October 19, 2024
A birthday celebration in the great outdoors on Long Island was in the books for quite some time. But when it arrived, a cold snap made it slightly less comfortable. We made the best of it! Starting with a quick Panera sandwich because: quick and easy. My birthday vegan charcuterie Read more…
August 27, 2024
When the stars came out at City of Rocks National Reserve, I saw the Milky Way right away… a gauzy spread of stars right above our campfire. I set up and used the glowing light of the fire to paint the interesting rock formations around us. This is why I Read more…
“This City is walled in on every side with towering granite mountains, some peaks shooting athwart the sky like towering domes. While hundreds of piles, peaks, steeples and domes, of all shapes possible in the distance looking like an old dilapidated City”– Emigrant journal entry from Dr. John Hudson Wayman – July Read more…
August 2, 2024
Once I settled in at the City of Rocks State Park campground, an unsettled sky darkened the distance. Thunderstorms with bolts that illuminated and crackled beautifully but worried me. I sat them out in the tent wondering if the tent was a careless place to hang out in a thunderstorm. Read more…
Wanting solitude and wanting stars, I took a couple of flights to reach the City of Rocks State Park campground in New Mexico, not to be mistaken with the City of Rocks in Idaho–which I plan to visit later in the month. In one of my most favorite states, this Read more…
June 6, 2024
There aren’t many National Parks east of the Mississippi River. We don’t have the magnificent land formations born of the Colorado Plateau. But we got the the Great Lakes. Indiana Dunes National Park is right next to the gorgeous Lake Michigan. It would be my day and night destination as Read more…
March 12, 2024
I ventured into Old Florida to check out the dark skies. This was the highlight of my quick trip and most definitely well worth it. First, some scenic beauty in the daytime hours. See those tracks in the sand… well I got my rental car stuck in the sand, much Read more…
October 21, 2023
To celebrate my birth so long ago, we headed south to Pennsylvania’s Potter County for a stay in a cabin in the mountains. I chose this location for a few reasons. For one, it is very near to the dark sky park Cherry Springs State Park. In the unlikely event Read more…
September 19, 2023
It always a shock to see how vibrant the stars are at Montauk. Sure, there is also a lot of light pollution at the horizon–but the Milky Way always says “Hi” to me. I like to blame my starry luck on my underwear which is always star-patterned. And in some Read more…
When a camping spot in the coveted J-section at Hither Hills State Park opened up, I booked it for two nights knowing there wouldn’t be a better way to spend the evening on my visit back to the metro area of New York. And it would be a perfect location Read more…
September 3, 2023
It is always hard to say goodbye to summer. So I take a lot of pictures. Here are its last unofficial wisps… from sun up to sun down. A rainbow upon arrival And into sunrise… My friend in the tent because… packed cottage I made the tofu scramble in advance! Read more…
August 18, 2023
And onward to the second national park during this short trip: Nevada’s Great Basin National Park. This park, which is also an International Dark Sky-certified park, has such a diversity of offerings… the chance to step into a glacier, an emerald-hued alpine lake, caves, tremendous conifers, towering cliffs and rock Read more…
August 16, 2023
As with any of my summer trips west, the goal was star shoots. Camping ensures easy access to an International Dark Sky park’s starry skies. But first you have to fill your day with the park’s beauty as the sun beats strong. On my last visit to Cedar Breaks National Read more…
February 19, 2023
Mid-winder recess always aligns with peak wanderlust, a breaking point where draining daily life in New York City grows to a frustration level that pervades and my soul needs a deep spring of wonder, nature and night. Respite. This trip I escape to the desert, a place I assumed would Read more…
July 30, 2022
I was overwhelmed with the beauty of Alabama Hills. The images below capture some of it, but not the feel of the air, the scent, the feel that enveloped me. Unexpectedly, I was taken aback by this destination. I hope to return sooner than later. My rental car looking snazzy. Read more…
July 22, 2021
Even more into the green now, I’d spend my third night without running water in the gorgeous Spruce Knob Lake within the Monongahela National Forest, driving up to the highest elevation of the state. With starry eyes, I thought I’d see the stars best here–but weather was uncooperative once again Read more…
July 20, 2021
After staying two nights in a hotel, I had a massive neck ache from terrible pillows. But waking up each morning in my tent, I felt euphoric. Perhaps it was how isolated my campground was, The Brooklyn Campground (teehee) near the Cunard River Access area of New River Gorge National Read more…
June 28, 2021
I first visited Joshua Tree National Park in 2017 (see here). This time I’d camp in the park despite the excessive heat warning to see its dark skies, my 17th dark sky park. Things to know: The moon rises like the sun, just as powerful in my camera’s lens. Read more…
May 3, 2021
Even though there was just a slither of time that we shot the stars on the first evening at Hither Hills, arriving home with the sky on my memory card was invigorating. And I can’t wait for another star shoot. Though the whipping wind shook my camera, just seeing the Read more…
A Spring camping trip to Montauk’s Hither Hills State Park would be challenged by the weather unfortunately. But I try not to let my opinion, which is pretty insignificant to the forces of nature, overshadow the enlightenment of experience. The lesson: The wind and the rain win. And you just Read more…
October 19, 2020
[Oh my.] The Orionids Meteor Shower will be peaking on my birthday. So naturally, I have to accept the sky’s invitation. I’d have to find the dark, program my camera, sit back and watch the show, hoping for better luck than when I attempted to catch the Perseids this time Read more…
October 18, 2020
Despite the light of the campsites, the stars were plentiful and bright. And the Milky Way and shooting stars also showed up for the party. Here are a few of my favorite shots before heading to Camp Hero to shoot next to the radar tower. I enjoyed the campsite much Read more…
🎉 I guess my birthday celebration starts… now… on the day that my friend mistakenly thought was my birthday. Though we’ve been friends for like 15 years. 😐 But I shouldn’t complain as The Greek got me a tent for my birthday and facilitated a great camping experience on the Read more…
August 21, 2020
Well right next to Two Arrows is Two Guns, the location of a very colorful abandoned KOA campsite. The roadside attraction contained a campsite, gas station, pool, a small zoo–other such rotating attractions to bring in the road weary. Now it sits abandoned though apparently that are campers who utilize Read more…
July 23, 2020
Though the strong rains invaded the majority of my trip, I managed to set up camp at James River State Park in spite of it. It also happens to be another IDA certified Dark Sky Park–well what do ya know? But first, some daytime scenes, mostly in the river, mostly Read more…
July 20, 2020
Despite the continuing of restrictions, I try to get out often and stay busy–but safely. And since my car is not mine anymore, I have been sampling all kinds of mass transit. My favorite: The Ferry. My bike, here, at the Brooklyn Army Terminal when I missed a ferry. And Read more…