BinocularsBlog – Advice on Digital, Waterproof, & Compact Binoculars for Bird Watching, Sports, Astronomy, Night Vision, & more!

Bill and I decided to stretch our feet, this morning, and walk around the Deer Valley Lodge grounds. Typical mountain weather – warm, almost hot, but dry and quite comfy. As we walked along, I kept thinking of all the years and all the places I in the west that have been such a big part of my life. Funny how it all comes flooding back with a breath or two of mountain air.

The memories were equally divided between birding trips and some of the many trout streams where I wet a fly for trout and, sometimes, for very large trout. Might surprise some folks to learn that I used binoculars for both activities. Naturally, you would expect someone to use birding binoculars for birding, but for fly fishing? Okay, if you’ve never fly fished some of these large western rivers, it may seem strange to use binoculars when fishing, but I found compact binoculars to be quite useful for searching for rising fish on these very large rivers and also to estimate the size of the fish rising. That is not as simple as it sounds, but the binoculars often enabled me to plan a stalk on the bigger fish and save much time by avoiding less productive waters. When the fly fishing gods were with me, I managed to put a fly over some very large fish, indeed. When the fishing was slow, the binoculars allowed me to do some birding. Just make sure those compact binoculars are waterproof.

As I sit and write this, the scent of wet sagebrush and pine drifts through the door after this afternoon’s thundershower in the hills above Park City, Utah. I am in heaven. I have been too long from the west I so dearly love and though we have chosen to retire to my other heaven in the north woods of Wisconsin, I know I shall return to the west many times. How else will I get to record those western species on my annual birdwatching list? I’ve already added the Steller's Jay, which, oddly enough, I spotted behind the local Wal-mart. As always, birds are where you find them, though I would have preferred to see that beautiful bird in more pristine surroundings.

As usual, my compact binoculars are my constant companions, this time in the form of my revered Leica BL Ultravid 10x25. Yes, I wish I could have brought a full size pair of birding binoculars or even my spotting scope, but we purposely restricted ourselves to carry on only when we flew to avoid the hassle of baggage at the airport. To be honest, though, I don’t feel to deprived with compact binoculars when they are the quality of a Leica. In this clean mountain air, this binocular truly shines. It’s a treat just to sit on the balcony and scan the surrounding hills. What a show! There is so much to see and a binocular, any binocular, can keep these old eyes busy for a long time, though I will have to put down the binoculars to take pictures with the digital cameras. It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it.

Believe it or not, there was a day when airports were considered hotspots for birding, at least for some species of birds that need wide-open country, such as Larks, raptors of all kinds, (especially Burrowing Owls in some areas) and other species often not otherwise found in an area. Of course, that was before 9-11 and all the security that followed. Today, pull out binoculars at an airport fence and you may spend the day with the security folks rather than the birds. Even wearing binoculars around when you pass through an airport security will get you some stares and I know from experience, that your claim that you are a birdwatcher will be met with some skepticism. That’s as it should be, of course, though I still miss the old days when the world seemed a friendlier place.

Despite all that, I still carry binoculars, albeit somewhat discreet compact binoculars, but they don’t go around my neck until I have passed through airport security. I still scan airport grounds for birds, too, but I do it from the windows of boarding areas, not airport perimeters. I still see some interesting birds, now and then, while I wait to board my flight. Doesn’t seem to bother anyone and, in fact, my airport birding has generated some friendly interest from my fellow passengers and a conversation or two about birdwatching. I once even found a fellow birder to pass the time. As I have always said, birds and birders are where you find them.

Bill and I are flying out to Utah, tomorrow, for my family reunion, which we hold at various locations around the country, every couple of years. This time the location is Park City, Utah. Can’t wait to see all my family, of course, not to mention the wide open spaces of the West I dearly miss, but I am not looking forward to flying, again. Flying makes me uncomfortable, though not to the extent of having a phobia. Mostly, I hate flying due to the ridiculous time spent in the airport on security and the sometimes equally ridiculous security measures - nothing like being treated like a criminal until you’re proven innocent. Then, too, when you fly, you are limited on the amount of gear you can take. That is a very serious issue for an optics nut like me.

