New Mexico - Enchanted Star Party - Oct

Hello -
Has anyone attended the New Mexico
Star Party in October? This will be my
first year, coming from California. Is
there camping available on the Mt. at
8800 ft? The website indicates a
barbecue one evening, down at another
location. So, I guess - - -you have
to pack up all your stuff from the Mt.
and travel down, and RE-SETUP down at
another elevation? Can someone explain
all the events? Thanks in Advance

Are you coming on up to the Okie-Tex star party the following week? Lots of room to set up, great DARK skies, great people and great food.
Black Mesa area has lots to do in the day as well. It is about as dark as TSP because it is 45 miles from "nowhere"

This is a very nice star party, albeit a bit unusual from normal set-up-once-for-the-event gatherings. Most talks and events are centered on the NM Tech campus in Socorro. There are chances to observe within the campus at their observatory site, but only for a night. There is a small area in the observatory's "bunker" for lots of scopes. The sky is remarkably dark for being intown, due to the very successful lighting controls in Soccoro.

The dark site (Pound Ranch) is "officially" used only Friday and Saturday. This is where the famous chuck wagon dinner is held. Come hungry! The Pound Ranch is about a 45 minute drive from Socorro. Facilities are non-exsistent, portable toilets are available during the end of the week. If you only want to observe and not take part in the other activities, you must supply everything for yourself.

New this year is the chance to observe from the future site of the Magdalena Ridge Observatory. I have not been to this spot, so I cannot comment on it, but the picture I've seen is intriguing. Again, this is a one nighter, so it would be a crap-shoot, weatherwise.

The VLA insider's tour was well worth the time. Jon Spargo's enthusiasm and details are delighful and entertaining. I only wish they would offer a viewing of "Contact" sometime during the week. After taking the tour, watching the movie is fun, seeing all the spots where you just stood.

The folks behind Enchanted Skies have worked hard at providing a well rounded , something-for-everyone event. Due to location differences and the number of choices available, you can't possibly do it all - especially if the skies are clear and you observe all night. On the other hand, if clouds are persistent, there is plenty of other things to do. As with so many other things in life, it's a balancing act between choices and at this star party you have plenty to make.

My visit to ESSP was in 2001, just after 9/11 and attendance was down, probably due to the preceding month's tragedies. I was disappointed in the turnout, but the folks I met were terrific and I had a lot of fun. More preparation on my part (camping equipment) would have allowed me to get more out of the incredible, dark -truly enchanting- skies.

Hope this helps and have a good time! 8)

Another good review is here:
http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=skies&article_path=/columnists/articles/skiesArticles/skies021013.htm