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FAQ's

  • Writer: Luke
    Luke
  • Aug 30, 2019
  • 6 min read

Updated: Jul 20, 2023

an updated FAQ can be found here: https://www.astrotours.org/post/updated-frequently-asked-questions-faqs


Please note these FAQs are for the Boulder tour for questions about Winter Park please reach out to wpguides@winterparkresort.com


How do I book? Just visit astrotours.org/booking Could you add room for an extra person or two?


I usually can make room for a few extra on most tours, just contact me at luke@astrotours.org to be sure.


Can you add availability on a certain day?

I usually can add a tour to days that are not listed on my calendar, as long as the request is made well ahead of time (this usually requires contacting more than a week before the desired date, the more advance the request is given the more likely I will be able to accommodate it. just contact me at luke@astrotours.org to be sure. What is the Address?


Please only come out to the site if you have a confirmed booking, walk ups are rejected if the tour is full. For Boulder: If you look up "Boulder Valley Ranch Trailhead" In Google maps is the best way to find it. Unfortunately, the address I have for the place gets people lost more often than not. The address is 3900 Longhorn Rd DO NOT put this address in tom-tom, apple maps, or any GPS without making sure it is the same place that comes up when you google "Boulder Valley Ranch Trailhead" and/or in the location map given by AirBnB.




To be extra sure you can send me a screenshot of the GPS location and I will tell you if it's right.


How much is a tour?


Prices are listed here: https://www.astrotours.org/discounts


I’d like to know more about the tour:

Tours start at sunset and last 2hrs. I start with a talk about the telescopes and looking at a few twilight objects. Then there's a 30 to 45min astronomy talk where, I will teach you how to navigate with the stars, point out some constellations with my lazer and share their stories as we let our eyes adjust to the night. Next is ~45 min of telescope time where we get to look at: planets, constellations, satellites, nebula, clusters, galaxies, maybe some shooting stars, and our universe. I end with a 15min q&a and a last few objects (I love looking at things in the telescopes so, guests are free to stay as late as they like and I will keep pointing telescopes at things, answering questions, and talking, as long as there's an audience).


What’s the Weather looking like?:



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How I read Weather.gov 's chart


What happens when the weather looks bad?


I give as much heads up as possible if it is looking like it might be cloudy 3 to 4 days out: Don't panic, weather reports are notoriously wrong here in Colorado. I don't make any calls until the day before the tour, and I will keep my eye on it as the day gets closer.


If I see a tour day isn’t looking that clear 3-4 days out I send a message warning guests and advising on days that have better weather and has room to add extra guests.


I offer worry free booking so if you wish to rebook or refund your tour at anytime that is 100% fine. I also guarantee satisfaction with my tour so if you do come and we are clouded out or for any reason you are not satisfied, just let me know and I'll issue a full refund.

I'll keep you posted if the forecast changes in the next few days


1 to 2 days before the tour: If the weather report hasn’t changed much and it is a day or two before the tour send a message informing guests that cancellation is likely and offering days to rebook.

I might hold off officially calling the tour off if it looks to be clearing a little, in hopes it will continue to clear.

I often will add an additional tour on a day which looks to be the more clear at this point and encourage anyone that’s able to rebook to do so

Within 24hrs of the tour:If the weather is still cloudy, we will have to cancel

If you are unable to rebook I will put your refund in shortly after letting you know it has ben canceled, let me know if you do not receive a refund within 24hrs.

Is there any hiking or walking involved?


Nope, No hiking required. the Tour takes place a trailhead parking lot, you will be less than 75ft from your car, and the ground is flat. I provide chairs for you to sit in during most of the show, and can assist you getting around if needed. Most of the telescopes require standing to use, however I can show the same things in more accessible telescopes if needed, and you will be able to sit during telescope time if needed as well. Please let me know if more wheelchair accessible telescopes are needed. What is your drug/alcohol policy?


This is a family program and drinking and smoking is not permitted at the sight. Showing up sober is recommended. If you are planning on getting intoxicated prior to the tour being stoned is recommended over being drunk. full details are here: https://www.astrotours.org/post/drug-and-alcohol-policy



I will be staying in Denver how should I get to the tour?


The tour is located right off hwy-36 which leaves north-west out of Denver. It is about 25 Miles outside of Denver right outside of Boulder (a ~suburb of Denver).


If you are planning on doing my tour and staying in Denver (without a car) I suggest taking the Flatiron Flyer, a nice & fast bus that will take you from downtown Denver to downtown Boulder for $5.50, you will then need to Uber the last 4 miles to the site of the tour. Uber/Lyft will pick up and drop off at the sight.


