As I was driving up the winding road that leads to Henry Coe State Park, I saw a Mountain Lion. It was on the side of the road. It quickly turned around, looked at me for a brief moment, and then took off. This is a reminder that we are in Mountain Lion country, and that observing by yourself is not advisable.

I arrived at the overflow parking lot around 5pm. Rogelio Bernal Andreo joined me around 7pm, followed by Al Howard a bit later.

Overall, I was disappointed with the observing conditions. I don’t think I’ll come back to Coe unless there’s fog. There is just too much light pollution. The milky way was barely visible. The western sky is a total waste, the south is bad, the northern and eastern portions of the sky are just ok. I am not sure the drive is worth it.

I packed up around 11:30pm. On my way down, I saw a wild hog - a big one! It didn’t seem bothered by the passing car and kept going up the hill.