[burtonwc1]

The Andromeda Galaxy is typically cited as the farthest object one can see with the unaided eye, at a distance of about 2 million light years (it is readily visible from Jamestown on a dark clear night if you know where to look). However decades ago a colleague of mine (then with much younger eyes) claimed to see M81 and M82 in dark clear skies from Trail Ridge Road in RMNP, setting a new distance record of 12 million light years. I don't know if that feat has been duplicated--certainly not by me, now! I'll rely on telescopes and Cheyenne's beautiful astrophotos for my views of the galactic pair.
Bill Burton