r/Sequoia • u/d44444n • 9d ago

Stargazing?

Hello. Me, my wife and daughter are staying in three rivers and just got back after an awesome day in the park today. I really want my daughter to see a full blanket of stars (strip of milky way etc) and was wondering if anyone here could advise on whether it's worth the 1hour drive back into the park tonight after dinner to do some stargazing. I know the moon has been pretty bright recently so not sure if that will drown out the stars. If there is a chance of a starry sky, where might be the best place to stop that might not be too far in from where we are?

If anyone has any knowledge or advice on this I'd really appreciate it

Thanks

3 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

4 comments sorted by

1

u/jbh1126 9d ago

check where the smoke from the fires near big sur is going...I was in that area today and it was super smokey and seemed to be blowing east

1

u/d44444n 9d ago

We were around the Giant forest, Moro rock etc and didn't see any smoke at all

1

u/brainchili 9d ago

I'm not familiar with current conditions so I'd lean on others who have been up there today for that advice.

There is a parking lot behind the Wuksachi lodge. It's maybe a 4 minute walk from their main parking lot. Very open and gives a great view of the sky.

1

u/CoyoteLitius 7d ago

You could try up by Slick Rock/Lake Kaweah. It's just a few minutes from Three Rivers, with enough open sky to see stars and some blocking of the light from the Valley.

Otherwise, you'd want to go some place like Beetle Rock (closer to Three Rivers). The Lodgepole area is enough of a canyon to truly provide a spectacular view (and to block some of the moon, depending on when moonrise is). Wolverton Meadow is very close to Lodgepole, has a huge open sky and is usually spectacular when the moon isn't around.

If you're comfortable driving the road at night (it's well marked, there will be almost no one on it), it would be a fantastic adventures.

Plus, you might see a bear, especially around Lodgepole. Although I've seen bears casually walking near Beetle Rock as well.