Elston Hill and his wife Jackline road tripped south into the ‘path of totality’ to Ontario, Oregon, to witness and photograph Monday’s historic Solar Eclipse.
“I made our reservations exactly one year ago,” Elston said. “The only motel I could find in the path of the full eclipse was the Motel 6 in Ontario, OR. It turned out to be a pretty good choice. Not crowded. We were going to go to town further north close to the center of the full eclipse but thought better of it when we visited the town.
“This is why we wanted to see a full eclipse!
“The moon takes its first little bite. Note the sun spots.”

“Just before full eclipse.”

“The corona!” (click images to see larger versions/slideshow):

“See fire flaring up as ‘prominences’…” (in the 1 o’clock and 3 o’clock areas):

“After 90 seconds the spectacular show was over and the sun started to peek back out.”

“And then the sun appears on the other side after 90 seconds of full eclipse where we were.”

“A group from the San Francisco Bay area. One of their members was doing his 27th eclipse. Another was on his 17th.”


“This was Jackie just moments before full eclipse using her (safe) eclipse binoculars.”

Elston adds:

“The venture went very well except for the ride home.
“We decided to go to the field just outside our motel in Ontario, Oregon. We were going to go north to a little town of Weiser, but then we heard there were going to be 95,000 people and 100 Portable Toilets and only two narrow roads in and out of the town. So we opted for a 30-second shorter eclipse. That way we had our own toilet a few steps away in the motel. Was not crowded at all.
“When it was over we got on the freeway right from our hotel and could not believe our good fortune. The GPS said it would be four hours to Richland. And then we hit three bottlenecks for road repairs — poor planning by the state of Washington which narrowed the freeway in each case to one lane. The four hour drive to Richland became an eight hour drive. But it was worth it. The corona is amazing and can only be viewed during a full eclipse.
“The next US full eclipse will pass over our daughter and her finance’s house in 2024. We have a room waiting.”

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4 replies on “PHOTOS: Elston Hill road trips to Solar Eclipse totality, takes amazing photos”

  1. Thank you, Elston and Jackie, your eclipse coverage and photos are fantastic. It really helps me understand and appreciate everything. I remember you from Maureen Hoffman’s Burien Art Walk & Talk. We enjoyed your company, photos and coverage. It was even fun picking up trash as we strolled 🙂

  2. Once again, Elston, you have aroused our sensitivities. Saying ‘Thank You’ doesn’t seem enough. Your sharing and passion are inspirational ~

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