I know many have a special fondness for the Cherry Road site for a summer observing site, but how many have considered Griffin ranch as an alternative ? Using the stack at I17 and I10 as a starting point it is 92 miles to the Cherry Road site and 107 miles to Griffin Ranch. The Griffin Ranch site is becoming a favorite for the east valley as the central Phoenix traffic does not slow the trip. I also know that some stay the night and others drive back to Phoenix after a night of observing. Using the Bortle Scale as a gauge Cherry Road is a Green site mag 6.2 to 6.5 where as Griffin Ranch is a Black site mag 7.1 to 7.5. The worst part of going to Griffin Ranch is climbing the mountain out of Superior to Globe, but one also has to negotiate the climb from Rock Springs to Sunset point to go to Cherry Road. I have been to both sites, and I must say that Griffin Ranch wins my vote Ken Sikes -- See message header for info on list archives or unsubscribing, and please send personal replies to the author, not the list.