I enjoy hearing about the good camp & viewing sites others have identified. Especially the ones that aren't too far from the SLC area. For what it's worth, a neighbor with a small telescope was telling me they occasionally like to go to Great Basin National Park in Nevada, and to camp in the Wheeler Peak Campground there. Its a 260 mile, 6-7 hour drive from Salt Lake (130 miles South on I-15 to State Hwy 50; 130 miles West on Hwy 50 to Baker, NV). So, it's not a close site to SLC, but it does sound like a nice spot for an extended weekend trip for a family that enjoys astronomy & hiking. Wheeler Peak Campground is at 10,000 feet (9,880 to be exact), and my neighbor said it has some good open areas for stargazing. Of course, the skys are dark there. Day activities include going through the beautiful Lehman Caves in the Park, and hiking. Near the campground, there is a 4 mile round trip hike to some Bristle Cone Pine trees, some of which are over 3,000 years old (I guess they are at such a high elevation they miss most forest fires?), and an ice patch. You can drive right up to the entrance of the Lehman Caves--so the only hiking involved for them is the easy walking around in the cave. The Wheeler Peak campground is first come, first serve--no reservations. And it usually fills up quick on summer weekends. So it's good to arrive at a decent time on a weekday to get a campsite there. The last time we were in the park, I noticed a sign that you also had to bring your own water up to the campground (although when we arrived at 6pm on a Friday, it was already full--so I didn't get a chance to actually camp & view there). I'm not sure if that is still the case, but you probably want to have some good capacity water containers if you do plan on camping there. Troy