We flew from Minden, NV (MEV) to John Day, OR (GCD) to watch the total eclipse. Due to our last minute plans, the special glasses couldn't be obtained, nor could I find the right welder lenses. Cecil came through with some extra pairs for us.
We first flew to Lakeview, OR (LKV) for a short break and to time our arrival over GCD so that we would not have to mix it up with the crowd in the air for very long.
As totality neared, we kept close tabs on the other aircraft around us using the Dynon Skyview and the iPad with Stratus 2 ADSB weather and traffic. We also relied on the old fashioned Mark 2 eyeballs.
Totality was awesome! We didn't need the glasses during the black out and oohhed and awed over the amazing sight. It got really dark out in the 70 mile wide swath we were in the middle of. But we could see sunlight on the ground 35 miles away on each side of us. So it wasn't completely dark, more like evening twilight.
We closed all of the vents because it was suddenly cold. Then in an instant the sun peeked out again and brought with it immediate warmth and light. Good ole Sun!
When totality was over, the fleet headed back to where they came from.
Several of us returned to Lakeview for fuel and lunch. Here we are flying next to the Abert Rim on the way to the airport. We talked about what we had seen from our aerial vantage point. Can't wait to do it again but I think it will be a long time and we will have to make a longer trip to see it.
