Last night was the super flower blood moon lunar eclipse. I had lots of good intentions and even several plans to go and view the eclipse from the water, all of which unraveled as clouds gathered; as 9:00 started to seem really late; as the full weight of a busy weekend had me changing into my PJs at 7 pm.

Instead, I got up and swam at moonset. Arwen, Sheila, Colleen, and I met at the Albany Bulb at 5:15 am. The moon was spectacular: a spotlight of silverly gold floating above the Golden Gate Bridge.

The moon is in perigee—meaning it’s at its closest point to the earth in its elliptical orbit. About four times a year the moon is in perigee at the same time as it’s a full moon (the next three months will all have full moons in perigee, with the moon at its very closest for July’s full moon). These full moons in perigee are known as super moons because that glowing orb appears brighter and larger than the rest of the time. 

Arriving at the bulb, I felt giddy with the perfection of the scene in front of me: dramatic clouds, a giant moon glowing in the center of the just-lightening sky, a sultry, warm breeze. The tide was extremely low and so we ungracefully clamored in and muddled through a shallow swim until it was deep enough to relax into the water.

I couldn’t stop taking pictures and Colleen took a bunch as well. So here are our attempts to capture this magical moon and the sunrise.