How lucky we are to have friends who included us in their celebration of the full solar exclipse. Three years in the planning and this morning dawned with slight cloudy skies. We left at 8:00am to begin our ascent up to the Magic Meadow viewing spot. 1:45 minutes and 900 feet later we arrived and the view was amazing. Nearly 300 degrees around. And to the west, from where the eclipse would come, a view of The Grand Teton. Chief astronomer, Eric Chaisson, directed the preparations creating view binoculars with shields and distributing glasses. Before we arrived he had sent a 6 page document with all the things to expect—the approaching shadow, the darkening of the sky, the 360 degree sunset, when to remove filters and when to put them back on. Suddenly it was time, the shadow approached from the west and the Tetons slipped into darkness only the be followed by a backlit silhouette as the eclipse progressed. The rapid darkening of this noontime sky and the subsequent sunset that covered the entire horizon brought with it winds and cooling temperatures and visions of Venus.
Then….darkness as the moon covered the sun. A flash and it was time to lo look at the sun with the naked eye--and a huge cheer. A black sky and a black moon The corona was full of sun flares reaching out in all directions. MAGIC Two minutes of awe and there was another flash. Time to put on the glasses again. A rapid lightening of the sky and it was over. A once in a lifetime opportunity became a once in a lifetime experience.
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Sometimes things just have a way of working out. The weather is beautiful. The chilly 40 degree morning morphed into a pleasant 70 degree. While waiting for our friends to arrive, Mark and new friend Peter decided to checkout the hike that was slated to take us to the Magic Meadow for eclipse viewing in the morning. Bono and I stayed with Baby Beluga to wait. I thoroughly enjoyed he chance to sit in the shade and knit and revel in the amazing views. Our friend arrived and I spent another delightful hour catching up and sharing girl talk. When the guys came of the mountain we piled into the car and headed for Dubois and the a chance to watch some fly fishing. Of course, the fishermen forgot to tell us that their golden spot required wading though ankle deep water. But fear not. We scouted the bank and found a way to the water’s edge on dry land. Alas, the fish were not biting so we retired to the Cowboy Café for warm pie and ice. What a delight after so many days on the road.
Back to the campsite for dinner and preparations for the exclipse. The excitement is building. Last night we decided we had better get to Dubois and the nearby Shoshone Forest to find a place to camp for the next 3 nights. Estimates are that there will be 10,000 people here because this park is in the path of totality. Certainly Jackson was full of cars and there were cars on the road nearby all night long. With the van stowed we headed out to our destination. Thanks to the Chaissons, we had a true destination. We’ll be hiking up to a “Magic Meadow” to see the eclipse and so were looking for a space on the forest roads nearby. In many National Forests you can camp anywhere as long as all four wheels are off the road and you’re not too near water sources. SUCCESS. We have found an awesome campground. Not too far from the trail we will hike and nestled in a small stand of pines. I spent the afternoon starting the poncho project that I’m doing with the wool I bought in Jackson. A simple pattern and a soft wool. We set up a tarp for more shade and enjoyed this vast open space.
Mark met up with his guide in Jackson this morning and Bono and I set off to do some chores and explore Jackson. What a cute town! I found a delighful yarn shop and bought enough yarn to start a poncho with buttons. An then.....I found a WONDERFUL chocolate shop - Atelier Ortega. My linner was a chocolate eclair and a delicious cup of extruded jasmine green tea (thanks to Blake for introducing me to this.) I sat in the shop, people watched and relaxed Bono and I drove back to the campsite. A surprise awaited us. Our camping receipt was missing and the marking cone thrown in the woods. I was worried another camper had done this but it turns out the the regional manager came through the site, saw the cone, and thought we were squatting. The campground hosts had a day off and had the envelop with our 4 day payment. What a "jerk".
When the host arrived at 7:30 I related the story. They told me to follow them to the main campground and found me a site with water. All in all a positive for me. Surprise, surprise. Baby Beluga ran out of gas (diesel) when the connector popped off. No one thought of that when she wouldn't start.. Idaho now has 20 some additional gallons of fuel on Route 20.
