Wine Country Star Party BLOG

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We viewed the stars at the Bardessono Hotel and Spa Friday night.

Lots of questions and delite.  One quest owned a 6" telescope as a child.  Another quest was interested to learn that Venus goes through phases as does the Moon.
 

We viewed the stars at Carneros Resort and Spa Saturday night.

Very fun group of people.

Nice views of Venus in a crescent phase, Albiero, M13, and the Double Cluster

Here's a photo of Orion over RedRock Canyon State Park.  We were in the park in February.  The skies were beautiful. 

The red glare on the rocks is from our neighbor's RV brakelights, and it gives a nice effect.

This is Linda's image of the double star, Albiero.  She took the image at the Golden State Star Party in June.  Albiero can be seen all summer.

Read more about Albiero here,

Jim and Linda at Bouchaine Winery in Napa.  This was a Chinese New Year celebration for the Wine Club Members.  Clouds were overhead so we brought the telescopes inside and did a short presentaton.  Dinner was wonderful, and we met countless new friends.

The third and fourth stars in our logo stand for "Memorable Friends".  In total the 4 stars stand for "Spectacular Beauty, Memorable Friends.

Thank you Brian Allard of Bouchaine for treating us like a Queen and King.

We managed to get this photo of Mercury as it transitted (crossed in front of) the sun on Monday November 11.

We are impressed with how small the planet is relative to the sun.

This photo was taken with Linda's Orion 10" astrograph on my Celestron mount.

We just returned from the 2019 Advanced Imaging Conference held at the San Jose Convention Center.

This 3 day event, held every other year, is proclaimed as "the greatest collection of astrophotographers under one roof" and is a way to "accellerate your astrophotography".

This was our 3rd AIC.  This year, in addition to the workshops and general session presentations, we enjoyed the experience of checking in with old friends and being reinspired.  Many of us have limited time to take photos of the heavens, and we are both excited to get our equipment outside more often.

See www.advancedimagingconference.com for more information.

Please join us Friday Nov 22 for an evening of stargazing with Landpaths and Wine Country Star Party.  Please plan to bring a potluck item for dinner before the stars come out.

We will caravan from a location to be announced when you sign up.  We will be leaving the event together at the conclusion of the evening.  This will not be an overnight campout.

This video was taken of the moon at Sugarloaf Ridge State Park.  We captured the footage in our 12 inch dobsonian telescope and used "powermate" accessories that magnified the view.

The Advanced Imagining Conference (AIC) is coming up next month.

If you want to learn as much as you can about astrophotography in a single weekend, don't miss it!

We hope to see you there.

AIC Website Link

We stargazed with 2 telescopes at the Napa Valley Reserve Harvest Party last night.  There were hundreds of people in attendance for wine tasting, dinner, stargazing, and music.  As usual we met the nicest people - a lot from out of town.  I recall, "New York", "Boston", "Atlanta", and "Chicago" for some. 

Many viewers told us about their own telescopes and experiences.  We love that.  We were especially interested in the couples who had recently travelled to Chile for the solar eclipse, and to other dark places without light pollution.

Thank you Napa Valley Reserve for hiring us to stargaze with your guests.
 

We travelled to Lakeport to a beautiful home overlooking Clear Lake last night.

We viewed with a team from Calpine who bid on the stargazing and VRBO home rental.

What a nice group of people.  Thank you to all who said, "oh my gosh" when viewing Jupiter, the Moon, Saturn and other deep sky objects.

This was a donation to the Sonoma County Farm Bureau.  We are happy to donate stargazing to our favorite fundraisers.

We're driving home after midnight from a Star Party and pass Grape Pickers near our driveway.

My only thought is this.  Who else wold be working at midnight?  Pickers pick in the night when it is cool to prevent uncontrolled fermentation.  Astronomers gaze in the night - well - because that is the stars are out.

Always assume the viewing is going to be great.  And this night it was!

After a week of heat with 100F degree days, clouds and fog returned.

