Piney Woods Dark Sky Retreat is a 5 acre space in Eastern Washington about 15 minutes north of Goldendale that is owned by the club and solely for use by club members. This region is known for some of the darkest skies in Washington state. Goldendale is home of a observatory that is run by the state park system. South of Goldendale, above the Columbia river, is the WWI monument for fallen soldiers, a full size replica of Stonehenge.
From March through October, if the weather is cooperative, we hold a new moon star party at the site. This event usually runs for 4 nights.
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Telescope Field
Our initial telescope field is about half the size of a football field. There is a gravel drive that goes halfway around the field. Grass was seeded in the fall and has started to come up. We seeded it again in the spring.
Even though Goldendale is only 15 minutes away the site is isolated from any surrounding lights.
This is a dry camping site and as such you need to bring everything with you (water, tent, food, garbage bags). Like in scouting, take with you what you brought. We do have a limited number of 4'x4'x3' storage spaces available for seasonal rent in our storage container so you don't have to keep hauling your stuff from Seattle. More details below.
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The site has a 10'x10' shed that we have fixed up and it is called the Sky Lodge with comfy chairs and a propane heater to help you warm up on those chilly nights. We also have 2 porta-potties, a standard unit and a very large ADA unit.
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We periodically have work parties to expand the site and make it more enjoyable to use.
There are currently 2 spaces setup for RVs to use, that can be reserved ahead of time. There is a solar powered battery bank and internet connectivity for members to use. There is a propane barbecue.
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The club has secured some nice instruments to use out at the site that can be reserved. One is a Takahashi 130, a 20" Obsession Classic dobsonian, and an Orion XT12g. There are a couple of other telescopes that are first come, first serve. To reserve either a RV space or a piece of equipment please email darkskysite@seattleastro.org.
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The last structure is a 40' storage container. This has a bench for repairing telescopes, basic tools, and 16 spaces that club members can rent out annually to store camping gear or telescopes in. Each space is available for $150 and all proceeds go to support site maintenance.