Fortunately, I usually carry a compact binocular and compact binoculars have never been an issue with airport security folks, probably because no one has yet to launch an attack with compact binoculars or maybe it’s because compact binoculars are too small to hide an explosive device. Anyway, small binoculars don't look threatening. Can't say about large binoculars, though, since I've never gone through airport security large binoculars. That could raise some unwanted red flags, especially if you try it with military binoculars. You might have a hard time explaining what a rangefinder and compass are all about.

I can just about guarantee, though, that you will get stopped by airport security if you carry harmonicas. As a pro harmonica player, I carry harmonicas wherever I go, but, sadly, I have never flown without being pulled out of line when my harmonicas get run through the x-ray machines. A case full of harmonicas must look very suspicious under x-rays or maybe it’s because security folks don’t see that many harmonicas. That’s a shame, of course and if I was smart I’d use the opportunity to sign up some more harmonica students, but, hey, I’m on vacation and I already have all the harmonica students I can handle. Anyway, if you hear some hot blues or jazz on a harmonica while waiting in line, stop by and see me while I prove that harmonicas are not dangerous weapons.

In my six years in the big city of Chicago and, more recently, a year in suburban Milwaukee, I never gave up on astronomy, though the severe light pollution often made it a challenge to continue using my astronomy binoculars, let alone my telescopes. After all, I was used to some very good, very dark skies, prior to my arrival in Chicago. To say it was a blow to my astronomy is putting it, mildly. I will soon be back to the dark skies I so missed, when we move, north, permanently, later this fall, but I will not forget the lessons I learned in the big city, though.

Lesson one, you can always do some astronomy with your binoculars or telescope, no matter how bad the skies. Never give up and admit defeat. There is always the moon, for instance. It’s as light pollution proof as any object in the night sky can be and, yes, any binocular will show enough detail on the moon to keep you busy, especially if you make the attempt to identify and name the craters and maria visible in a binocular. Then, too, the very brightest star clusters will still be visible, though nowhere near as spectacular as thy would be under a dark sky. The challenge, here is just to see them in your binoculars.

Lesson two, there are some little things you can do to lessen the effects of light pollution. Even moving a few feet to use a tree to block a streetlight can help or, better yet, move to a darker site, such as a park (check to see if it is legal and be sure it is safe) can make a significant difference. Even in a light polluted area, there are some spots that are darker than others. Take advantage of the mobility of astronomy binoculars and check your neighborhood.

Lesson three, astronomy is as much a matter of determination and motivation as it is equipment. Nothing beats time spent observing; any binocular or telescope under the night sky is better than one left in the closet.

Okay, not everyone gets excited by binoculars. For a binoculars nut like me, that’s a little hard to appreciate, yet I know it’s true. After all, I have lived with people all my life who are mystified by my “obsession” with binoculars. I prefer to call it a "healthy interest" in binoculars, but either way, I have been fascinated by binoculars for more than forty years. Obviously, you don’t have to have an obsession with binoculars to buy a binocular or own a binocular. The majority of people who own binoculars probably see binoculars as tools to do a job and nothing more. Most such folks are typically not inclined to spend the many dollars it takes to buy Leica binoculars, Zeiss binoculars, Swarovski binoculars and so on. Some of these people are loathe to spend even $100 on binoculars. Nothing wrong with that unless a person expects to get Leica, Zeiss, Swarovski optics and lifetime durability for under $100. On the other hand, a person that uses a binocular once a year or every other year probably doesn’t need that kind of quality. Cheap binoculars serve them, just fine, and that’s why cheap binoculars are made.

The good news is that cheap binoculars are better than ever, given today’s technology and manufacturing. Keep the price under $100 and you can still get features like multi-coating, waterproofing and serviceable optics. Decent optics under $100? Try the Nikon Action 8x40. Waterproof under $100? Try the Bushnell H2O 8x42. They won't win any awards for best binocular of the year, but they do work.

