• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Being Tazim

Vancouver Food, Lifestyle, & Travel Blog

  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Wellness
  • Lifestyle
  • Interior Design
  • Travel
  • Organization
You are here: Home / Travel / McDonald Observatory Ft. Davis Texas Travel

McDonald Observatory Ft. Davis Texas Travel

by Tazim Damji

Sharing is caring!

  • Share
  • Tweet

Mcdonald observatory

A place located in the middle of nowhere can be hard to find under the darkest night skies. The McDonald Observatory located on Davis Mountain top in Ft. Davis, Texas was a welcome treat at the end of a long day in the hot West Texas  heat.

Greg and I were quite tired after driving for 5 hours (from 5am) to get to Marfa, to spend the day touring the Chinati Foundation, and then driving an hour to Ft. Davis where we were to spend the night. Sure, we could have happily stayed in our hotel room for some shut-eye (before another 4 hour drive to Midland the next early morning), but, we’d booked in advance (which you must do to secure a spot), for the star party.

mcdonald observatory
Driving for, what seemed like, hours up a very windy road—up, up, up the mountain-top, our first glimpse of the observatory was a massive telescope in the distance. As we neared the parking lot we witnessed our 2nd West Texas sunset (as seen in the first photo). That sunset, the landscape and the giant telescopes we saw on the hillside made us feel like we were in a special place. This place really was special—The McDonald Observatory boasts the darkest night skies of any observatory in the continental USA.

The star party we signed up for was all about star gazing—not in an ordinary way, but with extremely powerful telescopes set up on top of the mountain. A research unit of The University of Texas at Austin and located in the Davis Mountains of West Texas, the McDonald Observatory has programs running throughout the day for children (including school groups), and adults. Visitors can get a joint ticket to see through the telescopes both during the day and again at night. If we’d had more time—and this is certainly something we’ll do when we go back again—we would have spent a whole day there.

Typically, it gets dark around 8pm (for September, when we were there), but there was some cloud cover, which was apparently quite rare, so we had to wait an hour to start the star party. In the meantime, we sat in the lecture hall and ‘learnt’ about stars, the galaxy etc. While it was interesting, and I do love learning, the presentation was a bit elementary—probably because it was usually presented to elementary school students. Still, I did enjoy the rest of the star party.

There were about 4 telescopes available to look through—2 in massive indoor domed things with very powerful telescopes, and 2 others outside for nearer stars. The telescopes were repositioned several times during the time we were there (about 2 hours total) so people could continue to enjoy star gazing. On a clearer night we would have been able to see extremely far, in to the past—because by the time the light from the stars reaches us the stars may not actually be around anymore.

Looking up at the night sky through those telescopes, in the middle of nowhere in West Texas was quite humbling. I felt a bit like Jodie Foster’s character in ‘Contact’, who was lost for words when she was finally able to go out in to space.

Admission: The Star Party costs $12 for adults and $8 for children. Check rates for other activities and get more info on the McDonald Observatory website.

Recommended for: The whole family, anyone interested in stars and planets

Related Posts

  • Top Choices for Travel Destinations in 2018Top Choices for Travel Destinations in 2018
  • West Texas Vacation Guide (for Lovers of Nature, Art, and Culture)West Texas Vacation Guide (for Lovers of Nature, Art, and Culture)
  • Red Home Decor Shop Tour— Fredericksburg TexasRed Home Decor Shop Tour— Fredericksburg Texas
  • Rue Magazine Texas EditionRue Magazine Texas Edition
  • BoConcept Dallas Design District Store Tour BoConcept Dallas Design District Store Tour

Filed Under: Travel Tagged With: Texas

About Tazim Damji

Tazim Damji is a permaculture gardener and certified holistic nutritionist from Vancouver, Canada. She is passionate about photography, vegan food, and gardening. Read more posts by Tazim. Visit her food and adventure blog Celebrate Life's Adventures Connect with Tazim via Twitter or on Facebook .

Previous Post: « Jewelry Inspired by Once Upon a Time—Gift Guide
Next Post: Designing With Light—Philips LED Bulbs Transform Rooms »

Reader Interactions

A beginner's guide to growing herbs

Comments

  1. tazimd says

    at

    This is a really special planetarium—not like many others I've been to.

  2. Sarah Coulsey says

    at

    What a beautiful view!!!! I wish I lived near it!!!

    • tazimd says

      at

      I can't wait to go back to West Texas—it is so beautiful there!

  3. Lisa Weidknecht says

    at

    Love that first photo! I went to the Bee Cave observatory years ago and got to see Saturn through a telescope. Talk about goosebumps!!!!

  4. Janet K says

    at

    This looks amazing!!
    My recent post <span>Special Feature: </span>MEGA Blog Ad Campaign Giveaway!!

  5. jenjenk says

    at

    i can only imagine how long that drive must've been!! I only drove a couple hours from midland and thought I was traveling to the edge of the earth! sorry I missed this place! 🙁

    • tazimd says

      at

      It was strangely nice to feel like I was in the middle of nowhere—was a nice break from Vancouver, which is so densely packed. The drive did feel long though, especially because I'm the only driver and I was SO tired!

  6. Darcy says

    at

    Oh that would be a great place to visit or have as a school trip!

  7. Coiurtney Mroch says

    at

    I have to agree with others who said, "fabulous view" and "good place for a field trip" (even without kids along. what a neat place to go see!)
    My recent post Movie Monday: Finnair Flight Crew Caught Doing Some Very Happy Dancing

    • tazimd says

      at

      Thanks four your comment – I agree that this is a great place with or without kids!

Primary Sidebar

About:

Being Tazim Blog Vancouver Canada Lifestyle BlogI'm Tazim, a 40-year-old Vancouverite who is passionate about adventure, learning new things, and making connections. Content on Being Tazim ranges from smart ideas for plant-based cooking and baking to ways to enjoy life's experiences, to inspiration and information on attractions and travel destinations near and far. Read the full story here.

some tips on how to combat holiday season stress and anxiety, it’s time to take action. The holidays are a wonderful time of the year, but they can also be extremely stressful. 
How To Warmly Welcome Holiday Houseguests
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Footer

Let’s Connect!

Hey there! I'm Tazim and I'm a lifestyle, food, and travel writer and photographer. I inspire, motivate, and encourage my audience to explore their immediate surroundings and those further afield. I do this by sharing plant-based food recipes, ways to enhance my readers' homes and lives, and local and other attractions/travel destinations I experience. You can find my stories and adventures on my other blog Celebrate Life's Adventures Read more about me. . .

Being Tazim contains advertising banners and some contextual affiliate links. An affiliate link means I receive commission on sales of the products or services that are linked to in my posts. So, if you click on a link and make a purchase from an affiliate site, then I may make a commission from that purchase. I only work with affiliates I genuinely love and fit my brand.

Amazon Associates Disclosure

Tazim Damji is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Copyright © 2023 · Foodie Pro Theme by · Shay Bocks Genesis Framework · Built on the WordPress