As we headed to the Star Party at Bull Frog Pond with the Stewards of the Coast and Redwoods, we were a little concerned.

At the parking lot overlook we were greeted with lots of eager guests and this beautiful sunset.

The viewing was spectactular as it almost always is at that location.

We viewed Jupiter and Saturn.  In years past, we used to keep the planets "in reserve" as a finale, but they are easy to view early in the evening so we look at them first now.  There were a lot of questions about the constellations.  Scorpius, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Pegasus, Cygnus, Lyra, Cepheus, Casseopiea, Andromeda, Hercules, Draco, Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, Sagitta, and Delphinus were all overhead.

We viewed the Harvest Moon, Jupiter, and Saturn in St Helena last night.  This was a birthday celebration for 2 guests with over 100 people in attendance.  It was wonderfully warm throughout the evening.  Lots of "oohs" and "ahhs" when viewing the Moon and Planets.

We offered a star party to private guests, north of Calistoga in this beautiful location.  A big part of the drama is the grandeur of the location.  We often tritely say, "a great star gazing site is harder to find than an astronomical sight".

We enjoyed delicious food, met wonderful new friends, and experienced beautiful star gazing with the Alexander Valley Film Festival in Cloverdale.

The 4 stars in the Wine Country Star Party logo stand for "spectacular beauty, memorable friends".

I don't think we could have been more spot on than that!

We are constantly looking for dark sky locations.  This helps us get the best astrophotography results.  We look at the dark site finder, and try to match those locations with remote campsites.  The ideal "find" wouild be the darkest conditions without a neighbor in sight.  The worst situation is someone with a bright lantern next to us.

This usually conjurs up the idea of the middle of the night, not day break.  The image here is from just before morning at Eagle Lake near Susanville, CA. 

I thought it was a pretty photo and even though the sun was not up yet, the stars were long gone.

Sometimes things get a little playful at our Star Parties.

We asked these guests to point up into the sky as if they were seeing a UFO.

Pictured with the constellation artwork from Stellarium in the background this screenshot shows the opportunity to see Jupiter, Venus and Mecury at sunrise just before 7:00am Friday December 14.

Join us for this event if you'd like to experience it with Wine Country Star Party.

Dan Burns explains his space-time warping demo at a workshop at Los Gatos High School, on March 10, 2012.

We were hired to perform a Star Party for Este Lauder / Clinique at the "Barn in Green Valley".  Lots of energy, fun people, and a beautiful location.

The attendees were mostly Este Lauder / Clinique staff who support the company's online sales.

We met people from Taiwan, Brazil, and New York.

The double doors in the photograph were "flung" open to share the drama of the telescopes with the team.

We attended the Sep 29 2018 Bouchaine Wine Maker Dinner.  Bouchaine is located in Carneros.  The event included great music, fine food and wine, and the telescopes.  It also included clouds, so we did not get to view.

Our hats are off to Bouchaine host Brian Allard who really puts on a great evening.

Walking this morning before sunrise was beautiful.  Luckily I dragged myself out of bed early enough so that the stars were still very bright.  A slight glow was peeking up in the east, but I still had time to get to my favorite open spot to see the night sky.  This being so early in the moon cycle, just after the new moon, there was no moon to be seen at 5:30am.

The summer landmarks are long gone by now in the pre-dawn.  Even the fall constellations are westward.  However, high in the sky is Orion magnificently dazzling us.  His shoulders and feet outline his shape, and to the northwest, I could see his large shield.  I always try to see if the Orion Nebula is visible as a hazy patch, but I think that is only in my mind.

Around the winter hexagon I toured, just to refresh my memory of all the star names.  Sirius, Procyon, Pollux, Castor, Capella, Aldebaran, and Rigel, oh my!

To my greatest surprise, though, was Ursa Major's cup rising the in the east.  Since Ursa Major is visible after sunset, and again before sunrise I am happy to be able to see almost all of the night sky in one 24 hour period.

