Things are looking up again in Travel and particularly in starry Pyrenees and Tenerife.
The sky truly is the limit, and beyond, up there in the mountains of France and the Canary Islands.
Just pick your time when you’re going up, up and away to Le Pic du Midi.
Of course this dreamer had his head in the clouds when he returned to the Pyrenees from Lourdes.
And I saw nothing through the mist though that may have as much to do with the vin I imbibed at Le 2877.
I was reliably informed by my Travel Partner in Jim, the inimitable Jim Gallagher, that the stars do come out at night.
As Big Jim had stayed over at the top of the world.
Where he got to open the curtains onto a Twinkle Twinkle Little Star world.
Sahara bumpity
Of course it’s the one thing we all share in common, the Milky Way around us.
And it’s the most spectacular free light show.
And a silver lining when you’re inconvenienced in the conveniences of a Sahara Desert malfunctioning open-roofed toilet.
With the roof off and me fixed to a seat when the rest of our party were sleeping in their tents (avoid Atlas Mountain roadside cafe tagines) I got to see shooting stars and the sunrise.
It might have been Morocky in Morocco but that was a highlight.
Tidy in Mount Teide
I went one better out in Tenerife on Mount Teide in Tenerife some years later, all in the company of one of those nutty astronomers we all love.
Through our telescope we saw Uranus (stop sniggering up the back)!
All of which came flooding back with the release of some of the best places to go star-spotting by vision care experts Lenstore.
They have analysed 29 locations across the globe to determine the greatest stargazing spots.
It’s all based on the visibility of stars due to low light pollution and their popularity according to monthly search volume data.
And here is what they found…
France, Spain, Ireland and Germany dominate the rankings in Europe for stellar stargazing spots.
Yes, with Pic du Midi with a light pollution level of 0.12 and a total monthly search volume of 30…
It’s enough to make you want to dance.
Tenerife and La Palma take the second and third spots.
They boast an extremely low light pollution level of -0.01 on average making the stars most visible.
And for those wanting to travel further afield, Mauna Kea on the island of Hawaii takes is the best location globally for stargazersf.
And that’s thanks to its low levels of light pollution (-0.03).
How highie Hawaii?
All of which is why my old scientific pal from Italian classes in Edinburgh took himself out there to their observatory to gaze for himself.
No, didn’t get there yet or master Italian to any level but that’s a different story.
So, all you fellow stargazers check out the list for yourself and get squinting through a lens.
Maybe see you there, whether it’s the starry Pyrenees or Tenerife.
