Solar Eclipse

[flytire 0]

was pretty cool to see today

was about 90% here in connecticut

next one in about 20 years and i'll probably be in the underside of the grass

[Poopdeck 0]

I thought the actual eclipse, 90% in SE PA, was pretty unimpressive. What I was impressed with was the carnival like atmosphere it created in the middle of the afternoon. I had a great time being out in the buzz of the eclipse. It’s fascinating how the eclipse brought everybody together for two hours. No protesting, no difference of opinions, no us vs them, just everybody out uniting during an uncommon event. That’s what I will remember. Great time, just what we needed,  thank you God. 

[SalarMan 0]

Definitely as Norm said...cool to see, and we were also in the 90% area here near Valley Forge. I agree with Poopdeck on all levels as well.

We had the TV on of course and we saw a view of the shadow in real time from the International Space Station (ISS). THAT was absolutely amazing. It is probably available online somewhere if the right search question is asked.

[DFoster 0]

My family made the drive to northern New Hampshire to be in the totality zone.  We found a spot in fishing/hiking access area of the Androscoggin river.  Had I known we were going to land there I would have brought my gear.  We had 2 minutes and 20 seconds of totality and it was truly breathtaking!  My niece is a professional photographer and captured some great photos!

Photos courtesy of Wave and Willow Photography   https://waveandwillowphotography.mypixieset.com/

I spoke with this guy while we were waiting for the show to start.  He stayed in the water straight through and if you look close you can see the odd dimness of the sky.  How many can claim to have fly fished through a total eclipse?  

 

Then the downside-  The traffic was beyond horrible.  It took my wife and I 4 1/2 hours on the way up.  12 1/2 hours heading home.  One particularly fun location required 7 hours to travel 7 miles. 🤬  We left the area at 3:45 PM and arrived home at 4:13 AM.  Both of us have work events today that we could not miss,  so were working on 2 hours sleep.  For me math is going to be a problem.  We did get to see a Sasquatch on the way home, so there's that. 😁

 

 

[gadabout 0]

On 4/8/2024 at 9:12 PM, Poopdeck said:

I thought the actual eclipse, 90% in SE PA, was pretty unimpressive. What I was impressed with was the carnival like atmosphere it created in the middle of the afternoon. I had a great time being out in the buzz of the eclipse. It’s fascinating how the eclipse brought everybody together for two hours. No protesting, no difference of opinions, no us vs them, just everybody out uniting during an uncommon event. That’s what I will remember. Great time, just what we needed,  thank you God. 

That about sums up my feelings as well.  It was 90% here in Long Island too.  It didn’t really get very dark, which surprised me.  We had a little viewing party in the parking lot at work, which was fun.  While the eclipse was cool to see, in some sense it is really not any different than a bus passing in front of a street light.  I’d love to have been on a trout stream in a totality zone though.

[niveker 0]

If it weren't for my sons, I would have stayed home and worked,.  Glad I didn't. 

My #2 son recently moved back to New England from Delaware, and he was gung-ho on seeing totality, so we did similar to DF. 

He lives in Kittery ME.  I drove up there Sunday afternoon and spent the rest of the day walking around Portsmouth, NH, right across the Piscataqua River, enjoying some of the best food, drink, and company I've had in a long time  - a great, beautiful, little city.   

The plan was head out Monday morn for Stratford NH and watch the eclipse from the Percy Peaks in the White Mountains, but the spirit of Robert Burns was with us that day.  We delayed our departure for nearly an hour and a half waiting for the #1 son to join us - he said he would meet us Monday morning, meaning at the trail head, we assumed he meant in Kittery.  Texting him he just kept saying traffic was heavier than normal, until we asked where he was.  Then the light came on.  

Portsmouth Naval Yard at the end of my son's street.  

We tried hard to stay on secondary and back roads, if I'm going to sit in traffic I'd rather it be on a country road than on a highway.  And our experience was similar to Poopdeck's.  Drivers were polite and courteous,  no dorkhead moves like trying to jump a spot or two ahead or riding in the breakdown lane.  People stopping to allow a waiting car to enter from a side road, no sheetstains blowing their horns behind you.  It was pleasant.    

Mt Washington.

We made it to the gravel road leading to the trail head with  1 1/2 hours to spare.  Unfortunately,  the trail head road was gated off about a mile and a half before the actual trailhead.  There's no way this old man was going to jog that plus the nearly 3 mile climb to the peak - so we headed back 1/4 mile to a cemetery we had just passed to wait for the big event.  Surprisingly, we and the inhabitants were the only souls there.  

It was awesome.  As it neared totality, the wind began to pick up, the light was shimmering across the ground, the temp dropped about 10 degrees, the small solar lights marking some gravestones came lit up, the orange twilight/daylight glow all around the horizon as opposed to just in the east or west.  So cool.  

Totality, with Venus at 5 o'clock.  

We had left Kittery around 10, got back to my son's place @ 7.  So 8 hours of driving time, more or less.  Didn't mind it one bit.  I haven't spent that much time talking with #2 son since well before he took off for college 8 years ago.   Even more meaningful as it looks like he's going to be deployed to Kuwait for a year this June.  

Best day I've had in years, the eclipse was the cream on top.    

 

[DFoster 0]

That’s wonderful Kevin I’m glad for you and your boys. I’m sure you agree totality was spectacular.  Despite the miserable traffic on the way home, my oldest daughter was the impetus for all of us going, and I couldn’t thank her enough for forcing me to make the effort. I have to say almost everyone stuck in the traffic was courteous and made the best of it. I didn’t witness any one lose their temper, which was really nice.

[niveker 0]

14 hours ago, DFoster said:

I’m sure you agree totality was spectacular.

Thanks Dean.

Indeed, I'm glad my son was so into it or I would have shrugged it off.  Was a great time all around.  

 

[Philly 0]

My sister has a place near Waitsfield, Vt.  I flew up on Friday to join the rest of the family to watch the eclipse.   We just set up chairs around the fire pit in the back yard with a table for snacks and drinks.  It was worth flying up to see it and be with family.

The drive back to Philly was not fun.   It took us 11 hours.  Normal drive is 7 hours.

[flytire 0]

a solar eclipse and an earthquake within a week of each other. oh my

[flytire 0]

uncle louie was there? i'll be damned

 

[DFoster 0]

2 hours ago, flytire said:

 

uncle louie was there? i'll be damned

 

 

😁

[essequamvideri 0]

Not in the totality path, but a good day spent with Mom. 

[jcozzz 0]

Was a waem sunny day here just south of Chicago.We had 95%.Traveled 1 1/2 miles from home to a nice little bar.Got a kind of freaky twilight thing with a rapid temp drop and some wind like you get just before sunrise.I was just gonna sit on the porch but wife suggested a bucket of cold beers and a burger.Turned out to be a lot of fun.We had one here in the 90s and i was working outside.It got fairly dark with that one.