I hope to walk early tomorrow morning and see my friends again.  The fourth star in the the Wine Country Star Party logo stands for "friends".  From left to right, they represent, "spectacular beauty, memorable friends".

We toured the planets Sunday night with our guests. 5 planets! 

Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars.  Wait?!  That makes only 4.  Well, yes, we also saw the Earth.

That joke is getting really old.

What a perfect way to celebrate an anniversary.  Cindy and Jeff joined us last night to view at the Lone Rock parking lot above Lake Sonoma.

We viewed 5 planets.  Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, and Earth (hahahah).

We have never seen such clear views of Jupiter, including the great red spot.  And, as always, it is a treat to see Saturn's Cassini Division.

We had a good group at Bouchaine Winery Saturday night.  About 20 of us observed Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, and Venus as well as the quarter Moon.

Thank you Angela for sharing your photo with Wine Country Star Party.

Looking westward on many nights will reveal Venus, but it is a more rare event when the Moon is new, is forming a crescent, and is in conjunction with the Moon.

Here is Wikipedia's definition of "Conjunction".

It is a beautiful event at a stunning location.  The people are nice and the group BBQs are fun.  The skies were beautiful when we went in 2017.  The Milky Way stretched from hoizon to hoiizon.

This event is a "do not miss" happening.  Unfortunately, despite my recommendation, we will not be going this year as we plan to camp somewhere else the same weekend.

We saw the moon, jupiter and saturn.

Approxmately 140 guests attended.  It was a wonderful evening.

We looked at the Moon at various levels of magnification and also had great views of Saturn and Jupiter.

Thank you to all for your donation to Rotary!

Approximately 20 family members viewed the Moon and Jupiter with us.

The Ranch offered S'Mores and warm drinks as well.

It is a beautiful location with a wide and dramatic sky.

Here is the dastardly fog creeping over the westward hills.

My grande oak tripod is in the foreground.

Sign up here for the June 16 Star Party at the Bohemia Ecological Preserve.

Join LandPaths & Wine Country Star Party for an evening of stargazing at the beautiful Bohemia Ecological Preserve.

We'll spread out our blankets & camp chairs, share a potluck dinner, & enjoy stories & information from experienced astronomers Jim & Linda. 

Stay up as late as you like & enjoy camping out at the preserve!

Perfect conditions for a Star Party.

The moon rises after midnight tonight.

This view is from our deck.  Very close to where we set up the telescopes.

So I quickly grabbed my camera and took this photo.

Then on the TV news the Reporter stated the launch that had just happened.

This image is 30 sub frames of 120 seconds each at ISO 1600 stacked in Deep Sky Stacker. 

The camera is a Canon 6D Mark II at prime focus in a 150mm aperture Maksutov-Newtonian telescope on a Celestron CGEM-DX mount.

The images were taken at the Libery Glen Campground above Lake Sonoma California on Friday February 16, 2018.

Taken by: Wine Country Star Party in Freestone CA

Equipment/Settings:
Canon 6D MKII DSLR
In prime focus using a modified very low profile helical focuser
Orion 12" Reflector (1500mm focal length, F4.9)
1 second exposure
ISO 1600

Do you see the stars in the bottom photo?

Frost on the roof of our gazebo this morning.

35F on the outdoor thermometer.

Brrrrr.

The photo below from our photo gallery page shows the gazebo from ground level with our largest telescope. 

We often view from this location during our star parties in Freestone.

All Wine Country Star Party guests are welcome to set up a picnic dinner for themselves or you may inquire about having us prepare a meal for you.

Almost all of our guests who visit us at our home venture out into the vineyard to take a nice photo of themselves.

Fires ignited in Calistoga the night of Sunday October 8.  Strong 70mph winds blew the fire into Santa Rosa.

The force of fire and wind incinerated many structures and the wind blew the remains away leaving bare ground.

The Conference is a 3 day event at the San Jose Convention Center where you are with "the greatest gathering of Astronomers under one roof". 

