Why 2 field trips? Well, its Christmas and we're feeling generous. Haahaa. No, actually we had such a positive response from our Perseid meteor shower field trip that we thought we'd try another meteor shower event. And low and behold, it's the Geminids in December, just slightly less active than the Perseids, and the peak is near a new moon so no light peeking in when we least expect it.
The date is firm, Saturday night through Sunday morning Dec. 16-17th, meeting at Ernest Coe Visitor's Center in Everglades National Park, at 9pm SHARP. The park WILL be open on our dates, exact spot will be determined by Robert.
It will be plenty dark by then as the sun will have set hours earlier. And there will be no visible moon for the duration. Good to see plenty of stars! As long as the weather holds. Unfortunately, we wont be able to see the large portion (referred to as the galactic center) of the Milky Way. But the Milky Way will be visible at some point in the night.
Best part of the outing is that we'll have less bugs and it will be much cooler than it was in August. Oh, and no moon as I stated above. Perfect conditions. Now if the weather holds, we should have a great night! But back to the bugs... I have a caveat to my "less bugs" statement. I was out for the full moon at 9 mile pond and after dark the bugs did come out in full force. Perhaps the cold may have lessened them, hopefully so. But if you are highly susceptible to mosquitoes, bring your entire arsenal of bug repellent.
Spray - ThermaCells - Bug Jackets BRING IT ALL.
If you're coming, please RSVP to our email at info@sfnpcc.org. I need to know who is going so we don't leave anyone behind.
What to bring:
- Tripod- Highly recommended
- Remote Shutter Release Cable or Intervalometer - also highly recommended. You can buy one fairly reasonable if you don't have one. They only cost about $25 online. If not, you can set your camera up with its timer.
- Widest and fastest lens, whatever your lowest mm and lowest f-stop lens you have.
- Flashlight - for minimal use only.
- Bug spray, ThermaCells, Bug Suits, long sleeve shirts and long pants. (Just because there will be LESS bugs, doesn't mean there won't be ANY bugs.) If you're sensitive to mosquitoes, bring everything you've got. I can't stress this enough. I'd rather you bring everything and not need it than to bring nothing and be miserable and have to leave early. Anything to keep the bugs off of you - bring it. The stuff doesn't take up much room. Just be prepared!!
- Snacks/water/coffee/sodas - other beverages.
- Protective sturdy footwear. This is the Everglades and critters are everywhere. We wont be hiking the prairies but better safe than sorry. Wear what you have.
- Lawn chairs. Let's be comfortable!
Hope you can all join us!
Non-member guest fee is $10 per person. You can pay online or in person.
The Everglades NP has a $25 entrance fee for non-pass holders (not included in SFNPCCs membership package). It's highly unlikely that the gate will be manned when we enter, and you will probably get in free. But, that's not certain. Err on the side of caution and be prepared to pay just in case.