I had a great time at Lostock!
The event was (in my opinion) a huge success, with many more people coming than I'd originally hoped/planned for, everyone was friendly, and we had
3 crystal clear nights. We had almost 100 people for a first year event!
The first 2 nights were quite dewey, but the 3rd night was fantastic.. a light breeze kept the dew away. The skies were really dark, darker than SPSP at Ilford from all reports and it was a beautiful setting. The facilities were excellent, with plenty of toilets and showers, cold and hot water, loads of space for camping, bunkbeds, observing on grass, great cooking facilities, and the swimming hole was just fantastic especially on those hot days.
Many thanks to h0ughy who helped me with the organisation - he went above and beyond and it would've been much much more difficult for me, if it wasn't for him. Also thanks to the other helpers and organisers who contributed time behind the scenes.
Many thanks to the local Gresford RFB for the catering.. they did a top job feeding the troops with a 2-course meal.
Many thanks to the sponsors for providing the prizes for the lucky door prize draw. Congratulations to those lucky sods who walked away with a prize.
Many thanks to Mike Boggan (and Erik) for making the sausages! They were soooo nice.. I don't think I can ever buy a sausage again.. it just won't be the same... back to gristle? No way!
It was great to meet everyone, I made some new friends as well as strengthening some old ones.
I didn't do
heaps of observing, I made sure I got some sleep each night and I spent a lot more time socialising and looking through other people's telescopes!
I didn't do any imaging, the dew made it too difficult on the first two nights, and on the third night the seeing wasn't as good.
We'll definitely have an IceInSpace AstroCamp 2007, and there's no reason it won't be at Lostock again. I hope to see you all again next time.
For those that attended, in the next few days I'll be distributing a feedback form to get some feedback on the camp, things you liked, things you didn't like, and things we can do better for next time.