The Great American Eclipse - Aug. 21, 2017

[Pelado]

Anyone else planning on coming to Idaho for eclipse viewing? I talked to a park ranger about my Mann Creek campground plan. The ranger said they're expecting 6-hours of traffic from Payette to Weiser on eclipse day. So I'm looking at other options.

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[Scott R Nelson]

I'm planning to go see the eclipse. Our current plan is to stay in Logan the night before, then get up real early and hope we can make it up to Rexburg to see it. It should normally take less than three hours to drive that far, but we're planning about twice that, just in case.

When we had the annular eclipse on May 20 of 2012, we drove to Fernley NV to observe it. That one didn't get nearly as much press, so there were no big crowds. We found a parking lot with a few other people parked in it who looked like they were also there for the eclipse. Everybody shared what they had brought for viewing it and it was sort of like a big impromptu party.

The party: Annular6.jpg

Some of the high tech viewing devices: Annular5.jpg Annular2.jpg

Interesting shadows: Annular3.jpg

At maximum eclipse point: Annular1.jpg

[Bo Diddley]

My wife's cousin is an Astro Physics professor in SC. She says she's been getting emails from Air Force pilots asking the best way to file their flight plan to view the eclipse. Shouldn't these officers understand basic geometry?

This made me wonder about all the general aviation folks who might be planning on flying to the total eclipse area to view it in mid-flight. What are the chances there are issues with that?

[Moliere]

I know that people in Idaho Falls are expecting gas stations to run dry, store shelves to be emptied, and the power system to fail. Cell phone coverage is the least of the concerns. Should be fun!

Hopefully the city folk that come to Idaho can share their cell phone technology with the farmers and other backwards people they'll be meeting.


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[Lost Student]

I know that people in Idaho Falls are expecting gas stations to run dry, store shelves to be emptied, and the power system to fail. Cell phone coverage is the least of the concerns. Should be fun!

[Moliere]

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[Pelado]

Plus you have the freeway to get home. (But even then, probably a good idea to have a stop planned.) I think Hwy 55 is going to be severely crowded all day after the big event.

Did a little bit more research. Might go a little further up 95 to the Mann Creek Campground. Kids can play in the water at the reservoir, plus it gets us another second or two of total eclipse.

[Moliere]

If anyone wants a free place to stay in Nyssa, let me know. I'll hook you up.


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[BigPiney]

I'm planning on avoiding all highways in Oregon that day.

me too!

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

I'm planning on avoiding all highways in Oregon that day.

[Lost Student]

I was in Fruitland the other day to meet with a client, so afterwards I decided to head north and check out Weiser. Don't think I'd ever been there before. It's a much shorter and easier drive than my original Cascade plan. We might stop at Black Canyon Reservoir on our way back so the kids can still get wet.

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Plus you have the freeway to get home. (But even then, probably a good idea to have a stop planned.) I think Hwy 55 is going to be severely crowded all day after the big event.

[Pelado]

I talked to my kids and they all would rather drive to Eastern Idaho and stay at my parents' house even though it's a longer drive than Weiser and they have school the next day. We'll probably stay the weekend so we won't have to fight traffic to get to the path of totality. I wonder how bad S-bound I-15 will be right after. At least once we get to Poky and head west it shouldn't be too bad.

Also, our eclipse-viewing glasses arrived--we're ready! The glasses have a printed warning that they should be used no more than cumulative 3 minutes over a 24-hr period. Since the partial eclipse is going to last 2 1/2 hours, should I be concerned?


Also, this interactive map https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/sites/d...map/index.html is pretty cool.

I was in Fruitland the other day to meet with a client, so afterwards I decided to head north and check out Weiser. Don't think I'd ever been there before. It's a much shorter and easier drive than my original Cascade plan. We might stop at Black Canyon Reservoir on our way back so the kids can still get wet.

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[Lost Student]

I talked to my kids and they all would rather drive to Eastern Idaho and stay at my parents' house even though it's a longer drive than Weiser and they have school the next day. We'll probably stay the weekend so we won't have to fight traffic to get to the path of totality. I wonder how bad S-bound I-15 will be right after. At least once we get to Poky and head west it shouldn't be too bad.

Also, our eclipse-viewing glasses arrived--we're ready! The glasses have a printed warning that they should be used no more than cumulative 3 minutes over a 24-hr period. Since the partial eclipse is going to last 2 1/2 hours, should I be concerned?


Also, this interactive map https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/sites/d...map/index.html is pretty cool.

[Pelado]

Not if you go into it with low expectations. :shrug:

You'll see a partial eclipse that will make it pretty dark still.

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We're planning to make a day trip to Cascade, though we'll probably have to leave pretty early in the morning with all the expected traffic. Hadn't considered Weiser. Maybe that would be easier.

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[Northwestcoug]

We are 40 miles south from the latitude that is right in the center of the eclipse's 'path'. There is only one major road that goes from the local airport to this area. The conservative estimate is that at least a quarter million people will be traveling to Central Oregon. Some people are estimating twice that. A Japanese travel agency has booked an entire resort for their group to come. Our hospital system has put a freeze on employees requesting time off for the whole week surrounding the day of the eclipse.

In the midst of all this, my crazy wife wants to travel north, find some desolate butte to park the truck and camp the night, then watch the eclipse and 'go home'. I wouldn't be surprised if it takes us 4 hours to get back home with everyone on the roads. I'm doing my best to dissuade her, and stay closer to home to watch it. I've already tried the 'no water and toilets' angle, to no avail. I'm considering sabotaging the truck now...