Thanks partly to the inspiring comments in this thread, I experienced the eclipse on the top of Strawberry Mountain in Oregon’s Malheur National Forest.
I left San Jose at 4 a.m. Saturday morning and by 6 p.m. was camping among the dwarf whitebarks on a saddle 300 feet below the peak. With moderate temperatures, clear skies, no bugs or smoke, and a wonderful view of Prairie City and the valley below.
All the fear and anxiety about crowds, traffic, smoke, and weather were resolved. Everything just seemed to fall into place. I had all Sunday to relax, free of plans and deadlines. I was in a wilderness, but had no expectations of solitude, and really enjoyed every social encounter. We were all there for the same reason, and the positive energy and anticipation were palpable. Even the wildlife felt it - I witnessed two ravens dancing and free falling in air, and about 15 mountain goats playing on a snow bank.
A few visitors camped on top of the peak, and the rest us, about 200 or so, started heading up at 5 a.m. on Monday. I'd been mostly awake since 2 a.m., waiting for the day to begin like a kid on Christmas morning.
Many of us positioned ourselves on the edge of the peak's ridge, looking west, anticipating the arrival of the moon's shadow. I promised myself I wouldn’t sacrifice any totality messing with a camera, but in the moment I couldn’t resist. I captured (as best as I with an iPhone could) the approaching darkness, the vocal excitement, and some of the initial moments of totality in this video:
[youtube_vid]<iframe width="854" height="480" src="
https://www.youtube.com/embed/c7n60NmVCN8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>[/youtube_vid]
After totality was over, I felt some sharp regret for shooting this video. Totality was over too soon and I wanted more. Others were talking about plans for 2024, while others talked about Argentina 2019.
Within the next hour most of the visitors were gone from the peak. Many of us stayed and watched every last second of the remaining partial eclipse. I stared for what seemed like forever, straining my neck, until I could no longer see any speck of black on the sun’s edge.
An hour later, I was back in my camp, with just two quiet campers nearby, feeling moved, emotional, different. When I finally watched the video my regret melted away. I cried, feeling more emotional than I had felt during the event.
Seeing everyone leave so soon was told me to stay there another night. I drove home to San Jose the next morning, taking a beautiful scenic detour through Lassen Volcanic NP.
Geoff