The very first time I experienced total blackness like that was on a road trip to Idaho right after my 1973 college graduation in Missouri. My buddy and I headed up along the Green River / Flaming Gorge at the Utah / Wyoming border at midnight. I stopped the car and looked around 360 degrees and there was not a single man-made light visible anywhere and no glow of any cities over that 360 degree horizon. It was astonishing and absolutely breathtaking.
I have experienced the same thing, but at sea level during offshore sailboat adventure. It’s best when the moon is about half in the middle of the day, so it is completely absent at night.
It feels like you can reach out and almost touch the stars.