Before you buy a red torch
Binoculars show more of the sky than most people expect. Looking back, the dark approach was the right call.
Odds and ends
Clouds rolled in an hour after sunset, as they so regularly do. Good meteor showers is mainly a series of little, unglamorous decisions. Good double stars is mainly a series of little, unglamorous decisions.
There is no single right way to approach waiting for clear skies, but some ways are kinder than others. Sketching at the eyepiece makes you actually look. A good star chart beats any app when your hands are cold. The best nights are the unplanned ones.
Where it started
It took me three attempts to see the pattern. I am still not sure I have it right, but it is closer. If something here is unclear, that is on me, not you.
It is easy to overthink star hopping. It is harder to just start. Some of this will be self-evident; some of it took me years. The result is not perfect, but it is honest. I keep coming back to the moon, mainly because it rewards time.
Most problems with star charts turn out to be problems with time.