What does a birder or birdwatcher do on a rainy day? I have been known to go birding, anyway, in the rain (or snow), when attending or leading a scheduled event, such as a Christmas Bird Count or a Birding Marathon, but mostly I stay indoors like everyone else when it rains. That doesn’t mean I have to stop birdwatching, though. Just calls for a little change in focus.

You could, of course, pull out a lens pen or lens cloth and clean your birding binoculars or your spotting scope, but that only eats up a few minutes for me, since my binoculars rarely get too dirty, given that I am very careful with them out in the field. No, there are better things to do on a rainy day if you are a birder.

If the rain is gentle and you have bird feeders to watch, the rain won’t slow the action much and you can spend as much time as you like watching the birds. In fact, there have been times when it seems that bird activity has actually increased at my feeders in a gentle rain or, especially, drizzle. A full blown downpour, of course, is another matter. Song birds take cover, just like we do, in a heavy rain.

If there is no action at the bird feeders, I grab one of my many field guides and just thumb through the pages. Brings back memories of a lifetime of birding and, after forty plus years of birding, that is a lot of memories. Now and then, I will come across some notes I made in the margins for even ore memories. I have many other birding, books, too and I will use a rainy day to catch up on my reading on various birding topics.

Last but not least, is the internet. A premiere birding website like the Cornell Lab and it’s All About Birds is a goldmine of interesting material for any birder or birdwatcher. In fact, there is more than you can probably see in a day, so next time it rains, try visiting this great bird watching resource.

The birds in our yard in northern Wisconsin backyard are quite unlike the birds that normally frequent suburban backyards, given that our house is surrounded by northern coniferous forest and open areas are few and far between. This is a new experience for me and I can’t wait to put out the bird feeders to see what birds visit. It certainly makes for some interesting birdwatching. I make it a point to always have binoculars close at hand as we unpack and work around the house, plus the spotting scope is waiting on a tripod, aimed out our kitchen window. I am ready, let the show begin

Of course, there are some new and interesting birds in our yard, such as the Olive-sided Flycatchers, the Pileated Woodpeckers, the Wood Ducks that perch on our dock and then there are birds, like the Wood Thrush, that I seldom see, but constantly hear, back in the woods. Talk about sweet music! It’s also a matter, though, of common backyard birds that are not present. For instance, I have yet to see a single House Sparrow, House Finch, Starling, Grackle or other urban birds that automatically come with a typical suburban back yard. On the other hand, I still get some of my favorite back yard birds, like Chickadees, Nuthatches and Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers.

Can’t wait to see what the fall migration brings.

You know the feeling you get when you see friends you haven’t seen in many years? That’s the feeling I have, these days, when it comes to my astronomy. Our new home offers such wonderfully dark skies that I have been able to easily detect objects that have eluded me in my astronomy binoculars for the last ten years or so, due to light pollution. What a difference a dark sky can make when using an astronomy binocular or using a telescope. The difference has to be experienced to be believed.

I first moved to the northern suburbs in the Chicago metro area, back in 2004, one of the first things I discovered, much to my horror, was the severe light pollution. I am proud of the fact that I did my best and kept on observing, despite the awful skies, but I never forgot what a dark sky could do for my binoculars or telescopes, not to mention my peace of mind … or did I? Picture this.

Three-thirty in the morning, north of Rhinelander, Wisconsin. Husband is snoring, peacefully. I get up to use the bathroom and on the way back to the bedroom, just could not resist a peek outside to check for a dark sky. Like offering honey to a bear. I grabbed the Nikon Astroluxe 10x70, stepped out on the deck, pajamas and all and went to work.

The constellations of Pegasus, Andromeda and Perseus were overhead at that tome of night. Perfect. The first target was the notorious M33. How I had struggled and worked to try to detect that low surface brightness galaxy, back under the city skies of Chicago and always without success, despite very careful navigation and use of my best techniques and always without success! Under these new dark skies, got M33 on the first try and, believe it or not, it looked as bright under these dark skies as the much brighter M31 looked under city skies. In fact, I can’t even remember when I have seen such a bright M33 with my astronomy binoculars. I shook my head in disbelief. I won’t even begin to describe what its close neighbor, M31, looked like under dark skies, but suffice it to say I could detect its satellite galaxies.

