Originally Posted by
goz211
My home, just south of Portland, Oregon was in the 99.5% path. Luckily, my family agreed we should experience 100%. I packed the car last night, with lawn chairs, a table, eclipse glasses, and plenty of survival gear in case we needed to battle our way home (the local authorities were predicting hours of traffic jams). We packed a breakfast of scones, fruit, and coffee, and left at 6:30am for a beautiful drive south through Oregon wine country. We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather: clear, sunny, and a slight breeze. The roads were slightly busier than normal, but there were no major traffic jams. We found a clear spot to watch, tested the glasses, and settled in. Around 9:15, we could see the first signs of the moon's shadow. As it progressed to 50% and 70%, the air got cooler, and the sunlight grew dimmer. The shade of the sunlight was different, unlike anything we'd experienced before. At 10:18 am local time, it got dark for 28 seconds. It is tough to describe, but will be in my mind's eye forever. There was a beautiful silver halo with rays "reaching out" in all directions where the sun should have been. Incredible. I took pictures, but regret doing so as the pictures come nowhere close to doing justice to the beauty of this event. The sky was dark, and we could see several stars and either Venus or Mars to the west.
I would have liked to "press pause" to experience totality for a bit longer, but time waits for no man.
I was happy to experience this with my wife and two kids. My oldest is off to college in a few days and our time with him is already too little.
Since this is a watch forum, my watch choice for today was between the classic Eco-Drive PMD56-2711, or a 57' reissue Speedmaster. The Speedmaster won out.