Solar eclipse 2017: Tennessee Kentucky border

In summer 1999 Mr hazelh and I travelled to Devon in the hope of witnessing a full solar eclipse. Unfortunately there was cloud cover that day and the whole experience was somewhat short of spectacular.

When we saw that there would be an eclipse in the US on August 21st 2017 we decided that we should aim to be there, hence our trip to the US this week.

We left our hotel in Nashville this morning at 07:00 and executed our plan to drive north to a rest area off the freeway on the Tennessee-Kentucky border. We were lucky that our car was one of the last few to be admitted to the rest area before it was coned off to traffic at about 08:00am. We parked the car and set up camp under the shade of some hickory trees in anticipation of the start of the main event at midday, with totality at 13:28.

The four hours between our arrival and the moment that the moon first crossed the path of the sun passed quickly. We already had our books, music and one another for entertainment, and beyond our little camp there was a great atmosphere amongst everyone else too, all sharing the excitement of the day. We enjoyed chatting to other families - mainly about the eclipse, although Mr hazel and I were also fascinated to come across a couple who had escaped a cult and are now keen to catch up on all the scientific knowledge that was denied them as children. They were with a party of thirteen that brought lots of equipment with them, including a huge bubble maker to entertain their kids, and a couple of spare chairs that they lent to us.

The most surprising aspect of the eclipse for me was that there was a full sunset for the 2.5 minutes of totality. I was also struck at how much the temperature dropped as the moon inched its way across the path of the sun, and at the clarity of the light when the sun emerged again after the full eclipse. It was a magical experience and well worth the effort of the journey to North America.

My blip is of some of the staff who work at the rest area who - just like everyone else - were keen to watch the action. My extra shows the scene in the sky just after 13:00. Do pop over to my cousin don_t's journal to see a collage from the day that includes a shot of our picnic site, a giant bubble, and the sun at totality.

We’re now a little further north in Louisville for the night (and some more compliments about our accents) before the long drive back across the border to Canada tomorrow.

Exercise today: none