The Sun shall be blotted from the sky!

[ZenGum]

It was pretty warm - 30 to 35 each day - so swimming was necessary.

In Far North Queensland (or FNQ, pronounced Effen' Queue) there are crocs in most waters, but this far inland, almost certainly only freshwater crocs, and they're small(ish) and timid and are not considered dangerous.

Just in case, my neighbours set up this tribal mermaid goddess to warn them off.



And the day before the eclipse, I got attacked by a wild animal!!!

Possibly NSFW, so look here.

Dammit, get the tweezers. At least it was only on my belly this time.

That genie must have been hard of hearing. I'm pretty sure I said CHICK magnet.

Meanwhile, where I had chosen a small gathering of maybe 300, George TheCow was off at a large (10,000 peeps) rave/doof festival nearby, helping DJ a few sets, then getting funky on the dance floor.

[xoxoxoBruce]

a r-l-r-l-r "thank you very much".

Here they flash all their rear lights off and on... I had a button in my van to do that without affecting the headlights.

Large or small, methinks I'd rather avoid crocks.

[ZenGum]

Originally Posted by ZenGum

Meanwhile, where I had chosen a small gathering of maybe 300, George TheCow was off at a large (10,000 peeps) rave/doof festival nearby, helping DJ a few sets, then getting funky on the dance floor.

Pay attention, people.

[ZenGum]

Okay, getting close to the Main Event.

Totality was due at 6.37 am.

It was obviously necessary to pull an all nighter. I had strategic naps the day before, then at 11pm had an energy drink, then around midnight started a carefully planned session of recreational pharmaceuticals. I had some and some and then some and even some , spread out over six hours, so that by dawn, my altitude was at a personal best and may have given Felix Baumgartener a run for his money. PM if you want full details..

So, I dressed warm - temp in the mid teens, I think, but it gets COLD during an eclipse - and went down by the lake side. I found a nice little spot about ten feet back from the shore, with the sky brightening in the east across the lake, and set up.

I had my camera on a tripod about four feet to my left, set to take a picture on automatic every 30 seconds.

Dawn twilight:



First peep of sunrise:



The eclipse was already underway by this time, with the moon moving from the top left part of the sun, as shown in this excellent shot by Ben Cooper:



Soon the sun was little more than a crescent, but alas my little camera wasn't really up to the job:

[ZenGum]

Soon, the sun became a slim crescent, a sickle, a sliver :



Then one last peek of light...



Then ...



BBAAANNNGGGGGG!!!!!!
As Someone - my campmates deny everything - let off a 2&1/2 inch firework mortar shell to salute the moment, and this instant was burned into my memory.

[ZenGum]

My camera really didn't do too well, here are some other people's photos.







You can clearly see the pale grey disc of the moon with the fleecy corona streaming out. There was a planet - looked like Venus - above and to the right. The light is strange, soft and silvery.

Words just don't cut it. See one for yourselves.

[ZenGum]

Back to my camera:



I was a tad to the right of my camera, so for me the eclipse was perfectly framed between those two dead trees.

After barely two minutes:



The fire returns!

[ZenGum]

Gradually, the sun came back, the warmth returned.



I sat meditating for a while, then, under the waxing gibbous sun, did the obvious thing.



Yeah, that's me, enjoy it.

I swam, came ashore, meditated until the eclipse was fully over. I did a fair bit of psycho-magic head work during this time.

Eventually, I took all my gear back to my tent, and wandered through the festival to the beach area, not speaking a word. One chap tried to talk with me "wasn't that great?" etc, but I used signs to show I wasn't in speaking mode due to my mind being totally BLOWN. Another guy saw this and trotted over to give me a hug and a pat on the back. He understood.

I wore bathers this time, and went for a long swim, resting on a platform on the lake made of shipping pallets fixed in dead trees. Clear light, beautiful location, rippling water ... heavenly.

Eventually I swam back to shore and wandered back to my tent, had some fruit, and - having not spoken for about three hours post-eclipse - rejoined my camp mates.

We spent the rest of that day chilling out in the shade, having the occasional swim, and enjoying ourselves. There was and champagne and scotch-and-coke. They had a watermelon that had bourbon in it, but the bourbon had about 5% hash oil in it! Did I mention one of these crew buys whippits five cartons at a time? (That's 1,800 bulbs, lazybrain ). There was some more and towards dusk four of us went for a stroll up the hill with a cocktail, that was mostly champagne.

Shortly after sunset I went to bed, slipped off into trippy dreams with trance-techno from the sound stage leaking in.

One of the most amazing experiences I've ever had. I'm buzzed just writing about it.

[Lamplighter]

You did well, Z, in planning, documenting, and having a memorable trip.

I've only been in one total eclipse, many years ago, but still vividly remembered.
Ours was also in the early morning.
(Do all total eclipses happen at that time of day ?)

We had previously heard that birds stop singing.
But not ours. They seemed to be calling one another even more.
As you say, the lighting is quite unusual, and totality doesn't last long.


So.... Hooray for Z, and with Pic's too ! It really did happen.