Stargazing & meteor showers

Up on the mountains above Lake Elsinore, Morgan Trailhead traverses to a south facing lookout area ideal for stargazing during a new moon.

Light pollution from Elsinore was still visible from this area, but overall conditions were pretty fair for stargazing in Orange County. Morgan Trailhead hike is moderate with a little up and down, total of 900 ft. elevation gain. At the end of the climb we found a flat grassland perfect for sitting out, nibbling a snack, and viewing the cosmos.

During the watch my friend Jim and I took these photos of the sky. We didn’t see many meteors with the naked eye, but we could see the Milky Way and some planets shining brightly. Jim got a photo of Jupiter and several moons with his telephoto lens. I met Ryan who was also capturing some sick photos with high Google Pixel. He also had a good sense of humor and actually tried some stand up.

We came across some nocturnal creatures including a scorpion and spiders that had green glowing eyes.

The headlamps dimmed down on the return, and we penetrated deeper and deeper into the heart of darkness.