Can’t wait to try the galaxies of Leo, but will have to wait a bit on those. Daylight comes early that far north.

According to the bird books, our new northern Wisconsin home is in the northern coniferous or boreal forest. Not that I didn’t already know that, of course, but it does explain why we have a pair of nesting Olive-sided Flycatchers our yard. That little bird only nests in the northern coniferous forest. I first identified them by their famous, “quick three beers” call, but have since seen them constantly, right in our yard, no need for birding binoculars or my birding spotting scope. This is birdwatching, up close and personal.

That’s not really a challenge, since our pair of Olive-sided Flycatchers don’t seem the least concerned about us; they are quite tame and, in fact, one of them landed on our deck while we were eating, not three feet from Bill’s shoulder. The digital camera was right on the table, next to the sweet corn, but by the time I grabbed it, our friend was gone. We did thank our guest and offered it all the mosquitoes it wanted.

A bit larger guest, common to the north woods, has also made an appearance. Again, I heard them before I saw them, but the drumming a Pileated Woodpecker makes on a tree is easily distinguished from the lighter drumming of its cousins. Of course, once you’ve seen a Pileated in a binocular, it would be hard to mistake for any other bird, except, of course, the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. We definitely do not have one of those in our yard, however. LOL

A friend once accused me of having a binocular for every room in our house, including the attic and the basement. Not true, of course, though that’s not a bad idea. Binoculars, in my opinion, can make excellent pieces with which to decorate a house. Why not have a binocular out and on display in every room in the house!

Seriously, though, how many binoculars does the typical binocular owner have in their house? I know of no such survey, but I would guess the average binocular owner has a single binocular, whether it be an astronomy binocular, birding binocular, compact binocular and so on. Why? A binocular is a fairly versatile tool; a single binocular can be used for many applications. No need to actually buy a specific birding binocular, then add a specific astronomy binocular and so on, though it helps to have a binocular that is perfectly suited to each job; you do lose a bit when you try to make one binocular do all jobs.

Still, is there a single binocular that makes the best do-everything binocular? Yes! For a do everything binocular, it would be hard to beat a waterproof, 8x42 roof prism, center focus binocular. You could use such a binocular for birding, hunting, sports, wildlife, scenery viewing and even take it on a boat and use it as a marine binocular. You could even use an 8x42 for some limited astronomy. Really not much an 8x42 binocular can’t do, at least to some extent. Yup, a waterproof 8x42 (or 8x40) is the world’s universal binocular.

Have binoculars, will travel, is my motto for today. We are making yet another trip, north, car and trailer loaded with boxes of personal belongings as our move to Rhinelander continues. This trip will see all but my Leica Ultravid 10x25 BL make the trip, north. That compact binocular will stay – a girl has to have one binocular when she is in Milwaukee, after all - but the other binoculars are going to their new home. We spend almost as much time at our lake, these days, as we do in the city, so off we go with a car packed with not only binoculars, but also digital cameras, my beloved film cameras, telescopes and my other optical treasures. I have given Bill strict instructions to drive slowly, avoid all bumps in the road, no sharp turns and so on. Our route we will keep secret.

Okay, maybe I have been watching too many movies, but it does make me nervous to carry so much optical gear. The binoculars – birding binoculars, astronomy binoculars, compact binoculars – have been with me for years, through some tough times when they were the only things I owned of any value. Their true worth to me is more sentimental, to be sure, but I shudder to think what it would cost to replace them, should they be stolen. It does happen. I talk to several customer each year that made the mistake of leaving their binoculars or digital cameras in their car only to return and discover a smashed car window and no more binoculars. To that end, I have given our dog, Roscoe, detailed instructions to be extra viscous should any stranger approach the Toyota.

“I can’t remember everything!” That’s an excuse I use whenever something gets left at home when we travel and I’m sure I’m not the only one that has cause to use it, now and then. Whenever possible, though, I do try to remember what I need when I go birding or make a run from home to do some photography or astronomy. Forgetting essential telescope accessories or camera accessories can, in fact, make a trip a waste of gas and time.

