My wife, Leslie, and I decided to chase the eclipse in our CH-650. Protective eyewear was ordered and days off were obtained. The airplane would give us flexibility to fly to where the weather was best. Initially we planned to fly to Nebraska. That would give us good odds for good weather.

As the day approached, there appeared to be a front that would cover Nebraska. We could go east or west. Missouri was looking best. Two nights before the eclipse we decided to head to Arkansas from Houston.

We took off early and landed in Hot Springs, Arkansas to refuel and check the weather. The local FBO had a lounge where we checked the iPad and turned on the Weather Channel. The decision was made to continue east to Tennessee because Missouri appeared to have some cloud cover. But first the FBO offered us a courtesy car to go get some lunch. Then we were off to Jackson, Tennessee.

The morning of the eclipse we checked the weather again. North would be our best location. We would fly into Kentucky just north of the Tennessee/Kentucky border near Fort Campbell. Our flight would take us about 100 miles to the zone of totality. We arrived at the southern part of the zone about 40 minutes early. We made racetrack patterns to arrive at the center of the zone facing south as totality began.

For those who have never seen a total eclipse, let me say that words just can’t describe it. It is absolutely beautiful. The black disk of the moon surrounded by the corona of the sun is absolutely awe inspiring. I couldn’t look away. It was absolutely the most incredible sight. We were lucky enough to be in the zone where the totality lasted the longest. We had about two minutes, forty seconds. I was awestruck the whole time.

What I didn’t expect was the ‘diamond ring’ as it’s called. As the sun disappears from view and again as the sun reappeared, the last light/first light is a tiny, very bright spot that makes the entire eclipse look like a diamond ring. It was breathtaking. I wasn’t expecting it so it was certainly a bonus.

I can’t describe the feeling I got. Some people cry. I just felt a little numb. This was something so profound that I just couldn’t describe it. I couldn’t believe what I just witnessed. Stephanie Abrams of the Weather Channel certainly got caught up in the moment. https://weather.com/science/video/eclipse-brings-stephanie-abrams-t...

Photographs just don’t do the eclipse justice. Even professional photographers with the most expensive and sophisticated equipment can’t capture the splendor. I’m sure that almost everyone has taken a picture of a beautiful sunset or vista and been extremely disappointed with the resultant image. That is what this is like. Pictures just don’t do it justice. We got advice that you should just enjoy the eclipse and don’t worry too much about trying to get the perfect shot. There will be plenty of photos from other sources. Just enjoy God’s show.

Once totality was over, we turned toward home. We landed in Dyersburg, Tennessee and Minden, Louisiana to refuel. We finally landed back at North Houston airport shortly after sundown. Total flying time was fifteen hours and twenty-four minutes. We burned a little over ninety gallons of aviation fuel.

This was certainly a life-changing experience. I’m so glad we did it. There were times that we were pretty uncomfortable. This airplane is no 787 (my other ride)! The experience was certainly well worth it.