Bikepacking into Space, via the Chilterns
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 15 ม.ค. 2022
- A Film By Barry Godin - Bikepacking into Space, via the Chilterns
So my first adventure of 2022, and it was a chilly one!
Over the past year I have been absorbed by the incredibly interesting subject of Astrophotography. It started out just taking a photo of the stars, but then then you realise you can photograph objects that are millions of light years away, my mind was blown. Nebulas and Galaxies are amazing objects to look at and when you captured them yourself through your tiny telescope you feel like you have discovered new something for the first time. Those light particles have travelled for millions and millions of years to find there way on to your camera sensor :-)
So how does the adventure part fit in, well we as humans have generated so much light pollution that from our cities we have made it nearly impossible to see the stars any more. Light pollution has a grading system with a maximum of 9, it is called the Bortle scale. My house in London is a Bortle sky of 8.5. So traveling to just outside of London to the Chilterns took me down to a Bortle 5 sky which is a huge difference. Places in remote Wales and Scotland take you down to Bortle 2 sky where you can see the Milky Way and celestial objects with the naked eye.
So combine this all together, and trying to carry all my gear on a bike as well as camping kit in winter, was a mission, especially the first time :-) But next time I will pack a little better now aware of what I need to bring.
It is also interesting to find new reasons for adventure, different stimuli to fuel the motivation to explore new places and seek new experiences. We can just go, but often there has to be a reason for theme for a journey, and combining passions and hobbies really helps you get out there.
BG goes astroooooooo 😍😍😍😍 💫 💫
Woop woop! A little different :-)
Brave and chilly chaps, but so worth it. That is an awful lot of kit to carry though.
Thanks so much Andy, yes I really did not pack light on this one, haha
As far as carrying camera equipment during bikepacking trips is concerned, you now officially outperformed the Montanus guys! We're now eagerly awaiting 'stellar' quality Milky Way pictures taken in the middle of the night in the Cairngorms, Outer Hebrides , remotest valley's of Wales, etc. As always looking forward to your next adventure, stellar or not.
Haha, to even be mentioned with the Montanus guys is an honour! And yes how they pull out a whole cine camera from their bags blows my mind! Yes cant wait to try in a proper dark sky, have never taken a milky way photo would love to! Thanks so much for the support! Lots of adventures to come
Wow those photos were amazing, thanks for showing these magnificent photos great video 😊😊
Thank so much Dave, yes they are such beautiful objects and things to see, and when you have captured them yourself, it feels even more special
That was awesome; and impressive results! I could see you as a special roving reporter for Sky at Night!
Haha, that would be a bit different for the BBC :-) Thanks so much Alex
Loved it Barry . Well done. Look forward to more stars !
Thanks Penny, lots of stars to come, many more nights out in the wilds :-)
Brrrrrr! Photos amazing! I have to go warm up now!🤣👋
Haha, yes frosty breakfast, I am sure I was not talking straight in this film haha
Really enjoyed that guys. What a great idea...and a perfect use of your time whilst out in the hills. Wonderful pics too!!
Thank you so much Mark! Yes a lovely way to pass the evening :-)
Wow! Amazing hobby! Crazy overnighter, well done and thanks for sharing! Happy New Year. Xx
Thank you so much, and have an amazing year of adventures to! Was a great way to start the year off :-)
Stunning. A few years back my family and I had the good fortune of attending a free stargazing event at a local high spot where we got to view planets and stars through the lenses of some very expensive telescopes that amateur enthusiasts had kindly brought along. It was absolutely mind blowing. To see the beauty and majesty of our universe in such detail with our own eyes was something my family and I will never forget!
Hey, Yes seeing things that are in our solar system, and then things in our galaxy and then on top of that other galaxies, it all just blows my mind! And at the same time so incredibly exciting :-) When the image come through after the first exposure I sit gripped to see what it will be!
You’ve developed a new niche bike-packing-astronomy. I’ll wait until Alpkit bring their range of lightweight packable optics out
Haha, telescope holder. I am sure this would be quite a niche range haha. Thanks so much for the support
Thanks for that! Wonderful!
Thank you so much Charlie
I was googling about if someone has been thinking in doing astrophotography by bike and I found this video. Congratulations for the adventure. Following your ride, I will try too soon.
Haha, so glad it came up in your search, I have lots more trips planned for it, just need to predict clear skies now :-)
Screw the Bikepacking, I want more amazing star pictures ;) Such a fantastic thing to see into other worlds, it really puts into perspective how awesome our existence is. I hope you can get more shots like this from your telescope for us. so amazingly beautiful. thanks for taking the time to film and share your adventure my friend. great job. ride safe & keep warm. peace
Haha, the best feedback ever! Scrap the bikepacking now, haha. Thank you so much for your wonderful comment and so glad you enjoyed it. I promise another astro expedition soon :-)
@@barrygodin7538 no worries chap, Also maybe have space pics for the outro for a few seconds, I know people that would stay tuned just for that. peace
Supercool!
