I can picture Tim Giese's expression when the moment arrived and proved to be everything he had anticipated.

The long-time stargazer travelled to witness the full solar eclipse in Rogersville, New Brunswick, 46 km south of Miramichi. He was accompanied by his daughter Kimberly, who resides in the Maritimes.

"It was quite the experience with the light dimming slowly until about 95 per cent coverage," he told CochraneNow.com, "and then as the eclipse moved to totality watching a "wall" of darkened sky move in quickly from the west. 

"While the sky above us was "dark," all around us on the horizon was a sky like sunset or sunrise."

To his delight the weather forecast was on the mark.

"The weather was gorgeous with barely a cloud in the sky."  

Unfortunately, his photos didn't turn out as well as he hoped, but Kimberly came to the rescue to capture the photo above. Although you can't see it in this photograph, Venus was clearly visible to the lower right and Jupiter to the upper left, he says. Wow, what a spectacular addition.

Massive crowds gathered for the event in placed like Niagara Falls, but the crowds were much smaller where Giese viewed it.

"Let's put it this way. It was no problem to pull off the road and get a good parking spot. That was why we went there, and also the fact that it was a bit closer to the totality center line than Fredericton."

drone show

Just down the road in the Miramachi, viewers were treated to a custom designed drone light show the night before.

"This all leads up to the main event, the Total Eclipse, tomorrow afternoon," wrote Miramichi mayor Adam Lordon. "Weather’s looking good. Gates open at 1:30 p.m. at the airport, and there’s lots of fun all around town! Happy Eclipse eve everyone!"

Giese had the viewing of the total eclipse on his bucket list. Here, about 37.4 per cent of the sun's surface was obscured by the moon.

MORE: Cochranite goes the distance for great view of eclipse

Even if Cochrane was in line for a total eclipse, Giese was pessimistic about the weather cooperating. He's been disappointed in the past when major celestial events have been spoiled by cloudy or rainy conditions.

To the delight of local residents, though, we did have clear skies, and many took the opportunity to get a peek with eye protection.

We are promised to be able to experience a total eclipse in Alberta in about 20 years.