We attended sessions on DSLR photography, Lunar and Planetary photography, and TWAN (the World at night).

Also, the talk by AIC Hubble award winner Mike Rice was fascinating.

A big feature for us this year was to go to the vendor exhibits.  This really helped us out since we had equipment questions for Celestron and Canon.

We also visited the Precise Parts booth as they built us a much needed adapter for our CCD camera recently.

Here's a photo Linda took of Jim in the Celestron booth.

Fort Ross and Cazadero are in this view.

Star-gazing and astronomical viewing from this location is excellent, but one does have to brave the steep uphill one lane road (see the Youtube videos in the next BLOG post)

Regulus and Mars are difficult to see in the photo.  Look closely.

The photography required some planning.  Tripods, chairs, cameras, and coffee were part of the plan.

Also, we were up at 3:00am to dress and drive to the viewing location in time.

Linda likes to enjoy capturing a moment in time. 

We were at the same location where we photographed comet Lovejoy in 2013.  See our Photo Gallery for that image.

This photo was taken near Forestville facing East before the sunrise on Monday September 18.  The time is approximately 5:45am.

From the Stewards of the Coast and Redwoods Website

EcoAdventure: Fall Equinox Star Party Campout

Fee: $16 members, $20 non-members, children 12 yrs & under FREE (additional camping & parking fees apply)

Meets: Friday, September 22, 7:00 PM - 11:00 PM, Vista Point (Austin Creek SRA)

Instructor(s): Jim Goodenough & Linda Sinkay (Astronomers)

Summer is gone and winter is coming! At the equinox, days and nights are approximately equal in length, but nightfall will start coming sooner. Join Stewards and Wine Country Star Party as we celebrate this astronomical event and seasonal changes with a night of stargazing!

Bring the entire family to learn about the universe, solar system, and constellations. Vista Point is dark and dramatic with incredible views to the west. We recommend that families wanting to spend the night book a campsite at Bullfrog Pond Campground (www.hipcamp.com) well in advance.

Makes me proud of them.

I can just hear it - the older boy telling his younger brother, "no, you do it like this".

Either that, or "don't touch the eyepiece!"

This meant a small portion of the sun's light was still visible.

We observed the eclipse from Lewiston CA west of Redding.

Processing included 2 rounds of batch enhancements in Corel Paint Shop Pro, and some slight exposure gain in Video Velocity - the timelapse software.

Beautiful, isn't it?

We observed Jupiter, the half Moon, and Saturn.  Jupiter's Moons are always a crowd-pleaser.  The Moon's craters really "popped".  Saturn and its rings entertained us, as we were able to see the Casini division.

This was a particularly good night for meteors.  Perhaps Perseids is on its way earlier this summer than in the past?

This is our second event at Solage Calistoga and one thing we notice for sure, beyond the very pleasant company of our guests, the staff is very interested in Astronomy and loves to take a look in the telescopes.

"Regulus" is Latin for "Prince" or "Little King".

In Astrology, the Royal Stars of Persia are Aldebaran, Regulus, Antares, and Fomalhaut. They were regarded as the guardians of the sky.

The adjacent photo is taken from "Stellarium"

Email us if you'd like to join Wine Country Star Party to witness this fabulous event.

Stargazers are encouraged to bring potluck dinner items to share.  When darkness falls we move from the picnic tables to the telescopes.  The group size is limited so the star gazing is confined to a small enough group to allow each person lots of access to the views.

This is a terrific location as it is in very dark conditions away from city lights.  The dark location makes for the best astronomy viewing of faint deep sky objects.

We will see Jupiter and Saturn.  Also aloft this time of year are several galaxies, star clusters and nebula.  The field of visible stars is a stunning comparison to what can be seen in a populous city.

Views of nature at Cooley are incredible.  A must see for any photographer, naturalist, or star-gazer.