One way to minimize the need to say, “I can’t remember everything!”, is to keep things simple. That’s easy to say, of course, but sometimes darn hard to do when it comes to accessories you need for digital cameras and telescopes. Photographers and astronomers tend to be accessory magnets, so to speak. I have one friend who actually owns sixty, yes, sixty, telescope eyepieces, alone, not to mention a truck load of other telescope accessories, but he beat the “I can’t remember everything!” hex by buying a place in the country to use and store his telescopes and accessories. For him, it is just a matter of getting in the car and all his astronomy gear is waiting for him, on site. Most of us, though, don’t have that luxury.

I beat the “I can’t remember everything!” by trying to keep things simple. I suspect I use astronomy binoculars as much as I do because astronomy binoculars don’t require much in the way of accessories. I do use an astronomy binocular tripod, now and then, but I could live without it, should I forget to pack it on a trip. Each to their own.

“You never know what you’ve got till it’s gone.” Well, not always. When it comes to a truly dark sky littered with many bright stars, it’s a bit different. First, there are many urban dwellers who would fall into the “never knew there was such a thing” category. They’ve never even seen a dark sky, thanks to urban and suburban light pollution. Then there are those urbanites who are aware of light pollution and what it costs in terms of a dark sky, but they remain indifferent. It’s not an issue for them, despite the fact that a dark sky filled with stars has been a part of the human experience from our earliest beginnings. How easily some of us are to forfeit our heritage! Lastly, there are the few of us that enjoy astronomy. We turn astronomy binoculars toward the sky at night or spend hours peering through telescope eyepieces. No need to tell us what has been lost. We are painfully aware of the fact.

When I settled in Chicago, back in 2004, I nearly fainted in despair when I saw the horribly light polluted sky. It was one of the factors that very nearly made me turn around and head back west or north to a darker sky. In retrospect, I am glad I stayed and I’m proud of the fact that I continued to use my binoculars and telescopes. Yes, it took a lot of hard work and determination to see even a fraction of what I was used to seeing, but I never lost the faith. Still, I dreamed of the day when I could escape the city and enjoy a dark rural sky, again. My dream has recently come true, but no one will ever be able to say I didn’t know what I had till it’s gone. Once you’ve enjoyed the sight of hundreds of stars on a dark night and the glowing band of the milky Way stretching across the sky, you never forget it and you don't have to be an astronomer to appreciate it, either.

And dark sky it was. As I looked upward in awe at the Milky Way stretching across the sky, I started to count the years since I had seen it so clearly or, for that matter, even seen it at all. How could I have let that happen, I wondered? What had city life done to me? Well, no more. I can now sit in my own yard and see the sky in all its glory. My city days are over.

The Nikon Astroluxe pulled in objects, easy and hard, on the first try, no fancy star hopping or star atlas needed. Planetary nebulae, M27 was eerie against a stellar background; I could actually see it at 10x as a tiny disc. Open star cluster, M7, was every bit as magnificent as I remembered it to be. Galaxies? Ah, the toughies! M81 and M82 were just plain easy, so I moved on to the much tougher M101. Got it. Since I was in the general neighborhood, I tried M51. Got it. And the list goes on. I was in astronomy heaven.

Who says you can’t go back home?

Use any binoculars you want – there is no best binocular for this activity. I've even relaxed with astronomy binoculars, though I more typically find compact binoculars or birding binoculars in my hands. Just grab a binocular and go. You can even use a spotting scope if you have a nice view in the distance. The important thing to remember is to clear your mind and simply drink in your surroundings. No worries, no cares, right? You can do it. Pick up those binoculars and head for that lawn chair, right now.

Whenever I’m in a new area and expect to do some time birdwatching, one of the first things I do is collect a local bird list. (That’s a lot of bird lists, given my penchant for wandering.) Scanning an area’s bird list is a great way to predict what you might see when you pull out your birding binoculars and start checking the birds in an area. Those bird lists also make great mementoes of the areas you’ve visited and, now and then, I will use them to take a walk down memory lane.

