Quote:
Originally Posted by big-blue
Thanks Gary. I enjoyed reading your great write-up of a fantastic trip. Brought back memories of my own trip up there last year, albeit at the mass-tourism level. Even so ( for those of us who are not fortunate enough to have your local connections), I highly recommend the Manu Kea astro viewing tour by 4WD bus that starts with sunset viewing at the observatories, then descends to 9000ft for viewing of glossies via C11. An unexpected highlight for me was the spectacular sunset shadow of MK extending many kms over the cloud base below. The Big Island is an amazing place to visit, on many levels, and deserves to be on everyones bucket list.
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Thanks Big-blue!
It is an amazing place.
With the road blockage up the mountain by the protesters up until
only 6 weeks ago, not only were all the observatories shut down for a couple
of months but the operators who offered the summit sunset and astro
adventure tours.
In talking to one of our contacts at the Keck, it set back some of those
tour operators enough that they had not resumed operations.
When we were there, the Visitor Information Station at the 9200' point
had been cleared out of all merchandise and the only thing they had
on offer was self-service instant coffee. They had a couple of solar
scopes set up outside and there was an AP mount sitting in the corner
inside.
Hopefully the operators will get up to speed again as they fill a valuable
niche but the spectre of the protest tent city at the road junction still
remains and with it the possibility that the road might get blocked again
if the truce is broken.
My advice to anyone going to the Big Island is to check in advance.
For dedicated enthusiasts one might also try contacting the West
Hawaii Astronomy Club (WHAC) for additional ideas. Some of the
members work at the Keck.