Particpants may stay just the night or camp overnight near the telescopes. Registration is handled through the Landpaths website.  Space is limited.

Click HERE for the opportunity to purchase a Star Party for 2 or more.  Dad will be happy to receive this fun and unique gift. 

After all, how many ties does your Dad need?

Our thought is that everyone from California is heading to Oregon, so why not take a road trip? 

We've connected with a "boondocker" in Cora.  A "boondocker" is a person with property who allows RVers to park on their property.  There is a network of "boondockers" at www.boondockerswelcome.com

Visit the GSSP website here.

If you are interested in going to GSSP, let's consider camping as a group.  Leave a comment to this message if you are interested and I will get in touch.

The rain clouds have cleared and the skies are beautiful.

During my early morning walk today in the Freestone foothills, I saw Jupiter rising in the East.  So nice to see Jupiter back in view.

In the early morning, the Winter constellations are closing in on the Western horizon, with Orion leading the way.  I saw treated to a long streaking meteor right through Orion's body.  It was so nice and dark and clear this morning that I could see Orion's shield outstretched to the West.

Leo and Usra Major are up.  My one audible exclamation was to take in the enourmous size or Ursa Major. So much more to it than just the Big Dipper.  One can get a "pre-season" look at the stars by lookin upward while it is still dark just before sunrise.

Also, the moon is nearly full which also casts so much light that we have a hard time seeing dim deep sky objects.

Sometimes, the "backside" of a rain storm can yield very clear conditions and excellent star gazing as the storm pushes through and the backside cold air trails the low pressure system.

Greg has helped us with several projects, including adding storage racks to our trailer.

He also was the inspiration for the purchase of our first telescope, an "Astroscan".

This video featuring John Dobson gives an excellent idea of the steps involved to build a 16 inch reflector telescope, including the mirror grinding.

After watching the video, review the article on the Sonoma Country Astronomical Society's BLOG - http://www.sonomaskies.org/blog.shtml.

The construction of that scope is nearly identical to this one, and it should be as John Dobson helped build it.

We went to a remote location just south of King City.  It was very dark on a friend's ranch.

The adjacent photo is of the Trifid Nebula (M20). 

10 images, 180 second exposures each, ISO 800.

Lost in Light from Sriram Murali on Vimeo.

Look at the clusters of grapes we saw in a vineyard near Calistoga while waiting for a star party to commence.

Even in early August, some grape growers are already picking their crops.

We tasted a few of these grapes, but they were not so sweet yet.

We suspect these grapes will remain on the vine for a few more weeks.

These Landpaths events are free and open to the public - advance registration required.  This is the 4th time we've worked with Heather and she is a wonderful hostess.  Camping was available for those wishing to stay, while others left after they finished viewing.

The adjacent photo shows the participants sharing a potluck dinner before the Star Party.  We were particularly impressed this time with the keen interest of each person attending.  

We saw Jupiter, Saturn, and several nebula.

Love you guys, Jim and Linda

I love this animated GIF

This past weekend, Wine Country Star Party held its second Star Party on behalf of Windows to My Soul.

The event was at Skinner Winery in Fairplay, CA.

The weather looked a little intimidating as there were clouds all day, but the clear sky charts indicated clearing after sunset.

The view to the right is the observing area showing the dramatic clouds, with our telescopes in the foreground.

Approximately 20 people viewed.  These were donors to Windows to My Soul's Gala last fall.

We will be back to Skinner in July for another event as the Star Party was a popular enough auction item to command a "double down".  Bidding was aggressive enough to call for 2 Star Parties.

We are happy and proud to support Windows to My Soul.

From Nasa's Youtube channel, enjoy it.

We have 3 nice bookings in a row starting tonight.  Tonight we will be at Calistoga Ranch in the Napa Valley with a small family.  Very beautiful location off the Silverado Trail.  Calistoga Ranch is a very high end and upscale property. 

