Rock climbing brought Cassandra Fallscheer to Central Oregon in May 2019. But what happened after she looked into the clear dark sky is what changed the course of her life. [Photo by Nick Lake]
Friends had invited Fallscheer, then studying astronomy as a graduate student, on a weekend-long climbing trip at Smith Rock State Park. The first night, she unfurled her sleeping bag in the park’s camping area and, just before dozing off, looked up. “I stared at the night sky and was in awe of what I could see,” she said. The Milky Way arched overhead. Countless stars twinkled. Meteors hurtled through it all. “Each time I saw a meteor, it was like a little burst of joy that I experienced.”
She fell in love with Central Oregon’s dark night skies that weekend and, in early 2024, she helped open an observatory less than a mile away from where she first experienced them. Today, Fallscheer shares her wonder with amateur astronomers at Asterisk Observatory at The Spot—along with the chance to see the Milky Way, meteors and other celestial wonders for themselves.
Love Affair with Astronomy
Fallscheer grew up loving numbers and decided to major in math at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. When Fallscheer developed misgivings about her chosen career path, she found inspiration from a nearby source. “My roommate was an astronomer, and she would come home and tell me about all the galaxies she was studying,” Fallscheer said. Astronomy had more allure than math, it turned out.
Fallscheer switched majors and dove headfirst into her new path, first serving as a summer camp docent at an observatory in her hometown of Chico, California, and later working a summer internship at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Massachusetts. After receiving her doctorate in astrophysics, she got into teaching and is today a professor of physics and astronomy at Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Washington.
Climbing Toward the Creation of an Observatory
Fallscheer’s 2019 enchantment with Central Oregon’s night skies blossomed three years later when she attended the Craggin’ Classic Climbing Festival, held in an empty field across the street from Smith Rock State Park.
That evening, she set up her telescope and invited other attendees to take a look. Fallscheer gave a constellation tour, viewed planets and star clusters, and spied a distant galaxy alongside more than 50 fascinated climbers.
Buoyed by their enthusiasm, she inquired about building an observatory on the vacant plot. The landowner loved the idea and, within a year, Fallscheer was laying the groundwork for her new venture.
Overnight Stays and Sky Views at The Spot
Less than two years after toting her telescope to Smith Rock, Fallscheer opened the Asterisk Observatory at The Spot in March 2024.
A two-part experience begins with an overnight stay in what is known as The Spot—a brand-new guesthouse that’s open in spring, late summer and autumn; the three-bedroom home comes with a kitchen, hot tub and firepit. The Spot is open to groups who want to rent out the whole place, as well as solo travelers and smaller parties who’d like just one or two bedrooms, and who may share the house with other astronomy enthusiasts.
Overnight guests can then book an additional stargazing experience in the open-air Asterisk Observatory, which resides in a small wooden structure just behind the guesthouse. There, a local astronomer—typically Fallscheer—leads a 90-minute session that includes an educational overview, stargazing, 360 degrees of night-sky viewing through a 17-inch telescope and a question-and-answer session.
“I hope they leave with a sense of wonder and awe.”
Along the way, Fallscheer wants visitors to understand the universe a little bit better and see a bit of the magic she first felt under the same starry skies on her first visit.
Read more about Asterisk Observatory and how to further experience Central Oregon’s dark skies.
