Barbara Lawlor, Nederland.  It came and crept across the sun creating a crescent in the sky that became smaller and smaller until it was a fingernail sized brilliant glow. The moon’s shadow against the sun was total to the north of us, but here, in Nederland, it was a 92 percent partial eclipse and on Monday morning all eyes were on the sky.

Groups of gazers gathered on the west shore of Barker Reservoir. The smart ones had lawn chairs that they could recline in, saving the strain on their necks. One bunch of eclipsers, many of them Nederland Area Seniors, spread out in a line in the sand starting around 11 a.m.

At first it seemed like the whole thing was going to be a bust, as grey clouds moved over the Nederland area, dimming the day, hiding the sun. How can you have an eclipse if there is no sun for the moon to block?

And then, when sunlight broke through, peeking over the rim of the clouds, the gazers could see the just born eclipse. Brent Warren let out his signature victory warble and other cheered and applauded, an appreciative audience. This group would get to see the long-awaited eclipse of the sun, even though it was only partial.

While the shadow moved across the sun, the day on our part of the earth became dimmer; not really dark, more of a grey fuzziness, taking out the clarity of sunshine’s edges. And all the cardboard safety glassed tilted upward toward the sky.

An eclipse party erupted on the deck and lawn of Happy Trails. People sipped their lattes and chais and chatted with friends as the eclipse moved slowly over the sun. Ned streets were empty while this once in a lifetime, maybe twice, natural phenomenon took place.

Nederland Middle Senior High School students took part in the eclipse spectacle by walking en masse up the trail behind the school to the end of West Magnolia road where they formed a circle, whipped out their safety glasses and watched the whole thing accompanied by the sound of grasshoppers whizzing and clicking in the dry grass.

Teachers and administrators accompanied the students in the trek and a Boulder County Sheriff’s team of deputies were on hand in case of any emergencies. “Oh wow,” exclaimed the students as the eclipse reached its peak. “That was awesome.”

(Originally published in the August 24, 2017 print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)