The total eclipse of 2017 was the most beautiful sky I have ever seen.

I had plenty of time to reflect on the great solar eclipse of 2017. Leaving Idaho Falls, Idaho where my father still lives, it took us four hours to go fifty miles because the traffic on the interstate and every back road and highway was so clogged with people trying to drive south. Once we hit Pocatello, we drove about fifty miles per hour on average to Salt Lake City, with a few places that was bumper to bumper for miles on end (and traffic proceeding at a crawl). My friend summed it up best when she said, "Eclipse traffic is real folks." Yup...it sure was. Was it worth it? Yes.

"Totality" was the most spectacular natural phenomenon I've ever seen. Just prior to it, as the sun was rapidly disappearing, there were waves of light racing across the ground, separated by dark bands. I learned later that these are called "shadow snakes," and they are incredibly rare. The sky to the west got dark and hazy, the temperature dropped, and the colors became intensified almost like a 4K television set. I'd never seen anything like it. Then (of course) the sun disappeared behind the moon and it looked like a black spot in the sky. I was in a twilight world where the only light came from the ring around the sun.

It was the most beautiful sky I have ever seen. When the sun's corona exploded into view behind the moon, it lay gently against a backdrop of midnight blue. The sky around it was filled with stars, and this midnight blue faded to a green and yellow and red on the horizon in every direction. There was a sunset no matter which way I turned, 360 degrees, and it was incredible. It was otherworldly, and the experience left me awestruck. I felt small, insignificant in the universe, and it was a good feeling because it took me away from any thoughts that I had and made me live in the moment. 

What an incredible experience, and I got to share it with my dad, my friend Meg Dolan, and some people that I work with who drove up for the event. Did anyone else take the time to watch it? Below is a picture that my boss took of it from up on a hill. He shared it with me, and it's better than anything I took.

I'm dreading the eclipse but I'm still going to try and watch it.

I've decided that I'm heading to the zone of totality for the eclipse that's scheduled to pass over the United States on Monday, August 21st. So I'll be pausing my blog until Wednesday of next week. You may wonder why this wasn't a "set" thing, and it's because I've been dreading the eclipse the more and more I hear about it. Driving there is going to be a real conundrum.

My hometown is in the zone of totality, but it's a town of only 50,000 people. And they are expecting half a million to try and drive from Salt Lake City to Idaho Falls this weekend. The local news has been saying that porta potties are going to be available on interstate 15 for the first time in history. Why? Because apparently the traffic jam is going to make Los Angeles traffic look heavenly in comparison. Reports are saying that people may run out of gas on the interstate (idling) as it were and that you should take food and extra gas tanks just in case. The trip to I.F. normally takes about three and a half hours. They are saying on the news to prepare (just in case) for something that takes twice as long.

Additionally, in my home town, the grocery stores sold out of food. Milk, groceries, bananas, you name it... Crowds hit the grocery store hard on Monday in a panic. Lines went around the block at every food outlet and gas station. All because of a solar eclipse and people questioning whether or not they will be able to get supplies.

This may be one of the worst decisions I've ever made. But I'd like to see the eclipse, and I already have glasses for it. I want to see the sun's corona live. I think it will leave me with a sense of awe. I hope it doesn't cloud out. If the weatherman says it will be obscured by cloud cover, I'm going to stay home. I bet there's a lot of pressure on the local weather people here to get the forecast for Monday just right.

Anyway, to anyone else out there that's trying to make the trip, I wish you good luck. See you on the far side of the shadow.