Wednesday morning, May 26th, members of the Denver Chapter of Mappy Hour roused themselves from deep slumber and made their way to Golden, Colorado to witness the “super blood moon”. The awe-inspiring astral act is the combination of two slightly less rare phenomena: a supermoon, which occurs when the moon lines up closer than normal to Earth, thus appearing larger, and a total lunar eclipse, which occurs when our planet’s shadow covers the moon. Sadly, uninvited cloud cover obscured the viewing of the blood moon lunar eclipse at the last possible moment. Had the members been able to see the moon at the anointed moment, it would have appeared bright and slightly red in color.
However, for the sleep deprived Mappy Hour members that made the trip, the event was far from a bust. Thanks to the early work of event co-sponsor Bivouac Coffee Co., of Evergreen Colorado. Those weary souls that made the journey were rewarded with naturally processed coffee and stroopwafel cookies. Bivouac Coffee founder René Steenvoorden, and Community Engagement and Partnership Manager Julia Oleksiak, discussed Bivouac Coffee’s commitment to producing more environmentally friendly coffee, while also being involved in outdoor recreational activities like hiking, rock climbing, and biking. Coffee, cookies, and a Colorado sunrise are not a bad consolation prize for missing out on the aforementioned lunar appointment.
This was the first in-person event for the Denver Mappy Hour Chapter since the start of Covid-19. Even though the “super blood moon” failed to make an appearance, sponsors, The North Face and National Geographic were reliably on hand for raffle prizes. Among the goodies given out were a pair of The North Face sunglasses, bandanas, coffee, backpacking supplies, and National Geographic maps. What is a Mappy Hour event without maps?
For those inquiring minds, a supermoon occurs naturally every couple of months, in fact April just saw a supermoon of its own. Slightly rarer is the lunar eclipse, for which you will have to wait until May 15, 2022 to see another performance in North America. Wondering when the next “super blood moon” will occur? Buckle up, because a supermoon won’t intersect with a lunar eclipse for another twelve years!
