RANGELEY – The week of April 15-22 Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust will sponsor daily events celebrating International Dark Sky Week encouraging our community to “Discover the Night!”
“Maine’s night skies are the darkest east of the Mississippi River. Our night sky is celebrated as shared heritage that benefits all living things internationally, we want to make people aware of the issues.” said Amanda Laliberte, Program Director for RLHT. “RLHT engaging and educating our community with these events to shut off the lights and turn on the stars!”

Daily events:
Saturday | Lights Out, Rangeley – RLHT is encouraging individuals and businesses to turn off non-essential lights for one hour from 8-9 PM.
Sunday | Scavenger Hunt – See how many boxes you can check off and send in for prizes from the International Dark-Sky Association.
Monday | Discover the Night Poster Contest – Stroll Rangeley’s Main St. and enjoy out-of-this-world creativity of regional students. Cash prizes! Details to enter are below.
Tuesday | Home Lighting Inventory – Walk around your house and take an inventory of light fixtures to become dark-sky friendly!
Wednesday | Losing the Dark & Defending the Dark Documentaries – These documentaries will open your eyes to light pollution issues.
Thursday | Become a Citizen Scientist – Join the Globe at Night movement!
Friday | Night Sky Tour – Tune into a tour of Rangeley’s night sky with Northern Stars Planetarium.
Saturday | Go Stargazing – Get outside and explore the Dark Sky Trail!
Sunday | Discover the Dark Poster Awards – Join us at 1 p.m. at Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust for an award ceremony.
Discover the Night Poster Contest Details
The Poster Contest is open to all students through grade 9 in the Rangeley Lakes Region. All artwork must be submitted by Friday, April 13. Submissions will be displayed at businesses along Main Street in Rangeley. Prizes will be given to the top entry for grades K-9 and the top entries in these groups: Grades K-2, 3-5, and 6-9. The winners will be showcased in regional news outlets and social media. A panel of judges will judge all submissions to determine the prize winners. All winners will be announced, and prizes awarded on Sunday, April 22 at 1 p.m. at Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust.
Learn more about RLHT activities during International Dark Sky Week at rlht.org/home-rangeley-lakes/programs/darkskyweek/