I sailed to Greenland for a total solar eclipse — what I saw left me speechless

I woke up on the morning of Aug.

12 and looked out of the window to something I hadn't dared hope for: blue sky.

After days of scrutinizing weather models that seemed determined to test the nerves of everyone aboard the HX Expeditions ship MS Spitsbergen, somehow, against the odds, the clouds had cleared.

Even then, I didn't trust it (especially after my 2024 eclipse experience ).

We had traveled thousands of miles, crossed the Greenland Sea and ventured deep into Scoresby Sund to put ourselves in the path of the moon's shadow.

Now there was nothing to do but wait — and hope the sky stayed clear.

The wind howled across the deck, but nobody seemed to mind.

If anything, it was helping us, keeping the clouds at bay.

The atmosphere aboard felt like Christmas Eve with a ship full of overexcited children.

Some guests had chased eclipses across the world; for others, this would be their first.

Either way, Aug.

12 was the date we'd been waiting years for.

But by the time we reached Scoresby Sund, something had shifted.

I had traveled all this way to look up.