Driving West for an Annular Solar Eclipse | Great Basin Road Trip Ep. 1

Описание: In October 2023, we packed up the car and drove west to Great Basin National Park to see an annular solar eclipse.

We weren’t filming for YouTube. We weren’t building a series. We were just going.

The trip lasted two weeks — a lot of interstate, a lot of quiet mornings, and long stretches of open country. Not every day had a big moment. Some days blurred together. But that feels right for this part of the country.

In this first episode, we leave Chicago and begin crossing the Midwest — stopping in Des Moines, walking the grounds of the Iowa State Capitol, exploring the Pappajohn Sculpture Park, stretching our legs at Fontenelle Forest, and catching sunrise along the Platte River at the Crane Trust.

This isn’t a travel guide. It’s just the beginning of a long drive west — waiting to see the sun turn into a ring of fire for a few minutes… and seeing what stays with us afterward.

Thanks for being here.

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📍 Locations in this episode:
Chicago, Illinois
Des Moines, Iowa
Omaha, Nebraska
Fontenelle Forest
Crane Trust Nature & Visitor Center
Platte River
Wyoming High Plains

🎥 Filmed October 2023
☀️ Annular Solar Eclipse Road Trip Series

#GreatBasin #GreatBasinNationalPark #AnnularSolarEclipse #SolarEclipse2023 #RoadTrip #AmericanWest #PlatteRiver #Nebraska #Wyoming #I80 #TravelVlog #CinematicTravel #SmallPlanetBigWorld #MidwestToWest #eclipsechasers

Filmed by: Andy Spencer and Nefertiti Abdulmalik
‪@zuctronic‬
‪@SolARLightBeam‬

Edited by: Andy Spencer
‪@zuctronic‬

Thumbnail by: Nefertiti Abdulmalik
‪@SolARLightBeam‬

Music credit: Vintage Vibe-o-rama
‪@vintagevibeorama‬
"Moonlit Drift Over Hidden Reefs"
"Eternal Signals"
"Palms Promises and Poor Decisions"

00:00 Why We Took This Trip
01:28 Beginning the Great Basin Road Trip
04:05 Leaving Chicago
05:52 Morning in Des Moines
06:07 Iowa State Capitol
07:00 Pappajohn Sculpture Park
07:50 Driving I-80 West
09:42 Fontenelle Forest Boardwalk
12:22 Crane Trust at Sunrise
14:38 Drone Over the Platte River
17:58 Entering the American West
19:37 Wyoming High Plains