Fun in the ........Partial........Sun !

  This was the long awaited weekend of the solar eclipse.......it did not disappoint !  Jack  and Donna came up on Friday afternoon so we could work out the final preparations.......and enjoy some time together !    Saturday morning Jack got to work and would have made Mr Wizard proud !  Actually, my wonderful friends....Brad and Terry Thode would be proud.......all sorts of "techy" things going on up here !   After quite a few hours in the hot sun Jack had completed our awesome viewing box.......NOT , mind you, even using a whole roll of duct tape !  Exhausted after the scientific endeavors of the day we rested our weary brains and enjoyed dinner and yet another weird netflix film !
     Up bright and early the day of the eclipse we headed on the road to somewhere in Nevada.  Our first stop was most wonderful.....Grimes Point .....outside of Fallon, Nevada.  Grimes Point is home to many,many petroglyphs and caves.....if ever you're cruising down Hwy 50 I suggest stopping for a look around.  We had considered this first stop as a eclipse viewing staging area......but, alas, too many people around.   Next stop ......Stillwater Wildlife Refuge.....further outside of Fallon.  There we found Nirvana !!  Blue shallow lakes, amazing and diverse birds, incredible vistas 360 degrees.......best of all .....we were all alone !!   We finally got our "equipment" set up......eclipse .......we're ready !!   Wow !!!  It started slowly.....changes in lighting subtle.....but it just kept getting cooler and cooler.  We were just about at the middle of the arc and so we were able to see the perfect circle of the moon on the sun.....we were also able to see some sun spots as well as some solar flares......plus all the time the high desert locale was looking more and more surreal as the lighting changed.  About 8 pm hunger began to get the best of us and we reluctantly began packing up.....all of us felt we could have stayed in that exact spot forever.

   In Fallon on the way out we had spotted a Basque restaurant ......so we high-tailed it there.  Too late....it was closed, but we all vowed that we will go back .....the place looked amazing and authentic.  Now what !! It's about 9:30 by now....just about as we were resigned to fast food somewhere Jim spied a great looking Mexican restaurant and it was open !!  Amazing food.....hardly ever had a meal taste so good !   We licked our plates and headed back out to the car........4 hour trip home !    We made good time .....stopping just once for a Slurpee in Truckee.....tucked in bed by around 1:30.