Coming up on four weeks after bruising my fibia on a stool, and I’m getting to the point where I can walk for a few minutes without much of a limp. Five minutes is fine, but 10 triggers the need to get my leg up until the feeling of painful pressure goes away. After that I’m good to go again, but I find it easier to alternate intervals of rest and motion every five minutes. I’m slower, but still functional, and I keep telling myself that I’m a little better every day. I’m only slightly convinced.

Sitting down mostly works, so I get everything ready in fits and starts, then work for a while at a minor project. So far I’ve managed to get much more of the SQA 130 set up, but I can’t stagger jauntily over to the observatory with it, and the weather (hot) and the forest fire smoke (excessive) have not been helping. Once it’s assembled it’s a little heavier than expected, so the final set up and alignment will have to wait until my recovery is more advanced.

I’ve started on a side project which should be a little easier to handle. I ordered a ToupTek GS-250 scope a while back. It’s nominally a guide scope at 50mm aperture and f/5, with better optics than you might expect from a guide scope, and a rack & pinion focuser which can handle an EAF (there’s a Crawford Focuser option, but the R&P is supposed to be better with the EAF and the price is the same for either option). The optical spec is the same as for a SeeStar S50., so I’m going to team it up with a Player One Neptune one-shot color camera, stick it on a Juwei 17 mount, and see how the combo stacks up against the SeeStar. Let’s hope the wildfires cooperate!

Finally, I’ve ordered an MLAstro SAL-33, with delivery approaching, and i expect to mount the SQA 130 on it and get away from city lights again. I was hoping to be able to give the full assembly first light at Starfest this year, but I’m not considering risking my still-wobbly footing on the slightly uneven ground there, so unless things improve on that front I’ll be breaking a figurative champagne bottle at the cottage observatory instead.

Speaking of which, the latest dark sky assessment seems to have raised the Bortle level at my cottage from 2 to 3, so I may have to look around for a darker site for occasional expeditions around Georgian Bay. There’s a summer ferry which goes further north from Tobermory (to Manitoulin Island) and Manitoulin Eco & Dark Sky Preserve (formerly Gordon’s Park) looks promising on the island. On the Bruce/Saugeen Peninsula itself the Singing Sands may be an option, though it’s nominally a day-use location only (i.e., closed at night, probably at sunset). In all of these locations, parking fees (and possibly others for overnight) apply.

But for now, my weekend’s shot, I suppose. I’m not going anywhere!