Star-Gazing on Exmoor - CANCELLED
6 people attending
4 places left
DUE TO WORSENING WEATHER FORECAST FOR THE AREA - THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELLED.
The Perseids Meteor Shower is at its peak this weekend.
Exmoor National Park was Europe's first designated Dark Skies Reserve so we're going to take advantage of it with a Night Hike on the moor.
The main focus of this will be star gazing and so it'll be a realitively short hike to a good viewing point and then a lot of standing around and watching the celestial fireworks!
The meteor shower peaks after midnight - so be prepared for around 3-4 hours of walking and standing in the dark!
There will be a thin Crescent Moon tonight which will set quite early - meaning that, as long as there's no clouds, it should be a perfect night to see the stars above.
The meteor shower peaks after midnight - so be prepared for around 3-4 hours of walking and standing in the dark!
Aiming to finish off at 2am ish - depending on what the rest of the group want to do though.
If it's been an amazing night and we're happy to stay out longer, Twilight starts at around 3.30am and Sunrise will be just before 5am if you feel you can stay awake for that!
What to bring
Night Hike Kit List
- Good Ankle Supporting Hiking Boots - Complusory!
- Head Torch - Complusory!
- Backup Torch
- Red-Light Torch
- Spare Batteries for all torches!
- Hot Food and Drink (Soup, Coffee, Tea)
- Packed Lunch
- Water
- Light Rucksack
- Warm Clothing - layers to add/remove including hat and gloves!
- Mobile Phone
Although generally a standard day walk kitlist will cover this event, strong ankle support hiking boots are complusory (no trainers).
Also complusory : Torches.
Please bring a Headtorch for while we're hiking and it is strongly recommended that you bring an additional standard torch in case you need it and ALSO a red-light torch (such as a rear bike light).
The red-light torch will be better for when we stop and are Star Gazing as it stops your eyes getting dazzled - which will take up to 10 mins to recover from.
As we're out at night - it will be colder than during the day. And we'll also be standing around a lot as well. So, please bring plenty of warm clothes including hat and gloves to keep warm.
You may also wish to bring binoculars or a telescope with you. If you do, please remember we will be doing a bit of hiking - so much sure they're portable!
Mobile Phone? Really? Yes - really. Check your app store in advance and you'll find there's quite a few star gazing apps available such as Night Sky which can show you precisely what you're seeing above you. That can make the whole experience more enjoyable for you.
Food & drink
Hot food and drink is recommended for this (Coffee, Tea, Soup). There will be a lot of standing around in the dark waiting for things to happen.
Other usual packed-lunch goodies are also recommended.
Also, just to make it clear, strictly no alcohol!