We visited Ellanor C. Lawrence Park in Virginia today between lunch and dinner, mostly to walk around a bit to be able to eat more! This small park is between Centreville and Chantilly, a few miles south of Dulles, and owned by Fairfax County. It is a nice place for a walk with trails through a forested area nestled between a highway and smaller road. We planned on doing a loop but it turned into an out and back when we realized the western half of the trail was through partially swampy unmowed grass! We were rewarded for our efforts though as we spotted a species of bird that we’ve never seen before, the Eastern Towhee!
Continue reading “Ellanor C. Lawrence Park”Occasional Astrophotography
I’ve dabbled rather casually in astrophotography over the years, much of which predates the existence of this site. All with standard off the shelf DSLR (and now mirrorless) equipment and without the aid of anything other than a tripod.
Continue reading “Occasional Astrophotography”The Great Conjunction of 2020
Yesterday, we tried and failed to observe the Saturn and Jupiter planetary conjunction due to clouds moving in around sunset. Today, we drove to Kerr Dam and Reservoir in Virginia near the border with North Carolina to get clear and dark skies.
Continue reading “The Great Conjunction of 2020”Winter in Shenandoah National Park
After consulting Astrospheric, we decided to head to Shenandoah National Park to see the Jupiter and Saturn conjunction that is currently taking place. Tomorrow is supposed to be the closest that they will appear in the sky but tonight’s forecast was more favorable. Also, today is the first day that any of Skyline Drive, the road through the park, was open after the storm a few days ago. We were hoping to see some snow!
Continue reading “Winter in Shenandoah National Park”