Unless you were under a rock with corks in your eardrums, you know that last Monday was the big solar eclipse of 2024.

The Peoria Riverfront had a free solar eclipse watch party and I went and took photos of this fun free event.

It had a deja vu-like quality to it because I spent the 2017 eclipse at the Peoria Riverfront Museum. I can’t believe that was eight years ago!

Let’s go to the PRM and we’ll eclipse party like it’s 2017!

Here we are at the back of the Peoria Riverfront Museum.

Some people are seated on the side lawn and others are camped out in front, waiting for the magical eclipse that’s happening today!

The official entrance to the back patio is over here and we’ll climb the stairs and join the pary. Hey look, we got a sticker! Woo and hoo!

Here’s some shots from the Peoria Riverfront Museum Solar Eclipse Watch Party.

As you can see, there’s a really large group of people here to enjoy this special day!

There’s what a appears to be a coffee machine on a stand over here. I’m not sure why people are looking inside of it…maybe they don’t know an epic eclipse is about to happen!

Some people have brought their own chairs and are patiently waiting for the eclipse to begin.

There’s an oasis of food trucks over here. I ate lunch already, but…

I saw the Triple Dipple’s Cheesecake Caboose and had to stop on over.

There’s Harreld, who’s the owner and chief baker of Triple Dipple’s. We met him at Christmas time here in December of last year and great to see him again! He’s got a fantastic smile and his cheesecake is unbelievable!

I got a tub of the Oreo Cheesecake and it was a sweet and delicious treat, complete with chocolate swirls and two mini Oreo’s on top!

I ran into some friendly and familiar faces in my travels before the eclipse came to a full frontal happening.

Matt from the PJ Star was taking photos and I was able to regale him once again about my “You just don’t walk in off the street and write for the Peoria Journal Star” story!
Great to see Tom and Sandy in the crowd. Tom and I went to Bergan High School and he told me that his class is gearing up for their 50th reunion!
I ran into William and Echo and I loved their eclipse t-shirts!
Great to see Scott in the crowd. He and I worked at Fleming Potter many years ago! It was nice to catch up with him!
And it’s always fabulous to see my friends Amber and Joe who are regular guest stars here on MBIP!

Scott took the MBIP Camera and snapped a photo of myself with Amber and Joe.

Amber has recently started a new blog here in Peoria and it’s something you need to check out. All the information is listed below!

We’ve all heard the historical question of, “Will it play in Peoria?” Well Amber’s blog, For Sale Peoria, poses the question, “Will it sell in Peoria?”

These are real ads that Amber collects and posts and it’s a hilarious and curious collection of people selling some of the craziest stuff you can imagine! All the ads are real and the blog is updated daily for your enjoyment. There’s also a music video that accompanies each ad!

Check out the blog by clicking here and follow For Sale Peoria on Twitter and facecrack!

This sign notes the maximum eclipse happens at 2:03pm and it’s currently 2:01pm! It’s just about eclipse time!

One minute to go and the excitement is building and people are definitely in eclipse mode and mood!

It’s time and the eclipse is happening! Wow, it’s gotten dark all of a sudden and I wonder if the sun is completely blocked by the moon up in the sky.