Rocky Hills Ranch
Star Guide – Summer 1991
For thousand so years people have grouped the stars together into figures – “constellations.”  The custom probably goes back to when men spent many of their nights under the stars, watching sheep or tending cattle.
They noticed, for example, two bright stars close together and got to thinking of the story of Castor and Pollux, twin brothers who loved each other dearly.
Castor was killed in battle, and Pollux in his grief asked Jupiter to let him share the same fate.
So what was more appropriate than that the great god Jupiter should take pity on him and put the Gemini twins up in the sky where they could be together for all time?
To learn some of the constellations, all you need is a good starting point.
Let the pointers of the Big Dipper guide you to the North Star.
Look around it and you’ll notice that the North Star belongs at the end of the handle of a smaller dipper:  The Little dipper.
During tonight’s outing to BigFoot Ridge we are going to start our stargazing by looking for the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper.
As the evening progresses, we will learn to locate several major star groups or constellations.
Please, remember not to wander off from the rest of the group.  The trails are dark and it is easy to get lost if you are not familiar with the area.