Thirteen hours of driving was well worth the 2 minutes of splendor. My good friend Austin and I had talked about the possibility of making the drive to Wyoming to see the totality of the 2017 Great American Eclipse, but didn't make official plans until the night before. We decided to drive to Torrington Wyoming because it was the closest town in the path of totality where we thought traffic might not be a nightmare, and most importantly, the weather forecast looked good.
At 3am we headed up I-25 and we were not alone. Northbound traffic towards Cheyenne looked like the Denver Broncos, Rockies, and Nuggets fans were all let out of games at the same time. It was so congested it came to a standstill near Loveland. However, once we made it past Fort Collins the predawn rush hour subsided and we made good time the rest of the way and got to enjoy a Wyoming sunrise.
Many local businesses and residents were taking advantage of the massive influx of celestial onlookers by charging to park and view. Fortunately, we found a large unobscured parking lot outside a grocery store that had already accumulated some other tourists. With a few extra hours, we took the dog for a walk, had a snack, a nap, and then started setting up our equipment.
Austin had been thinking about this trip weeks in advance and had the foresight to order eclipse viewing glasses on Amazon. Looking directly at the sun, even when 98% eclipsed, can cause retinal damage so do your do diligence and research exactly how to view and photograph these events. Remember, looking into a telephoto lens is like putting your eye in front of a magnifying glass staring at the sun.
The event started at about 10:30am, but you wouldn't have noticed until the light in the small town began to dim around 11:15am. As the light faded, everything began to settle into a strange orange hue. Just before totality, a phenomenon called "shadow banding" occurred. Shadows appear to roll over the ground similar to light shining through water onto the bottom of a pool.
Finally, at around 11:45, totality set in. It is one of the most beautiful things i've ever witnessed with its stark contrast of a black moon shadow surrounded by a bright white crown. The event lasted for just over two minuets and was mesmerizing. My favorite part came just as the sun begins to peak back out around the moon where it lets out eclairci like beams on one edge.
I didn't think I would enjoy it nearly as much as I did and am already thinking about the next one only 7 short years away.