Update: 2 families arrived - both with children.  They enjoyed Smores until sunset.  We viewed Mizar to see the multiple stars, Jupiter and its Moons, the Globular Cluster M3, the Leo Triplet, and Bode's Nebula.

Tomorrow night we will be at the Wild Oak Saddle Club in Oakmont with a large group.  This will be a first for us. 

Update: The event was highlighted by a very long meteor visible to the East.  By long, we mean perhaps 15 seconds duration. 

Saturday night we will be in Freestone with a family from Santa Rosa.  Thank you Julia for purchasing a Star Party from WCSP.

All 3 locations are unique, and all are dark for astronomy viewing. 

Telescopes and sunsets are 2 of our favorite things to photograph.

We had a Star Party at Skyline Park in Napa with Mark from Austrailia and Dorothy from England.  This was a very nice night. 

We've had so much rain and cloudiness here that this one clear night was a real treat. 

There were a few showers and clouds just before sunset, but the skies were completely clear, as forecast, after dark.

We had good views of the Orion Nebula, the Double Cluster, Bode's Nebula, and Jupiter.

Mark and Dorothy are pictured to the right wearing their new Wine Country Star Party hats.

As Astronomers, we look at the weather forecast EVERY day.  Finally we see a stretch of days coming with sunshine predicted during the day and cloudless nights.  Plus there is the added bonus that this weather pattern is happening during a New Moon.  We're hoping to host some customers this Saturday night and perhaps dust off the cameras for some Astrophotography.

Please read the wonderful article about Wine Country Star Party in Sonoma Discoveries Magazine.

LINK

The Milky Way - our home galaxy. 

At night one sees an "arm" of the milky way. 

A 30 second exposure such as this with equipment that tracks the movement of the sky makes for a stunning exposure with bright star light.

This photo taken at Ferguson Vineyards in Freestone California.

The Moon and Venus this morning at about 7:00am.  "In Conjunction", or visual alignment.

Venus appears high in the sky when its orbit is at the extreme from alignment with the sun. 

In the morning, it is the morning star.

As it swings all the way 180 degrees around the sun in its orbit, it becomes the evening star.

On occasion, Venus and Mercury are in sync and at their orbital extremes and one can see both in the morning or night depending on the time of year.

Look for Mercury much closer to the horizon, just as the sun comes up, and much less bright than Venus.

This "open cluster" of stars is called the Double Cluster.  It is Perseus' head, located just below Casseopeia.

The image was taken near Freestone, in Sonoma County.

A Starlight Express CCD camera was used to capture 12 photos - each "stacked" using a program called Deep Sky Stacker.

Background noise from the camera was reduced by using "dark frames".

We were able to take this photo last night during the Lunar Eclipse.

It was a Super Moon - meaning the Moon was very close to the Earth giving it a larger than normal appearance.

During the eclipse, the light cast on the Moon appears reddish as the Earth's light bends, thus making it a so-called "Blood Moon".

Wine Country Star Party offered a Live Auction item to the September 12 Windows to My Soul (WTMS) Fundraiser.

We were happy to hear the auctioneer "doubled down" and got both high bidders to commit to $3000 bids each.

The event includes a catered dinner at a local winery.

Very gratifying!

Here is some more information about the WTMS program.

We were included in the Frog's Leap Winery Harvest Moon Party this last Saturday night.

Approximately 90 people attended.

Views of the Moon and Saturn were excellent.

Frog's Leap really knows how to celebrate.  There were musicians, wine, food, and fun annoucemnets and toasts.

Thank you Frog's Leap for including us.

The first photo is early in the event as the guests arrived.

The second photo is Linda's telescope with the tasting room building in the background.

The third photo is Jim's telescope with the beautiful grounds as a backdrop.

The Moon was a little full for star gazing at the Bull Frog Pond vista point, but the views were stunning nonetheless.

We had campers and families and visitors from San Francisco.

High powered views of the moon in our scopes from 40X to 350X are very pretty.

We have our binoculars set up during the twilight to view the distant ridges toward Cazadero.