If you are visiting from out of state I would recommend making a day out of visiting boulder, coming in the morning and seeing Boulder. Boulder is a cultural, natural, and economic hub of the greater Denver area. Most things are within walking distance. My top places are Chautauqua park, Pearl St Mall, and the celestial seasoning's tea factory.

Is this show suitable for children?


All ages are welcome! I just warn parents of young children: this is a late night show geared for a developed mind requiring a good attention span, little ones often fall asleep. As 2 year olds will probably be asleep the whole time, I offer it free to babies 2 and under.


Will there be cell phone reception?


Yes, I’ve never had a guest have trouble getting a phone signal at the sight. All major networks have coverage. If necessary I can provide tethering via my phone if needed.

Can I give a tour as a Gift? Yes, definitely! I have a few ways you could gift a tour:


You can buy a gift card here: https://www.astrotours.org/gift


You can communicate with the recipient and book the night they want.

I keep a physical calendar which I use to make notes and edits on. If you book a night and they say they want a different night I can just note the change on my calendar.

Let me know the occasion as I have special things for anniversaries and birthdays. should we come earlier? If you want to come earlier to see the telescopes in the daylight and ask questions, ~15min before the show starts, I usually talk about the telescopes as a bonus for anyone that's early but I won't start the actual show till after the start time. Are Dogs welcome?:

Dogs are welcome! They are required to be on a leash at the trail head so my main concern is that you watch your dog to be sure the leash isn't tangled around a tripod (or knocking over a telescope). I love dogs and am excited to have them on the tour! What telescope should I buy?

For back yard I'd say a Dobsonian telescope and for camping/travel/etc a Schmitt-cassigrain. don't get anything smaller than a 4 inch telescope (smaller than 4inch would just be a toy for looking at the moon, you're better off with a pair of binoculars).


Honestly just starting with a good set of binoculars is a great way to go. you will be impressed with what you can see in binos and if you do get a telescope they're nice to find what you want to point a telescope at. get (15 to 20)X(60 to 40). first # is zoom more zoom makes it harder to use The second number is aperture the bigger the better but harder to carry so 60 would be for in a car 40 would be for on a hike with ~50 being a good middle ground.

There's a few more options, but those are good rules of thumb.

 
 
 

Art Showing!

  • Writer: Luke
    Luke
  • Dec 30, 2018
  • 3 min read

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Hope everyone had an amazing holiday season and are geared up to have a happy new year! I'm excited that I have gotten the opportunity to put up some of my paintings at the Market on Laimer Square. If you're free New Years Day and want to come down to the market around 6p I'll be there with a cheese plate and maybe some wine showing my work. If not it will be up for the next 2 months so swing by to check them out before the end of February.


Here are some of my works that will be on display and for sale at the Market. Most of the pictures do not do the real thing justice as I use metallic and neon paints which play with the light which isn't conveyed on a screen as well as in person.



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Grand Planetary Spring

Grand Planetary Spring

Here the Grand Prismatic Spring of Yellowstone National Park (the largest hot spring in the United States) is re-imagined as a planetary nebula (such as the Ring Nebula)



Grand Prismatic Spring M57 - Ring Nebula



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Wanderlust

Wanderlust

In film little green men often forcibly take unsuspecting folks and share with them the secrets of the universe. In my experience the secrets of the universe are rarely forced upon you. Here a path has been extended to you offering a wondrous journey for those brave enough to take it. Who knows what’s at the end, maybe there is no end and the path is an infinity symbol with an illusion of being broken. If you tilt your head you might find the path to be my initials L.H.



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Night Dive at Koh Ha

Night Dive at Koh Ha

Koh Ha (meaning 5 islands) is a set of tropical islands in the Andaman Sea. The islands protected by Thailand as a National Marine Park offering amazing diving and snorkeling opportunities. The Long-tail boat is the most popular boat of Thailand. While there are many differences among all of the boats in Thailand, they all share the decorations on the bow of the boats. This area has usually been blessed by a Buddhist monk and will be covered in ribbon and hanging garlands of flowers as an offering to Mae Yanang, the goddess of safe journey, for good luck and protection



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Croydon

Croydon

Many Aboriginal constellations focus on the dark parts between the stars (example: ‘the Emu in the Sky’) rather than connecting the stars as European explorers did (example: the southern cross). Using the style of Indigenous rock painting particularly stencil art, using the motif of a hand print. Here we have a handprint in the sky. Within the handprint is a tiny paw print representing Croydon a kitten I saved from the Australian outback (or rather I saved the outback from the kitten as cats are invasive and devastating to Australia's ecosystem).



