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Re: (meteorobs) Observing buddies...
Cathy Hall wrote:
>There are a number of advantages to <not> going out alone, such as:
>
>- somebody to carpool with
>- somebody to send for help if your car breaks down (but keep all kinds of
>emergency gear with you just in case)
>- somebody to help you out if <you> have a problem
>- somebody to talk to all night long
>- somebody to scare away the wildlife
I'm all for it. Always better to have company. Although I usually always
drive
to my site 45 minutes away alone, I often get company from a few other
observers
with their scopes. The company can be enjoyable but occasionaly
distracting.
I will still observe regardless wether I am alone or not.
>Closest I came to wildlife was a wolf one night.... I saw him, he didn't see
>me. I was determined to keep observing... but my concentration was somewhat
>diminished! ;>
I have never yet had any encounter wolfs or other such animals. I hope I
dont.
If you are all tied inside your sleeping bag, much better stay right
there and
blind the animal with a bright flaslight and noise should he sneak too
close.
>Thanks, Lew! ;> I have observed on my own before, including winter nights
>at cooler than -20C. However, I take precautions:
If I would go out farther than my backyard on a -20C or colder night, I'd
seriously need to upgrade my gear and emergency planing! I should do that
since the skies from my backyard in winter have trouble reaching higher
than
LM 5.0 with all the light reflecting off the snow. Cold weather in the GWN
can be dangerous if all precautions are not all complete.
>- I have my emergency car phone with me
>- I take all possible emergency survival gear with me in my car
>- I always tell somebody where I'm going, so they will be alerted if I don't
>return
>- I take a radio to listen to
>- I turn it up loud if I want to scare off possible wildlife
>- I don't take a lot of food that might attract wildlife
>- I back my lawnchair right up to my car.. so nothing can sneak up on me
>from behind
>- I try to observe in a relatively safe place.. like a field behind a
>friend's place in the country, or a farmer's field that has been checked out
>with the farmer.
The last few months, I have been experimenting with a few sites around
the region
of Ottawa, ON. with the help of a few local observers. I found myself
quite nervous
at the sites right beside country roads. Even those at a great distance
from most
signs of civilizations. One time recently, we set up beside an old
farmer's route
about 60km south of Ottawa. The route was supposed to be only used by the
few local
farmers in the daytime. Well, we had teenegers late at night in a truck
driving like
crazy straight for us. They made the turn beside us without any trouble.
I now go to observe regularly in a farmer's field 45 minutes away. It is
the safest
place I have found to conveniently observe as far away from the city as
possible for
now. He lets us set up on the hills he prepared for us. No passing
troublemakers and
no animals (except cows) to make it more reassuring. If we get any
trouble, we can
contact the farmer, he is a very good individual and actually enjoyed
observing
with us for a while. The site is opened for us to go at all times. I just
need
to be careful not to fall down from the top of the hill like I did a few
weeks
ago. It can be a little tricky walking around in the dark up there.
I feel it is best to observe on a private property of someone you know.
As long as
they dont mind you're coming over. That way, you feel secure and dont
have to worry
about all the potential problems.
. . . .
Pierre Martin . . * . * . .
***************************** . . . \ | . .
Ottawa Valley Observers Group . . . . . .
Visual meteor observer . . . . -* .
Ottawa, Ontario, CAN . . . . .
home: p.martin@cyberusdot ca / . . . .
***************************** * . . .
Graphic Designer . | .
National Aviation Museum | \
work: pmartin@nmstcdot ca * . \
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