Grand Canyon Star Party FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
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What is there to do?
The Grand Canyon offers world class hiking
through Earth's largest canyon system. Even with summer crowds, the
nearly 10 mile long west rim trail is blocked off to all but buses,
and offers spectacular bicycling without worrying about traffic. Even
those less physically inclined can spend days exploring the scenic
vistas offered from every bend of the rim trails on foot, or from the
roads from their cars or park shuttle buses. The place offers lots to
explore for the history buff with many original structures preserved
and a nearly century old train making daily runs to the rim. The area
also offers:
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Astronomical day trips to
Lowell Observatory
near Flagstaff, to see its historic telescope or learn about the new
Discovery
Channel Telescope, Lowell Observatory's newest project to design
and construct a powerful, 4.2-meter instrument. Tours are available.
The new multimedia John Vickers McAllister Space Theatre is open for
20-minute shows about astronomy on the half hour from 9:30 a.m. to
4:30 p.m.
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Day-trips to
Meteor
Crater, which is located east of Flagstaff on Interstate 40
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Scenic drives through Monument Valley, the
Painted Desert, Flagstaff and Oak Creek Canyon.
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For those interested in Native American ruins
and archaeology, the
Wupatki National
Monument north of Flagstaff is breathtaking.
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If you like volcanoes, the
Sunset Crater
National Monument has a fantastic cinder cone, and lava flows
and cinders in the area still look as fresh and rugged as the day
they formed.
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The
San Francisco volcano peaks just north of Flagstaff in the
Coconino
National Forest are the remnants of a huge stratovolcano. Skiing
is available in winter at the Snowbowl resort.
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The new Hualapai Skywalk is a four-hour
drive west of the GCSP's South Rim location, and is accessed off of
Route 93 between Kingman and Hoover Dam. This is the new skywalk
where you walk out into the canyon with only glass under your feet,
so folks with a fear of heights might not enjoy it! The contact
numbers for the Hualapai Skywalk are 1-877-716-9378 and
1-702-878-9378. Note that t here are 14 miles of bad dirt road at
the end of the drive to the Skywalk. Reservations are STRONGLY
RECOMMENDED as folks have sometimes been turned away who don't have
a reservation.
As you can see, one could easily spend a couple
of action-packed days or the entire week without repeating yourself.
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How is the
astronomical observing at the Canyon?
Conditions are excellent. The nearest town,
Flagstaff (population 45,000) is 80 miles away, while Las Vegas and
Phoenix are both about 170 air miles away making for very dark skies.
(Blackout Wardens are on duty for your viewing protection!) Elevation
at the South Rim is about 7,000 feet with the North about 8,000 feet.
Seeing conditions are usually very good with the exception of very
still nights when pockets of cold air move through slowly disrupting
the seeing. Early June is Arizona's clearest time of year. We have
lost only four nights to clouds in five years (40 nights) of
observing!
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Where do we set up our telescopes?
We set up and observe from the parking lot on the South Rim at Yavapai
Point. Setup/takedown must be performed each night in this lot. The
big advantage is that is where the people are and you are sure to
attract a crowd, and after all, this is supposed to be a public event.
Since 2007, visitor traffic has been restricted into the area, so the
previous headlight problems are limited to the shuttle buses every 15
minutes and most of the drivers use subdued lights when driving
through. The second option is that there is an observing field behind
a locked gate just off the parking lot. You avoid any headlight
problem as it is perhaps 5 meters below the level of the parking lot.
The locked gate also serves as a security device and, particularly if
your scope is large or extended setup is involved, you can leave it
set up for the duration of your stay. The disadvantages are that not
nearly as many public make it down to the observing field, and you
lose about 20 or more degrees of southern horizon, though you can
still get down to Scorpio and Sagittarius. In recent years the trend
has been to avoid the potential for mud in this area, and almost
everyone now sets up in the parking lot. It is a pain to set up and
tear down every night, but the rewards of more public interaction
really makes the choice clear. This is designed to be a public event,
and if you want to do photography or CCD imaging, this may not be the
event for you. For the star party, long extension cords are a trip
hazard in the dark, and it is prefered that you run off batteries and
inverters if you need electricity. No generators are allowed due to
the tight crowding, noise, and exhaust concerns.
Unfortunately, in the National Park, camping is not allowed anywhere
but the campgrounds, so the options are to pack up your scope every
night or leave it set up in the lower observing field. Yavapai Point
is close to everything, about ¾ mile from the campground (Mather) and
about ½ mile from Yavapai Lodge (Fred Harvey, Inc).
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How do we get
there?
With the distances involved from civilization and
the need to haul your telescope (I hope!), cars are still the best way
to get around. There are no restrictions on cars coming into the park.
Within the Park, there is an excellent shuttle bus system; no waiting
for parking spots, 10 minutes between shuttles, every point you'd want
to visit is on one of the loops. Beginning two years ago, the shuttle
system was extended out to the nearby town of Tusayan as a means of
improving the parking situation. Cars belonging to persons with
lodging reservations are always allowed. If you are traveling cross
country, while you can fly into the Grand Canyon airport or Flagstaff,
it is certainly less expensive to fly into Vegas or Phoenix, probably
enough to pay for a rental car. Driving time from Phoenix is about
four hours, while it's about five hours from Las Vegas.
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 Are Any Special
Activities Planned?
I'm glad you asked that. As part of our program,
we offer:
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A twilight talk every evening to entertain the
folks while it gets dark. We always need volunteers to give these
talks, so step up especially if you have an astronomical story to
tell and have worked with crowds before.
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Special projects: One year we ground and
polished a mirror and made a telescope, donating it to the local
grade school at the end of the week. We don't have plans for that
this year, though we are open to suggestions.
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One of my great joys every year is to set up a
scope or big binoculars on the rim to show visitors canyon views or
sunspots, while telling them about the viewing later in the evening.
It is great fun to be one of these "static displays" during our week
there.
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We generally have a couple of social cookouts
to get to know the astronomical folk who come volunteer. These are
great fun and you get to actually see the faces of the guy you have
set up next to the last 4 nights!
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The last couple of years, we've planned
informal carpool trips to visit nearby Lowell Observatory and Meteor
Crater around midweek, and will likely do it again, with the
cookouts scheduled for the weekends. Otherwise, there is plenty to
do. See the list of places to visit, above.
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How do I sign up?
For more information or to RSVP for the
South Rim star party, please contact me at:
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Jim O'Connor
Coordinator, South Rim component of the Grand Canyon Star Party
P.O. Box 457
Cortaro, AZ 85652
E-mail: gcsp [at] tucsonastronomy.org
Phone: 520 546-2961
For more information or to RSVP for the
North Rim, please contact:
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Steve Dodder
Coordinator, Grand Canyon Star Party, North Rim
53750 W. Prickley Pear Rd.
Maricopa, AZ 85239
Cell phone: 602-390-0118
2009 Grand Canyon Star Party North Rim
E-mail:
fester00 [at] hotmail.com
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