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Christmas Comet

Christmas Comet

As you might have seen in my last blog post Comet 46P/Wirtanen a green comet that graced our skies, peaking on December 16th, became known to many as the x-mas comet because of the proximity to the holidays. I was lucky enough to get a photo of it (shown here) and track it down in a telescope during one of my tours. Here Santa is chasing it as he makes his deliveries.



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One of my photos of the x-mas comet. you might notice the head of Taurus in the bottom left hand corner

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Cactus at Moonrise

Cactus at Moonrise

My take on Bob Ross’s Joy of Painting S8E10 “Cactus at Sunset” I have changed the sunset to a moonrise (making the perspective looking east rather than west, or maybe my happy little world spins the other direction). Many hidden treasures can be found by inspecting this painting with different lighting (e.g. a black light)



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The Rainbow Connection


The Rainbow Connection

Why are there so many paintings with rainbows and what's on the other side? From the mountains to the stars many rainbows can be found in this painting. Rainbows are visions, but only illusions, and rainbows have nothing to hide. Like a prism the white path in this painting is bringing out all of the vibrant colors of the landscape. What's so amazing that keeps us stargazing and what do we think we might see? Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection The lovers, the dreamers and me


Hope to see you there! As I said there will be more than this at the Market and the pictures don't pickup the metallic and neon paints well.


If you want to come to the opening I have made a facebook event with more details here: https://www.facebook.com/events/2092872241024477/

 
 
 

Help save Utah's dark skies

  • Writer: Luke
    Luke
  • Nov 12, 2018
  • 6 min read

Updated: Jan 12, 2019

UPDATE: the time to comment for both parks has passed. Thank you to all of those that helped by telling the NPS to keep these parks dark! Please continue to fight light pollution.

UPDATE: the time to comment for Bears Ears has passed but the deadline for Grand Staircase is on November 30th.



Hello all, this post is a little outside of my average content, I will have a post about Mars coming in the next few days.


I wanted to take the time to compel you to comment on the future of Bears Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase National Monument. As you may be aware President Trump has signed an executive order to reduce the size of these two National Monuments. There are many reasons to be against this move (it questions the security of everything protected by the Antiques Act, it opens YOUR public lands to be used and abused for private profits, it threatens sites important to Native peoples, threatens sites rich in fossils, archaeology and our natural history), but I urge you to comment because it also threatens the amazing dark sky above these parks.


Light pollution is a major side-effect of development and human activity, it compromises health, disrupts ecosystems and spoils aesthetic environments. Opening these lands to more flexibility in use will undermine the protection these parks were to provide for visitors from the ground below your feet to the heavens above your head.



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VIIRS 2018 light pollution data red=bright blue=dark skies. No Chicago did not move to North Dakota without telling anyone that large bright patch is caused by human activity and fracking.

Comments are open right now! the comment time for Bears Ears ends November 15th 2018 and for Grand Staircase it ends November 30th 2018 so comment soon!



Grand Staircase - comment here URL: https://eplanning.blm.gov/epl-front-office/eplanning/planAndProjectSite.do?methodName=renderDefaultPlanOrProjectSite&projectId=94706


There are plenty of resources available to help you craft a comment if you search. I found a good one here


If you want a quick template of what to say you may use this one I made:



________________________Grand Staircase_____________________________


title: protect GSENM

chapter: 2

Section: 1 A


Dear Matt Betenson and all who are concerned with the future of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, I wanted to take the time to comment on the future of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. My name is {name here} and I am concerned with the future of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument under the current proposed plans.

Please go forward with alternative A (current management/no action) to continue to grant the highest possible protection to Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM) and refrain from shrinking the monument.


I wish you to continue to grant the highest possible protection to Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and refrain from shrinking the monument.


Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is important to me because..... {add your reasons here ( i.e. lessening protection would: threaten the amazing dark sky above Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, questions the security of everything protected by the Antiques Act, open OUR public lands to be used and abused for private profits, threaten sites important to Native peoples, threaten sites rich in fossils, archaeological and natural history)}.


Opening Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument to more flexibility in use will undermine the protection Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument was to provide for visitors for the ground below their feet to the heavens above their head.


I wish to compel you to do everything you can in order to protect the future of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument holds thousands of years of human history, over 200 million years of natural history and holds a pristine window to see over 13 billion years of history in the sky above. Let our actions today continue to preserve this history.