So where do you get bird lists for an area? A good source of local bird lists are Audubon Chapters. This is where I begin, since every Audubon Chapter will have some die-hard birders like me who like to keep lists. Audubon lists are my preferred lists since they are the most comprehensive - they cover all the habitats in an area. It then becomes just a matter of finding the habitat you want to see the birds you typically find in that habitat. I’ve also found that fellow “Auduboners” are a great bunch of folks to contact for finding the birding hotspots in an area.

Next up are National and State Wildlife Refuges. Most, but not all, of the keep a bird list, though the quality of the bird lists vary; some of these lists are fairly casual or incomplete and some are quite good. Biggest problem with these lists is that they only include birds found on the refuge in question, so they do not always give you a good overview of the birds in an area. Still, they can be helpful, especially, of course, if you plan to visit the actual refuge. Since I am a shorebird fan, for instance, I read these lists very carefully for shorebirds; the list will give me a fair idea of what type of shorebird habitat each refuge contains and I can then make a decision on which ones to visit.

So far, I haven’t found a bird list specific to the Rhinelander area, though I do have a pretty good idea of what to expect when I pull out my binoculars and my spotting scope. Might be a good excuse to start my own birding list for Rhinelander when we move, there, this fall.

When we think of birdwatching or birding, we naturally think about birding binoculars and possibly a birding spotting scope. Yes, optics are a big part of birding and really an essential part of birding, considering the fact that birds were once shot and collected in order to be studied, much the same as butterflies have been collected. Using binoculars changed that and thank goodness. We no longer need to shoot birds to get close to birds. Indeed, birds other than game birds and a few so-called pest birds are protected by law and cannot be shot.

It may come as a surprise, then, when people learn that a great deal of birding can be done without any optics, simply by identifying birds by their calls and songs. In fact, this time of year, with all the heavy, dense foliage, a good birder can often identify more birds by sound than by sight. A good example is the Wood Thrush I have been hearing along the same spot of our local bike trail. I’ve heard that bird, in the same spot, about half a dozen times, but I have yet to see it, though I have tried. The cover is just too thick. Hey, even the best binoculars in the world still cannot see through leaves.

Care to give birding by ear a try? There are lots of CDs and mp3 recordings of bird calls and songs available on the market or you can go to the All About Birds website to listen to their collection of calls and songs. While you are there, listen to the Wood Thrush. You’ll enjoy it and maybe you’ll find one in your area.

When packing for a trip, I’m like most folks in that I tend to play the “what if?” game and pack more than I need. I just hate to be without something when I need it, especially when that something is sitting back at home because I didn’t pack it. Then, of course, when I arrive at my destination and start unpacking, I start to play the “why did I bring all this stuff?” game. It’s a vicious cycle.

Last weekend, when packing for a big trip, up north, to close on our new lake home, I decided I would break that cycle by not packing astronomy binoculars or telescopes. Surely, I reasoned, I would be far too busy cleaning and moving all our furniture into the house to take time out for some astronomy. Okay, I was busy, but there was one night that was so clear and beautiful, Bill and I took a break, slopped on some bug dope, and walked down to the dock. When I saw the sky over the lake, I started kicking myself, right away, for not having at least an astronomy binocular. The skies were as dark as anything I have seen in many, many years. I did have my compact binoculars, though, so I made the best of the situation.

Even with compact binoculars and even though it was not completely dark, yet, I was seeing more in the way of star clusters and nebulae than I have been able to see with astronomy binoculars on the best night, back in Milwaukee. What a difference a dark sky can make! As I scanned to the south, through Scorpius, I kept thinking, though, how things would look through my Nikon Astroluxe 10x70.

I knew I should have brought it.

I can remember some older binoculars that were so unique, with a character all their own that I just can't forget them. They has what it takes to make a them stand out from the rest of the binocular pack. One of these very special binoculars was the original Bausch&Lomb Custom Compact 7x26 with the Audubon Society logo on it. It was just so darn user friendly and sharp, you hated to put it down. Optics were as good as any compact binocular of its time and, yes, that included all the much more expensive European compact binoculars, since the binocular world had yet to see phase corrected roof prism binoculars that put European roof prism compacts on equal footing with reverse porro prism binoculars such as the Custom Compact. This little B&L compact binocular was also unusual for its very generous eye relief. This made it an instant hit for eyeglass wearers like me. Oh, yeah, construction was also first rate, as you would expect from B&L. Did I mention that it was made in Japan? This prior to the made-in-China binoculars that dominate much of the market, today.

