I am absolutely fond of finding those 'secret' places.  I was told of one recently and found it on the map, made my way at 4am to find the space for a sunrise service which was amazing.  The mist coming off the lake rolling around over the lake, finally catching the sun and lighting up the sky in orange and red.  Quiet and serene, surely this is one of those spots to keep secret.  But it wasn't all that secret.

It seems NO matter how many times I read that 'Leave NO Trace' sheet up on the trail head map board, I still find Trash!  and lot of it.  Trash everywhere!  Junk, bottles, cigarette buts, clearly left behind and intentionally so.  Sometimes I will find something dropped and non recoverable.  Having lost an item or two like that, it is understandable, but my empty bottles, wrappers, boxes, bags and junk all go in a bag back into my pack to pack back out!  This 'Secret' place was a dump, literally, a dump of the remains of a party,  Red solo cup, they filled you up and had a party, and they left you behind.  poor Solo cup, and Poor me!  Honestly what is the sense of keeping a place secret if people are going to go in and leave a mess. 

Same day, hours later, I went up to Baldface Mountain.  I was really nervous as the parking lot was so full, the cars on the road lined up for a good long way.  The opposite of a secret spot, Baldface was a favorite for many.  the views from the summit are spectacular!  I stayed in the shelter for the night so I could not only see the sunset, but also experience the sunrise.  Amazing, and also amazing that this is a practical Highway!  So many pass through and by every day, yet the amount of trash which is still there was Much Much less.  Even the composting toilet had little trash around it.

So why keep it a secret, That just invited those looking to get away with something.  Make it well known and I think the enjoyment can be spread around more, and the level of enjoyment might actually go up!  I must say I am so fed up with the Junk people toss aside.  empty water bottles are a frequent addition to the landscape which to me is a real tragedy. 

Leave ONLY foot prints

Take ONLY photographs,

Bring out what you brought in, in order to Leave NO trace.

And Leave NO trace so You and your children can enjoy the space for generations to come, Unless you really enjoy the dump, but then you wouldn't have to travel as far I suppose.

moonrise slow I think that in another 50 years, this video won't be able to be made.  There is an intrusion of light pollution, Light pollution travels for SO many miles.  The little towns are not the problem, but the sprawl of the urban areas will one day light up this section of the sky as well.  This was just about 5 days after the full moon, so there is a short time with NO moon, then the partial moon lights up both the sky, but the landscape as well.  Beautiful!  Look and see if you can see the shooting stars, they are faint, and numerous, but only last for one frame,  the planes last for several.