August 21, 2017
Fortune smiled on us. We were among the last eight customers to get solar glasses Sunday evening before Monday’s eclipse. It smiled again in that the clouds did occasionally part.
Monday dawned cloudy but we had a glimpse of sun about 10 am (totality was expected around noon).
The clouds thickened, but we headed south and west just in case the clouds broke. After all, we had driven almost 500 miles hoping to experience the total eclipse. We passed people gathered at the side of the road, in fields, in parking lots, and on courthouse lawns. We settled on Falls City, Nebraska. Downtown streets had been blocked off and a party atmosphere reigned.
We set up our lawn chairs a block or so from the music then put them away before we had even sat in them when it started to rain. We had our picnic lunch in the car. The clouds lightened again and we joined the people around us, peering through out glasses at a sliver of the sun.
The deejay played “Total Eclipse of the Heart”
Sun and clouds played a game of tag and then we could see the corona.
Jane commented that she’d expected it to be darker. Within a few seconds, it was darker and the streetlights came on.
The deejay played “Here Comes the Sun” as a sliver emerged on the other side.
We’re talking already about the next eclipse!
On the way back to the campground we stopped at the post office Brownville, NE, population 132. Most of the businesses were closed but we had a nice conversation with a broom maker and we were taken with the dentist’s office (it doesn’t appear anyone practices there now).
A little north and east, in Hamburg, Iowa, we found a couple of geocaches and appreciated the town’s park and its sculptures honoring military service.
3 Comments
Joette · October 5, 2017 at 9:24 pm
Nice pictures of the eclipse! It was interesting to hear about Hamburg, Iowa. I grew up in Hamburg, New York!
Esther McAfee · October 6, 2017 at 8:06 am
We watched the eclipse in our front yard. It wasn’t total, but close. We had boxes with “pinholes” and a white screen “paper” inside. Great fun. The best place to watch it was on the driveway as the eclipse gave us weird shadows of the oak leaves on the driveway. Weird. Be safe.
Susan · October 7, 2017 at 3:22 pm
I would have loved to see the eclipse. I did not think that much about it until I saw everyone’s pictures and comments. I will be going to the next eclipse and hoping for good weather. Thanks for the pictures