Yes, I used to have one of these old 7x26 Custom Compact binoculars and, like a fool, I let a friend talk me out of it. How I have regretted that move! Yes, I know the Custom Compact survived and is still available, today, as the Bushnell Elite Custom Compact, but it just doesn’t have the feel of that old Bausch&Lomb Custom Compact, though, I have to say, thank-you, Bushnell for keeping this great compact binocular alive.

Once in awhile old Lady Luck smiles at you if you keep your eyes open. Bill and I were at a garage sale, looking at a sofa sleeper when I noticed a couple of old binoculars on the table next to the couch. One was a worn out Bushnell Insta-focus but the other was … oh, my gosh, a Bausch&Lomb, not a Bushnell, 7x26 Custom Compact, Audubon logo and all. It was covered in dirt and hadn’t been cleaned in who knows how many years, but it was not scratched and optics were in perfect alignment. Of course, I asked, “How much?”

Ten minutes, later and five dollars (yes, a whole five dollars, read five dollars) poorer, I was once, again, the proud owner of a Bausch&Lomb 7x26 Custom Compact. Oops, make that an excellent plus condition Bausch&Lomb 7x26 Custom Compact. Got it home, washed it up and could hardly see any visible signs of wear. Best five dollars I ever spent.

It’s safe to say that most people have little need for binoculars to view the scenery visible from their porch and by scenery, I am not talking about peeking on the neighbors. No, I mean a view of a harbor, a lake, woods and so on that provides enough detail to make scanning with binoculars a worthwhile pursuit. Until, recently, I certainly had nothing with that kind of view, given that I lived in apartments for the last seven or eight years. Since I moved to Milwaukee, though, I have had a wonderful time with the birds in my back yard at the feeders, but that is still not what I would call scenic type of viewing - the type that would call for surveillance or long-range observation binoculars. Wouldn't it be great, though, to have a scenic view, right from your own yard or home? I mean, wouldn’t it be great to need a binocular to see things in the distance, right from your own doorstep?

I'll soon find out when we complete the move to our new place. I could sit on the dock, binoculars in hand, and just scan the view with binoculars or a spotting scope for wildlife of all kinds, such as bear, deer, coyotes,beaver, possibly a moose and, of course, a wealth of birds. Yes, that’s all wild, undeveloped land around the lake you see in the pic. Nope, no parking lots, no lawns, no streets, no traffic, no sirens blaring. It’s just typical north country brush, bog and forest and it’s our little piece of north woods heaven. Come up and visit us, sometime and bring your binoculars.

Politically speaking, people who know me often describe me as a liberal, though I detest such labels; I don’t like to be lumped with any general group of people. When it comes to binoculars, though, my tastes do run to the conservative side or maybe traditional is a better word. I have never jumped on any binocular bandwagon touting some new, improved feature. I wait and see how a feature actually works based on experience in the field. When it comes to binoculars, it takes a lot to convince me to fix something when it is not broken. If that makes me a binocular conservative, so be it.

Take my astronomy binoculars, for instance. I much prefer the old leatherette covering to that new-fangled armored stuff. That old leatherette covering has an aura and aroma all its own and, to me, it means astronomy binocular, since I started astronomy when nearly all binoculars, astronomy or otherwise, had leatherette covering. Armoring was still the new kid on the block as far as a binocular feature. Yup, nothing like taking my Nikon Astroluxe 10x70 out of its leather case and smelling that traditional binocular smell. Brings back a flood of memories of me and an astronomy binocular under a night sky. Besides, that smell is far more pleasing than the awful industrial chemical smell that you get with so many armored binoculars these days.

Okay, so I’m a binocular curmudgeon. Must be getting old.