Thank you so much
Very cool. What a great overnight adventure! the night sky is truly something special and your photos turned out incredible ✨
Thanks so much! Yes was a great way to get out and start the year!
That was awesome. Really interesting. Thanks Barry
Thank you so much David
Another epic vid from Bazza. Keep up the good work and happy BPing
Thank you so much Waheed
Well done from a fellow amateur astronomer and bike tourer. Clear Skies my friend from Montreal Quebec Canada.
Thank you so much Morrie, that means a lot! Would love to have a chat about what you commented on Facebook, be nice to share it all
great film BG - those star shots were fanfastic - thanks for sharing, look forward to more bike packing/stargazing films - stunning - hopefully not so cold for you next time though!
Thank you so much! Yes trying to find new was to provide stimulus for adventure, very happy with the photos from that night
Awesome!!
Thanks so much David!
I rode to the horse head nebula one time back when I was young…my wife was really angry when I got home as she couldn’t keep the house warm through the last ice age 🤓
Haha, you cracked my up when i read this, haha
Those pics were fab! Great video.
Thank you so much
Fantastic!
Thanks Brian
Love it, I'd absolutely watch an explanation of your astrophotography gear and how it all works.
Hey, thanks so much Jamie! there has been a few requests, so next Astro night out I will explain more about the kit, just need another clear sky :-)
Super effort taking the telescope etc 👍. Some nice pics too.
Thanks so much Pete, yes quite a lot of effort :-) kitchen sink next
Wooooow this is absolutely amazing! I had no idea this was a thing people could do.
Haha, thanks so much Angela, yes amateur astronomy has become so much more accessible with the improvements in cameras and optics, It is incredible to capture such images myself, blows my mind every time
Nice one Barry !
Thanks so much Stephen!
It looked like you were on the edge of a built up area. You should head to some genuine dark sky areas further afield like mid Wales or Scotland. Nice images btw.
Yes I was, just needed to test the water first before going further away. But have some plans to come ;-)
Fantastic, really hits my geek button - January was such a good month to view the new moon, Saturn, Jupiter, Venus, Mars, and the stars. I've seen myself travel 8 hours to get max darkness off the west coast just to spend a few hours gazing.
Have to admit, as much as I love the long days here in Scotland during the summer, when on the isles it would be amazing to get one dark night :)
Great film, thank you as always for the content. Looking forward to the lights reviews too.
Thank you so much fellow geek :-) I knew my community was hiding others :-) Also isn't it so wonderful to appreciate what we have around us. Even better when it takes bit more effort, traveling out to really see them. I think darker skies next, some not too long of a journey out of London. I need it little close by and the weather is so unpredictable, I spend every day analysing clear sky app to see if the weather holds.
You have long days, but also very long nights :-)
Thankyou so much Jonathan
Love it mate, I'm looking forward to seeing more. I'd be interested to hear which kit you're using to rotate the camera, and what focal length and aperture you've found to work well. It clearly does the job; that short of the nebulas was superb. And that was one hell of a tripod!
Hey thank you so much Graham! Yes I have had a few requests so next next astro backpacking night out I will talk through it, hopefully not as cold haha. Yes the anchor to all the kit is to have a solid base that does not wobble, so there is no getting around a huge tripod at longer focal lengths
But seriously. A bit different but I liked it. I did wonder at first why you had the large tripod. Some great pictures of the star systems. You were brave to stay out in those low temperatures though. A nice video and it’s good to see you again. How is the new bike build going?
Thank you so much Robert. I did wonder how long people would see this adventure was going in a different direction. Yes a super cold evening, but felt even better for it, great was to start the year. Bike build is on a huge pause, but all parts have arrived, and itching to get it built up!
What cool video Barry. Those star shots are 👏 amazing. In all a really good edit my man.
Thank you so much! Yes so proud of my photos
For truly dark skies come to Caithness, just bring clear skies with you ;). You may get aurora borealis as a bonus if you're lucky :).
Oh yes, you are sooo lucky up there. I know it has been over two months before this clear evening, that its why I made the most of it! I have never seen the Aurora Borealis and would love to one day
Hi barry where was that hill you camped on is that invinghoe beacon territory, also what Silva lights are you testing that last 12hrs full beam, how many lumens
Hey, yes it was, nice spot! Yes the Silva lights are an Exceed and Trail Speed - The exceed is 2000lm which at that lumen will last 12 hours! Can wait to test them more, plans ahead silvasweden.com/collections/all/products/exceed-4xt
@@barrygodin7538 Thank you.
Can you give a link to the lights?
Yes of course! silvasweden.com/collections/all/products/exceed-4xt