Dark sky park pennsylvania. Pago offers expert elk viewing tips road trips special events and more. Among the massive 262000 acre susquehannock state forest the tiny unassuming cherry springs state park is surprisingly the darkest place in the eastern united states. The cherry springs rustic campground is open the second friday of april through the last weekend in october.
For the best viewing you need to find an area well away from city or street lights. And around the world parks are achieving certification from the international dark sky association ida an organization that calls attention to light pollution. Our grandparents remember what dark skies looked likeand at cherry springs state park you can experience the sky as they did.
The park is open every day of the year. Springs state park consistently rated one of the 7 best places on the planet for stargazing. On a clear night up to 30000 stars fill the sky and lucky guests may also glimpse asteroids venus the evening star aurora borealis the northern lights omega nebula zodiacal light meteor showers lunar viewing and the milky way and other celestial bodies.
Cherry springs state park is an 82 acre 33 ha pennsylvania state park in potter county pennsylvania united statesthe park was created from land within the susquehannock state forest and is on pennsylvania route 44 in west branch townshipcherry springs named for a large stand of black cherry trees in the park is atop the dissected allegheny plateau at an elevation of 2300 feet 701 m. The state park system designated cherry springs as a dark sky park one of a small but growing number of parks around the country dedicated to preserving the night sky and offering stargazers a. Night sky enthusiasts flock to the park for its dark skies which are famous for great views of the milky way planets and hard to see astronomical objects and phenomena.
The pennsylvania great outdoors pago provides traveler resources and itineraries for a 6 county region that covers the south western portion of the dark skies landscape that includes sinnemahoning state park and wildlife center. Visitors travel far and wide to the parks astronomy field which offers magnificent unobstructed 360 degree views of tens of thousands of stars and their constellations. One of the top dark sky destinations in the world and the gold level dark sky park designation from the international dark sky association to prove it cherry springs presents skies for studying gazing or gaining a better understanding of our place in the universe.
Cherry springs state park located in coudersport pa has exceptionally dark skies with very little light pollution making it one of the darkest places on the east coast. Just outside of coudersport pennsylvania youll find star spangled cherry.