Wyoming

We drove north to Wyoming, following Colorado Route 139 toward Dinosaur, and then into Wyoming on US 191. The landscape was stark for much of the ride. It felt as though we were riding up the bottom of the ancient inland sea that used to flow through here. It felt like we were high up on this trip, like we were closer to the sky.

Grand Teton Nat’l Park

We spent a little time in the Tetons—it was incredibly crowded with everyone here for the eclipse. It would be one of the more picturesque places to watch the eclipse, but given the crowds, we decided to go elsewhere. But, we did a day of hiking and exploring. I was here in 1994 and 1998, and the beauty of this place never wanes.

Eclipse Watching

As I mentioned in the intro, I did not intend to photograph this eclipse. I wanted to experience it. And, I was really glad I made that decision. We decided to head over to the Idaho side of the Tetons and landed in a small town called Victor.

The 2-plus-minute totality was more amazing than I’d heard it to be. The odd dimming of the light before and after totality. At the instant of totality, everyone cheered in the park, and someone even lit off some cheap firecrackers. It was a really nice place to be—it was really the only grassy spot for miles around and there were probably only about 50 people there.

We began talking to a group beside us. They were eclipse chasers from Australia,a nd we learned we had some common friends (the astronomy world is quote small). Because we were in a very dry part of the country, the temperature drop during totality was even more stark. And, the instant—literally the second—the sun came out from behind the shadow, I could feel it on my skin. It really made me appreciate how much we take our daily dose of sunlight for granted.

Starscapes from Camp

Yellowstone, Briefly

We tried to drive out of the Tetons going north, but quickly realized the folly of that idea. The park was beyond jammed. There must have been at least 10 miles of crawling traffic leading up to the south gate, and the gate wasn’t even staffed, which meant the traffic was backed up all the way to the next intersection, many, many miles away.

We decided to get out of the park as quickly as we could, and darted to the north entrance. But, before exiting the park, we stopped at Mammoth Hot Springs area, just to walk around a bit and stretch our legs.