Join us for a stella evening as we head to Rudry Common on Wednesday 12th August to experience the wonders that only arrive after sunset.
Away from the glow of streetlights, Rudry Common offers one of the best dark skies in our area. As dusk gently settles, we’ll keep our eyes and ears open for some of the Common’s special night-time residents. If we’re lucky, we may hear the haunting call of a Tawny Owl, catch sight of a silent Barn Owl gliding across the grassland, some pipistrelle bats zip by and, if they haven’t yet begun their long journey south, perhaps even witness the remarkable Nightjar. These extraordinary birds spend the last of our summer evenings twisting and darting through the fading light as they hunt for insects on Rudry Common.
Then, as darkness deepens, we’ll turn our eyes skywards.
The night of 12th–13th August is the peak of the Perseid meteor shower, one of nature’s most spectacular annual displays. Under clear, dark skies we could be treated to dozens of shooting stars each hour as tiny fragments of comet dust burn brightly in Earth’s atmosphere.
There is something wonderfully humbling about standing beneath an endless sky, listening to the sounds of the night, sharing stories, laughter and moments of quiet wonder together.
📅 Wednesday 12th August
🕘 Meet at 8.45pm (before dusk)
📍 Rudry Common car park
🥾 Please wear sturdy footwear and warm clothing, and bring a torch (preferably one with a red light if you have one), along with a hot drink and perhaps a camping chair or blanket for comfortable stargazing.
We will also bring a few bat detectors to see what bats forage the common.
Earlier in the evening there will be an eclipse so do catch that before you come along. The solar eclipse will begin earlier in the evening at about 6.17pm and reach its maximum with around 91% of the sun obscured shortly after 7.15pm, and finish around 8.06pm. This 90+ % eclipse making this as close to a total eclipse as we’ve seen in almost 27 years from UK. This timing suggests it’s going to be a dusk with a difference. So, fingers crossed another good experience on this night.
As always, this is weather dependent, so if the clouds decide to steal the show, we’ll just have to let this years stargazing pass as a wash out.
So, who’s joining us for a little woodlanders magic atop a mountain beneath the stars?