No one really knows why the connector popped off so the technician decided to install a new oil filter AND a new hose and we hit the road again. Six hours and 375 miles without a hitch and we landed for the night in Victor, ID at a dry campgound - oh joy. The best part is that Mark will be able to do his climb. Spent the day at the Boise Mercedes service waiting area. Seems there were lots of people with appointments who had to be serviced first. Although I understand this philosophy, there was clearly no perceived sympathy for a stranded east coaster.
Quite an education this morning about why people choose RV parks over, National Parks, State Parks, National Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management Campgrounds. It’s all about ELECTRICITY. For them that means a hook-up or a generator. In fairness we do have an extra battery that powers theft ceiling fan and lights inside the van but we use propane to cook and have a cooler with ice and use an LED light and camp lantern most nights. For us camping in our van is glamorous – a step up from sleeping in a tent and on the ground. It’s good to hear other perspectives and realize how lucky we are to have found a comfortable way to enjoy these wonderful open spaces. We started the day with anticipation of seeing Sun Valley and spending the night at Craters of the Moon National Monument, Alas, it was not to be. About 1.5 hours west of Boise, Mark noticed the back window appeared to be covered in dust. I glanced back and noted that it seemed wet. Hmmmm. Several minutes later the car engine died. Oh no!
We popped the hood and sure enough the fuel filter connector was off again and diesel was everywhere--leaking from under the car and covering the back doors. A zip-tie jury rigging had us turned around to headed back to Boise for service. Alas, that was not to be either. Not more than 10 minutes passed before the car died again. And so began another saga. Fortunately we had cell signal. A call to roadside assistance started the 6 hour saga to getting a tow to the dealer, I believe the extended warantee has paid for itself. On a whim this morning we decided to take a detour to look at the town of Verdi (about 10 minutes from the campground.). Thank goodness we did. It’s a small little town with only a few stores on the Main Street. We made a loop and we’re stopped at at stop sign when a pedestrian waved us down.
“You’re leaking fluid,” he shouted. And so began the saga. We turned off the van and suddenly I saw smoke coming from under the hood. Lifting the hood we saw diesel fuel everywhere. A restart revealed a source – a connector was loose. Mark pushed it back on, but alas it wouldn’t stay. After digging through the bin of car stuff he returned with 2 zip ties that he jury rigged to secure the connection. A call to the Mercedes dealer in Reno resulted in o promise of help. It was Saturday after all. A tense drive to Reno and a pleasant surprise awaited us. Gregg, a young technician, took a look an immediately found the problem. Remember the fuel filter the dealer insisted needed to be changed while we were in San Francisco? Well, it had a faulty damaged o-ring and a c-clamp improperly installed. Of course, there was no part number for the o-ring so we are now the proud owners of another new fuel pump. Open space treated us at every turn on our way through Nevada to Idaho. No green land here near Boise. After a failed attempt at a RV Campground that housed only permanent campers, we’re in a KOA with showers and a pool. It's always an emotional part of of trip when we turn around and start to head home. After nearly a month exploiting California, today marks the end of our 8 weeks of travels. With the car serviced and fuel pump replaced we headed out this morning to wind our way through Nevada and Idaho to the solar eclipse in Wyoming. We had a relatively easy day of driving and found a campsite in Truckee, CA. We did a little exploring of this cute town. Looks like a community we could really enjoy. Lots of places to exercise, an active Choral group and places to climb. BUt wait...208" of snow on the average. Hmmmmmm. Back to campsite for dinner .
It was our final day in Bishop for this trip. We started with visits to the library and gym and yoga studios in town. We then spent an hour at the Chamber of Commerce. In the dark (the power was out to fix a pole) we learned of why these people love Bishop. I also learned there IS a local singing group and there IS pickup hockey. Opportunities to volunteer are available. Most importantly, these seem to be real people. With families, and fund raising and taking care of neighbors. We also met with a second realtor who had a different perspective on the town. He did reiterate that it is outrageously expensive to build right now. But he also encouraged us to consider some of the slightly more rural sections of town that would mean a longer drive but also more land. The word of the day became PATIENCE. The supply here isn’t great but houses do come onto the market. Why not move here and rent for a year while we continue our search? Sounds like a great idea! Maybe our favorite house will even come onto the market! A stroll thru the city park revealed a skate board park, a pool with a long slide, 2 playgrounds, a gazebo and and outdoor exercise tent.
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