Find a place that sells telescopes in your area and ask them where and when the local club meets. Also, are you subscribed to Sky and Telescope or Astronomy Magazine? Both list the annual large regional star gatherings. This Weekend is the Riverside Telescope Makers Conference in Big Bear. The cost of the conference is a bit steep but the value is nice. A single day is (I think) $15 this year (note that this is an annual conference with people coming from all around the world) but your local club's monthly star parties should be free to attend - they will probably ask you to join after a while though and that will end up being some annual fee for membership in the club.