Geraldton families bask in the momentous occasion of total solar eclipse

Despite being more than 800km away from the eclipse epicentre of Exmouth, people in Geraldton still managed to revel in the minute of darkness which fell in varying shades across WA.

Big crowds gathered at Stow Gardens and along the Geraldton foreshore — popular destinations for families and keen onlookers to sit and enjoy the rare hybrid solar eclipse, behind the safety of their solar eclipse glasses.

Ashton Pitman, 7, said “I can’t see anything” while his brother Timothy, 6, said “I can”.

The event began at 9.59am and peaked at 11.21am in Geraldton, whereas the hotspot for totality, Exmouth, saw the solar blackout at 11.29am.

Parents on the foreshore gave their children firm reminders to keep their glasses on, but some kids had other ideas. Daisy Teakle, 3, said the eclipse was “too light”.

The light cast on the Geraldton sky during the late morning felt like looking through a tinted window, whereas photos from Exmouth indicate a proper sunset.

Geraldton parents commented “it’s nice to take the kids to see it, I hope they remember it”.

“I wasn’t expecting it to be as dark as it is. I was kind of thinking it’d be a bit of a let down,” another pleasantly surprised parent said.

Eclipse glasses sold out in Geraldton well before the main event.