The drive from Lolo MT to Lewiston, ID is beautiful. I wanted to stretch it out a bit so I had scoped a few possible campsites along the way. O'Hara bar is about 8 miles off hwy 12 along the Selway, and it met my requirements for isolation. There were several loops in this heavily wooded area along the river and I chose the last one, right next to the river. I was the only one there (it was a Tuesday night). There were other campers in the other loops, but they were far enough away (and through dense foliage) that I had no hint of their presence. A few other people drove though looking, but all the other sites on my loop were marked as reserved, though nobody ever arrived to claim them. I spent a very quiet afternoon reading and exploring the area, cooked my dinner, and turned in early. With the proximity to the peaceful Selway, this was a first class experience. I'd definitely look this one up if I'm through this way again.

I visited the North Cascades region in August of 2017 because of the local beauty and also because this area is DARK. Local light pollution are among the lowest in the state of Washington and some of the darkest in the continental US. I selected Harts Pass campground because of the remoteness and also because of the badass mountain road one must traverse to get there (white knuckle driving at it's best). The single night I was able to spend here was wondrously clear and dark, with no moon in the way. The mountain beauty is accentuated by the pitch dark skies and quiet nature of the campsite. I can't wait to get back to this area for more exploring and photography.

I stopped here to camp for a night on my way west on a three-week roadtrip. Very quiet and very dark campsite in the Bighorns. My neighbor campers were kind enough to help me capture this photo. We lit the interior room of their camper with a candle and carefully lowered the blinds leaving just a crack. They then tended their fire to a low level to backlight the trailer, and I snapped this shot. Thanks to Val and Paul from Cheyanne for the help! The Bighorns are a wonderful area to camp and explore and the dark sky qualities are very tangible!

A wonderful campground hugging the margins of Beartooth Lake. I snagged a spot on the smaller and less-utilized C loop and had a great afternoon and evening. A little exploring of the area, some reading, and a chance to reorganize some of my gear. After dark I took a few pics to document the site's dark sky qualities. Most of the area around the Beartooth Hwy are pretty radically dark and this campsite was no exception. I took this photo after dark but before twilight was fully over. I liked the sight of the campsite in the next loop with their fire burning, illuminating the trees nearby. Great spot.