Astro camps
Tuesnoad (Near Pluckey Kent)
2007
Tuesnoad (Near Pluckey Kent)
2007
Tuesnoad (Near Pluckey Kent)
2007
Kelling Heath - Norfolk 2010
UKAI Gravity Star Party - Salisbury
April 2011
UKAI Gravity Star Party - Salisbury
April 2011
UKAI Gravity Star Party - Salisbury
Back row left to right: Simon, GregFront row left to right:Mark, Martyn, Roger, Dave, Mojo, Me, AdeApril 2011
Stairs Farm near Edenbridge Kent
February 2010
Rother Valley - near Northiam Sussex
July 2010
High Halden, Kent
October 2011Setting up for the evening
This was an interesting experience - Kelling Heath September 2012
The four corners of where my tent was pitched are marked with a number of items.
I kept feeling the floor had become very spongey underneath my tent, and eventually I realised that moles were burrowing underneath.
All the pink stuff is squashed mole hills where I had been walking on them. When I lifted my tent at the end of the stay I took these photos.
Isle of Wight Imaging Party
September 2012
It was luxury having a chalet
Mine and Anna's Kit
Isle of Wight Imaging Party
Les Granges In the Alps in Provence France - August 2013
Went with Anna Morris and we took my husband and her mum who was over from the USA, the weather was fabulous. The kit I used:Takahashi FSQ106N @ F5Mount - Takahashi EM200Guidescope - ST80 and an Atik guide cameraTwo computers and lots of moths and the occasional spider
Nearest actual village is Orpierre famous for rock climbing.
I decided to fly to Marseilles and hire a car and drive up to Les Granges and hire Olly's kit, but Anna wanted to drive (from Suffolk) and take her own kit.
Anna lugging her kit up the hill
The Gite
Inside
There were lots of things to do during the day too, beautiful scenery and villages to visit.
This is a nearby gorge. I have never seen such blue water in a river before, and the locals made much use of it. We visited this on our way back to the airport, so no time to stop and picnic or swim.
Nearby lakes where you can swim
Etoile St Cyrice marked
Orpierre
Astrocamp September 2013 - Brecon Beacons
The Sky at Night Team came to film at Astrocamp and stayed for 2 nights. Space surgery (Q&A)
Lucie Green talking to a young girl at the camp
Q&A from Sky at Night Team
April 2014
I decided to buy a campervan and this is my first trip - Cairds Camping site in East Sussex. I went on my own as it was a lovely clear night and no-one else available.
The Southern horizon
The Western Horizon
Kelling Heath over various years
View from my pitch (my windshield in foreground)
The train at kelling Halt
Weybourne and the Sea - seen from the edge of the Heath by the Train halt
My kit by the Caravan
Julian and his home made Dob
Lunch in the sunshine
Toadstool on the way to the Washrooms
By the end of the week it had turned into this
Attending to kit
Me (on right) giving talk on Imaging
(with signer for the deaf group)
Cairds Campsite with Orpington Astronomical Society May 2015
Fay in the glamping POD
Mine and Julian's Vans (mine is on the right)
Mark and Roger
October 2015 at Cairds: Photos by Fay:
In action at night.
Fay being an early riser was awake for this, I having been up until 4.30 am
Day time
Left to right: (Mark's tent and car), (Mac, James and Daisy (dog) and Mac's CarJulian's van and two lots of kitCarole's van and 1 lot of kitFay in the glamping Pod with red vehicle and her kit.
April 2016 Kelling Heath
Mark Shelley one the the OAS members took this amazing night video with his modified Sony A7S, wandering around the field at 4am.
He says he forgot to put an IR/UV filter on it and so it was picking up IR as well as visible light and also incandescent light, so the video in this link makes everything look lighter and brighter than it really was. It was in fact so dark you couldn't see you way around without a red torch and Mark said he almost bumped into some-one because he could not see them coming in the darkness.
It is a very sensitive camera and even on video it shows the milky way and deep sky objects, but I hope this will give you some idea of the atmosphere at Kelling.
The voice on the recording is that of Mark who kindly allowed me to post his video on my website:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3Ky5pyZvsINeXFiY2dsS21TSVE/view?usp=sharing
Kelling 2016
Some members of UKAI (Uk Astroimaging) posted this drone video on their forum:
Posted with permission from UKAI
Screen shot from it. (My van is in the foreground, by the Red car and green tent).
My new Obsy tent - Cairds April 2018 (with modded roof which I did myself)
I can even sit inside which I wasn't expecting, makes it very cosy.
Mosaic of lots of kit outside my van door.