Solar eclipse on Monday

I wonder if any of you saw this post over on AviatorChat:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/aviatorchat-com/558434-eclipse-pool-party-invite.html

If you decide to go, please be sure to RSVP.

 

Passed on S.C. since I got a sense very early that traffic on both I-85 and I-985/US-23 would be horrific, and based on what I heard on WSB, it was!

Instead, I took a more prudent approach and took I-575/GA-515 north to Blairsville. I left quite early, at around 8:15, and got there in normal time (about 2:10), which gave me some 4 hours to kill. I parked at their community center, and since there were no parking restrictions, stayed there for the duration, walking to a nearby sub shop for lunch. I managed to pick up a pair of eclipse glasses along the way, and they worked like a charm.

A fair crowd had gathered by the time the eclipse began at 1:00, and we watched as the sun eventually looked like a half-eaten Moon Pie. When totality hit at 2:34, it was quite sudden, as if someone had turned off a switch, and you could hear the oohs and aahs throughout the crowd. There were cumulus clouds in the area, but they proved to be a minor annoyance. Below is my mediocre photo of totality.

I left as soon as the sun began to reappear (described by someone as the "diamond ring" phase) and made decent time home. The slow points were approaching all the traffic signals in Blue Ridge, Ellijay and Jasper (I was in slow traffic when I waved at "Mr. Hobby" as I passed Free Time Hobbies!) and the trip home took just under 3 hours. Still, that sounded much better than the plight of the people coming back on I-85 and US-23!
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