 7:08 AM, Chuck Hards <chuck.hards@gmail.com> wrote:
It looks like the 28th is the only Friday this month that may work for me, as I have to be up at the crack of dawn on every other Saturday morning between now and November.
Too, I'm concerned about Lakeside being a mud-hole if there is rain or snow before the event.
Would having it at SPOC this fall interest anyone? We could go to a darker site in the spring for a reprise.
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