It was a "blue moon," the second full moon in a calendar month. See also Once in a Blue Moon, which says that the term has been around for 400 years but has had half a dozen different meanings. The current meaning comes from an ERROR in a 1946 Sky and Telescope article. Last blue moon was 2001("October, November or December, depending on your timezone"). Next blue moon will be in in June 2007, although the NPR story that alerted me to today's blue moon said it would be in 2009.

(Larry: we were trying to figure it out in the car, but we were working with the wrong figures: "The average interval between Full Moons is about 29.5 days, whilst the length of an average month is roughly 30.5 days.")

Lively get together for dinner at Neptune's Net. Some great conversations that I wish could have gone on and on. Then three of us - me, Larry and Aurelijus - headed out for a hike.

We were almost thwarted by the coercive power of the state. Both my first and second choice hikes were impossible because there was nowhere near the trailhead that we could park. It doesn't seem right that we would be so discouraged from our moonlight hike.

We studied the map, drove up Hwy 23, and found a trailhead. Actually it was a great find, the back way - the easy way - to Nicholas Flat. Now that we know it, we'll have to try this as an easy hike for the group. It's a very nice destination. See Nicholas Flat