On Monday, April 8th, 2024, a total solar eclipse was visible in several major cities across the United States. My husband and I heard about it a few weeks ahead of time, and luckily, we were able to take a couple of days off work to travel to Lima, Ohio to witness this event. We had never experienced an eclipse, and after reading the news, our expectations were sky high.
During the week before, we heard about a special eclipse-themed drink that Sonic was offering. To kick off the weekend and the start to our trip, we decided to give it a try. This limited edition ice cream slush also came with very safe eclipse-viewing glasses to protect your eyes from the sun. On top of that, the drink was delicious! It had a dragon fruit taste with vanilla ice cream and blue, purple and gray galaxy sprinkles. We were very satisfied with our “blackout slushes”.
Lima is about 10 hours from our home, so we booked spots at two different campgrounds along the way. On Saturday morning, we started heading towards our first campsite – Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. When we were approaching our destination, our GPS indicated that we were going to be getting on a ferry. We thought it was a little odd and were worried that this was going to delay our trip. However, the Green River ferry was a small boat that only held one car at a time, and it simply took us across the river for a couple of minutes. Having never been on a ferry, this was pretty neat.
Mammoth Cave National Park was absolutely packed. It is significantly larger than we initially expected, and much more of a big deal. We had our dogs with us, so we were unable to participate in any of the guided tours. However, we were able to speak to a lady who suggested that we take the Cedar Sink Trail nearby. She mentioned that April is their peak wildflower season, and since it was dog-friendly, we took the 15 minute drive to the hiking entrance. What we found was absolutely gorgeous. The trail walks you through the biggest sink hole in the state of Kentucky – it is a whopping 7 acres! The walk through only took about an hour and a half and I strongly recommend checking it out.
On Sunday, we drove through a huge chunk of Kentucky and enjoyed the mountains and the beautiful countryside. After traveling for a few hours, we arrived at Big Bone Lick State Park. This park is especially unique because there is an indoor/outdoor museum as well as a bison viewing area. We were excited to learn that the very first fossil of a Harlan’s Ground Sloth was found at Big Bone Lick by Lewis and Clark! Lewis and Clark were sent to Big Bone Lick by President Thomas Jefferson to dig for fossils, and the indoor museum discusses their findings, and displays other fossils discovered near the park. The bison can be found about a quarter mile into a nearby trail, roaming in a large fenced-in field. We recommend visiting the bison early in the morning. There were no other people around, and it was peaceful for the wildlife.
On Monday morning, we continued our travels to Lima, Ohio to view the solar eclipse in totality. We grabbed some breakfast at Frisch’s Big Boy in Cincinnati (our favorite city) and made it to Lima by about noon. The most difficult part was deciding the optimal location to view the eclipse. We chose a local park a few miles north of the city called McLean Teddy Bear Park, and it was perfect! There were large fields with a nice area where we spread out our blankets to hang out with our dogs. We laid back with our Sonic eclipse glasses and watched the sky for well over an hour (taking breaks, of course). We witnessed the full transition from partial eclipse to totality. Once the moon was completely over the sun, we had to take our glasses off to view the “corona”, a small blue glowing ring of the sun outlining the moon. This takes place in the path of totality only, and it is what made this experience so special. Photos couldn’t even begin to capture the surreal moment. There was a powerful silence, and then the park visitors began clapping and celebrating this amazing event. Nearby homes set off fireworks, and we all felt a sense of connectedness. For only a split second, the world felt as if it really could have ended. If ever given the opportunity, I strongly recommend traveling to view a total solar eclipse – it was incredible.
After the eclipse was over, we began to head back. We loved Big Bone Lick, so we decided to stay for another night to see the bison and the museum one more time. This was an eye-opening and peaceful experience that we will remember for many years to come. There is nothing that compares to natural wonders like the solar eclipse. Thank you for reading about our adventure!
