Barcroft this summer

[Philippe Fossier]

Is anyone planning to go up to the Barcroft Research station later this summer?

~ philippe

[Aris Pope]

When is the sign up?

Aris

On Sun, Mar 8, 2026, 10:59 AM Philippe Fossier <philippe...@gmail.com> wrote:

Is anyone planning to go up to the Barcroft Research station later this summer?

~ philippe

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[John Pierce]

On Sun, Mar 8, 2026 at 10:59 AM Philippe Fossier <philippe...@gmail.com> wrote:

Is anyone planning to go up to the Barcroft Research station later this summer?

afaik, they only have one open house a year, typically in mid October, the 2025 event calendar was released in June 

I don't think you need to sign up, just show up.   last years event was Oct 19 noon to 4pm.  keep an eye on this page for the announcement.

[Philippe Fossier]

This year, it will be Mon Aug 10 - Sat Aug 15 (New Moon Wed Aug 12).

You can reach out to Don Saito for signup details.

I signed up a while ago (going all 6 days).

I would be interested in finding out what precautions other attendees take to mitigate the risks associated with driving up the dirt road.

- do you all carry a spare wheel ?

- what other precautions do you take ?

I have been up there 3 times - got a flat once, luckily on the way down and I only noticed it as I approached hiway 395.

There is no AAA service past Schulman Grove, not much cell service either and getting a tow would likely be difficult and expensive.

~ philippe

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[John Pierce]

On Sun, Mar 8, 2026 at 2:04 PM Philippe Fossier <philippe...@gmail.com> wrote:

...

I would be interested in finding out what precautions other attendees take to mitigate the risks associated with driving up the dirt road.

- do you all carry a spare wheel ?

- what other precautions do you take ?

I have been up there 3 times - got a flat once, luckily on the way down and I only noticed it as I approached hiway 395.

There is no AAA service past Schulman Grove, not much cell service either and getting a tow would likely be difficult and expensive.

don't take vehicles with low profile tires on dirt roads, especially ones with washboard.    Like, my full sized SUV, a Ford Expedition Limited 4x4, came with 22" wheels that had /45 series low profile tires.   I immediately switched them for 18" wheels with /65 tires.   When I wear out the 'mall terrain' tires that came on the 18" wheels (takeoffs from a new F150 FX4), I plan on using proper all terrain LT rated tires.   These 18" wheels are the same size as came on a base model Expedition XLT, the tires have the exact same OD (outer diameter) as the /45-22 tires..

[Philippe Fossier]

Do you carry a spare wheel (other than the donut wheel) ?

My car is a Hyundai Santa Fe with with no spare (donut or otherwise) and I am considering getting a full size spare wheel to take with me.

Is that enough though?

Note that I reduce my speed to 2-3mph in the really rough sections, avoiding the sharp rocks pointing in all directions.

Some TACos have been there many times and I trust have seen the "Good, the Bad and the Ugly"

(incidentally, a very good spaghetti western) and may want to share their lessons learned?

~ philippe

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[John Pierce]

I've gone up there in a E100 van, a Tacoma 4x4, a F250 4x4, all three had a standard sized spare, and LT tires, which have much tougher sidewalls.

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[Philippe Fossier]

I see. Thanks, I will look into that option.

~ philippe

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[Richard Ozer]

Me. I will be there the first four nights.

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[Richard Ozer]

Register at eastbayastro.org

Read all the instructions.

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