I am envious. I live near DC, takes hours for me to get to a true dark skies area :(
Nearly everyone we live by and know has never seen the Milky Way!
Just ask them to get a poster of Racquel Welch and they will see it.
I’m in the greater NYC light bubble, so usually only see a handful of stars. When I was a boy scout 45 years ago, I used to go to camp in the very dark (back then) NW NJ highlands and the Milky Way was a gorgeous streak across the sky. It’s not that way any more.
SW Montana here. Some of the best stargazing you can imagine.
It’s not real dark here (Northern Illinois), but dark enough to see some brighter deep sky objects. I’m sure it’s better than where you are, however.
Going to a Messier Marathon next month at Yerkes Observatory, about an hour East of here.😀🔭