Skipper playing with a stick
A Melanie’s Mondays post:
It turns out that my posts are never on Mondays. Such is life. This post is about my trip to see the Great American Eclipse of August 21, 2017, but I thought I’d start it out with a cute photo of Skipper to trick you into reading it.
Where we were
Coral and I decided to go somewhere remote to see the eclipse. The news outlets were reporting that they expected massive traffic jams. So we headed to Sutton, Nebraska, just off the center line of the eclipse. We originally were going to a slightly larger town named Geneva, a little to the east, but we found out Bill Nye was going to be there. That meant lots of people. We’re loners, so that was no good for us.
Eclipse Viewing Spot
Sutton had a cute, and surprisingly large, park where an eclipse viewing party was going to take place. Sure, Sutton only has about 1,500 people, but what if they all came? Instead of joining the festivities, we went to this small cemetery about a mile from town. Unfortunately, we had to share it with one other guy who was there to view the eclipse with his dead brother.
My black eye
I thought I would show you a photo of my black eye. I got it earlier in the day by slamming the edge of the car door into my face. I don’t recommend that, it was extremely painful. You’ll notice the picture is mostly of the palm of my hand. This is not intended to be artistic, although it is, right? Because of my visual deficiency it is impossible for me to see the whole frame at once. I do dumb stuff like this all the time. Usually it’s only my thumb.
The partial eclipse
This is what the partial eclipse looked like. Probably a lot of you saw something like this. I took this by putting eclipse glasses in front of my camera lens. You’ll notice my framing problem again. I didn’t see the edge of the filter so half of the photo was white. I wonder if that hurt my eyes, but it would be hard to know.
Partial solar eclipse – no filter
This is what the partial eclipse looked like without the solar filter.You can look at the sun for short periods of time if it is partially obscured by clouds. I’m sure all of you have done this at one time or another.
The clouds were scary. There hasn’t been a total eclipse in the US since 1979. We did not want to be “clouded out.”
Total eclipse
Tada! Here it is! You should click on this image to you can enlarge it. This is 1:03 PM. The clouds didn’t completely clear but they were thin enough for us to see through them where the sun was. You can make out the diamond ring, the last bright light of the sun just as it disappears behind the moon. You can also see the sunset effect. During a total eclipse, there is a 360 degree sunset, which is amazing. We could also see stars through the openings in the clouds.
Don’t miss the next US total solar eclipse! It is in 2024. I won’t have to travel for that eclipse since my house is in the path of totality! We’ll have to see how Skipper reacts to that!
Dog statue
On our way home Coral and I stopped for a picnic lunch at a park somewhere in Kansas. They had this cute dog statue that I thought I’d share. If only it had been a capybara!
Skipper running
Since you had to read this post that had nothing to do with capybaras, I thought I’d reward you with this cute video of Skipper running across the yard.
Put a comment and let me know where you were and what you thought of the eclipse! Enquiring minds want to know.
Thank you for sharing your awesome eclipse pictures! Wow! I did not see the eclipse so I especially appreciate these great photos. As well as the dog sculpture. And the picture of Skipper running in the yard is a great reward at the bottom.
Mel
Thank you for sharing your pictures of the eclipse. I did not get to see it because of the overcast. Also enjoyed the video of Skipper and the pictures of you. Hope you are recovering from your black eye. Love you stay safe
I was totally tricked into reading the blog by the cute Capy pic
Great pics of the eclipse – at my job, we were supplied w/ the special glasses and had a eclipse viewing party
I can appreciate getting to see it in your back yard because that’s what we did this time. It was totally awesome, plus snackage and air conditioning mere steps away. We got to have one of the grandkids with us, a six-year-old who was suitably amazed by the whole thing. Other alternatives in the area were going to local parks and even a tailgater at the university’s stadium parking lot.
Next time, if we’re so inclined, we’ll have to travel. Other friends have plans to take a trip for it so we’re considering contacting them and arranging to meet up. Whether we meet our friends or not, I hope we’ll find a nice, secluded spot because we don’t like crowds either.
I was in Hawaii in I think 1992 for the eclipse. 99% totality is still amazingly bright! It was super cool! Can I come over in 2024?
Looks like you had a nice, quiet viewing experience. Nice pictures too. We didn’t do so good shooting through a filter. A group of us drove down to Cerulean, KY to some farmland to watch it. It was a little crowded, but friendly and festive. Long drive, especially in the traffic on the way back, but being on the path of totality was worth it. The 360 degree sunset was amazing. And the black sun of totality really did look like something demonic had just devoured the sun. I think Skipper’s description of it being a jaguar is quite appropriate! Next one passes over Erie, PA which is a little closer to where I live. I’m already looking forward to it and making plans.