Thank you,

{add full name and address *they won't accept it with out personal identifying info*}

I request my personal identifying information be withheld from public review.



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VIIRS 2017 light pollution map of Grand Staircase-Escalante N.M.



My comment for Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is here if you wish to take from it:


On Tuesday, November 13, 2018 3:17 PM, Astrotours <astrotours@protonmail.com> wrote:
Comment Title: protect dark sky above GSENM
Comment:
Dear Matt Betenson and all who are concerned with the future of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, I wanted to take the time to comment on the future of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. My name is Luke XXXXXX I am concerned with the future of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument under the current proposed plans.
please go forward with alternative A (current management/no action) to continue to grant the highest possible protection to Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM) and refrain from shrinking the monument.
As I'm sure you've heard a number of reasons to continue to grant the highest possible protection to Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument ( i.e. lessening protection would: questions the security of everything protected by the Antiques Act, open OUR public lands to be used and abused for private profits, threaten sites important to Native peoples, threaten sites rich in fossils, archaeological and natural history). I agree with all of these reasons however I am urged to comment because lessening protection would also threaten the amazing dark sky above Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument .
Light pollution is a major side-effect of development and human activity, it compromises health, disrupts ecosystems and spoils aesthetic environments. Opening GSENM to more flexibility in use will undermine the protection these parks were to provide for visitors for the ground below their feet to the heavens above their head. Shrinking the size of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument would diminish the ability of the monument to protect the night sky above it as human activity even 50 miles away will harm the beauty of the stars above. Currently the size of the park allows a large dark central core which is perfect for educational, research, and recreational astronomy/astrophotography.
deally I would like to see a protection zone which extends 50 miles from park boundaries where anthropogenic light is limited so that all of the park will have the same brilliance in the night sky as the central core currently experiences. However I am grateful for the protection the monument currently has and will fight any attempts to diminish this protection.
Utah's dark skies are an important asset for Utah's Economy. I am a business owner, I run AstroTours.org which provides Astronomy education services to the Colorado front range and am looking into expanding to neighboring states including Utah. I take trips to visit my public lands in Utah 2 to 4 times a year in order to take in the untouched natural beauty Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and surrounding areas have to offer both on and above their surface. I am part of a large community drawn to Utah's public lands for astronomy/astrophotography.
Not only do professional/amateur Astronomers know of the reputation of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument as a location with amazing stars but it's a big calling card for the general public. I have yet to find a tourist publication for Utah that lacks a shot of the milky way over the land (many of which I reconize as being taken in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument ), I have even seen large billboards in downtown Denver that feature an amazing milky way shot above the buttes of Utah. Loosing the unspoiled skies above Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument will have an effect on the surrounding tourist industry.
I wish to compel you to do everything you can in order to protect the future of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument . Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument holds thousands of years of human history, over 200 million years of natural history and holds a pristine window to see over 13 billion years of history in the sky above. Let our actions today continue to preserve this history.
Luke Elevated Astronomy Tours, AstroTours.org Phone:303.324.5831 Email: AstroTours@protonmail.com Address: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
I request my personal identifying information be withheld from public review.

Bear's ears comment time has passed thank you everyone that commented:


________________________ Bear's Ears_____________________________


Dear Lance Porter and all who are concerned with the future of Bears Ears National Monument,


I wanted to take the time to comment on the future of Bears Ears National Monument. My name is {name here} I am concerned with the future of Bears Ears National Monument.


As I wish you to continue to grant the highest possible protection to Bears Ears National Monument and refrain from shrinking the monument.


Bears Ears National Monument is important to me because..... {add your reasons here ( i.e. lessening protection would: threaten the amazing dark sky above Bears Ears National Monument, questions the security of everything protected by the Antiques Act, open OUR public lands to be used and abused for private profits, threaten sites important to Native peoples, threaten sites rich in fossils, archaeological and natural history)}.


Opening Bears Ears National Monument to more flexibility in use will undermine the protection Bears Ears National Monument were to provide for visitors for the ground below their feet to the heavens above their head.


I wish to compel you to do everything you can in order to protect the future of Bears Ears National Monument. Bears Ears National Monument holds thousands of years of human history, over 200 million years of natural history and holds a pristine window to see over 13 billion years of history in the sky above. Let our actions today continue to preserve this history.


Thank you,

{add full name and address *they won't accept it with out personal identifying info*}

I request my personal identifying information be withheld from public review.


These are your public lands. Please let them know what you think. Don't be intimidated by these documents.

 
 
 
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