The state park system in Georgia is a pretty active organization and I've begun attending events with them occasionally when they pique my interest. Tonight, I'm going to be borrowing one of Hard Labor Creek State Park's kayak's and paddling with a group out onto Lake Rutledge in an attempt to catch a view of a few meteors during the annual Draconid Meteor Shower. Unlike most which are generally better viewed in the early mornings, the Draconids are normally more active during the evening hours.
It's about an hours drive to reach the park from my home and I arrive about twenty minutes before the schedule put-in. After checking in and getting my gear set, I quickly choose a boat and prepare to launch into the lake. I choose to just step into the water, while others use a loading ramp. While we're in fall now, the lake water is still fairly warm.
With all of us in the water, we paddle out to the center and begin scanning the skies for shooting stars. Before too long, I sew one streak across the sky over the northern horizon. It's gone within a blink of the eye, but still wonderful to see. While we gaze, we paddle around the lake a bit more. I notice that the broad whiteish band of the Milky Way is just barely visible from here. There isn't a lot of true dark sky in this part of the country, but this is one of the better spots of found nearby. While not as bright and breathtaking as it is when viewed from Nevada or other areas out west, it's still great to see our home galaxy once again.
After about an hour on the lake, we start to head back into the dock and along the way, I catch a view of another meteor. This one was even quicker than the first, but still great to see. This certainly wasn't the best meteor shower I've ever seen, but it was nice just floating and looking up at the heavens for a while.
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