Quite often people like to walk out to the knoll beyond the vista point parking lot to see the sunset.

Here is my best sunset photo.

Beautiful!

We held a Star Party in support of Jordan Winerie's "Starlight Supper".  The location was stunning and the food delicious. 

The guests and staff were very fun. 

Approximately 80 people dined outisde and then enjoyed views of Saturn, the great globular cluster in Hercules, the binary star Albiero, and other nebula.

Thank you Jordan Winery for hiring us!

No reason to celebrate, but the smoke from the local Sonoma County fires made for a pretty sunset

The menu was spectacular

Thank you Jordan for inviting us to dine.

Two of our scopes awaiting the Jordan Starlight Supper guests.

The Blue Moon was looking pretty orange/red last night due to local fires and smoke.  A blue moon is a second Full Moon within the same month.

Called "Blue" from the word "belewe" or betray originating from the concept that there should only be one Full Moon per month.

This photo was taken at the Martin Ray Vineyards star party on the Winery grounds near Forestville, Sonoma County, CA.

Thank you Greg and Loren for helping out last night.  We could not do it without you!

There is a certain style displayed by each Astronomer as they assist our guests at the telescope.

Loren is very knowledgable about the sky and stars.  He confidently points the telescope and explains the view with great passion.

Greg is very attentive to the view and the telescope pointing accuracy.  He patiently reminds each person about the location of the eyepiece and best practices to enjoy the moment.

Thanks Greg and Loren!

Check out those WCSP logo shirts!  You guys are stylish!

We held a Star Party and Astronomy slide show at St. Dorothy's Rest last night - a fun and exciting event.  The evening commenced with a slideshow.  This was a good warmup for the 50 campers attending this week's sessions at SDR.  Then the campers moved by cabin to the exquisite viewing location just past Lydia House.  This is a part of the SDR property facing North.  We had good views of the moon, saturn, and albiero.

This was our second event with SDR.  The team there is really hospitable to us, loving to the kids, and all around great to be with.

St Dorothy's is located in Camp Meeker.  The property and views are beautiful.

The moon and venus in conjunction over the Cazadero coast.

Jupiter is to the right of the Moon and Venus - somewhat hard to see.

I had the pleasure of participating in a "star party" put on by Linda Harmening Sinkay and Jim Goodenough.

The sky cleared in time to see Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, and many stars and galaxies.

A great time and highly recommended.

And, now I can find the Little Dipper!

Thanks to Linda, Jim, and the Sebastopol Area Senior Center!

Joe G.

We were invited to bring our telescopes to Patz and Hall Winery in Sonoma.  Thank you Tiffany for hiring us.  This was part of a live auction item / fundraiser.  6 women from New Mexico bid to Glamour Camp (Glamp) and toured the area.  Their first night included Wine Country Star Party.  Lots of fun viewing Venus, Jupiter and Saturn. There was even time for 'smores'.

Those really fancy tents were provided by Shelter Co.  They were complete with a bed, chairs, lamps - the works!  Plus couches and lanterns were placed around the area to give the outdoors a homey feeling. 

Have you heard of St. Dorothy's Rest in Camp Meeker, CA? It is a 550 acre paradise where summer camps and retreats happen. Wine Country Star Party is delighted to be part of their team for two very special camps this summer! The first one is this week, a 'no cost' summer camp for children who have had cancer or a blood disorder, and also for their siblings! < How cool is that? The siblings get to come too!

We can't wait to thrill the kids with the wonders of the universe.

Be sure to think of St. Dorothy's Rest for your next retreat. It is truly an incredible place, right in our own back yard, Sonoma County!

http://stdorothysrest.org/camp/camp-st-dorothys/

Thank You Heather Knoll for hostessing us at Rancho Mark West last night for a Star Party with 20 Landpaths guests.

We are grateful for the excitement and fellowship with the guests.  Thank you Jim and Betty Doerksen for allowing us access to the property.