Making it a day trip: tips for those who live close to totality

Hello, everyone! Hope all is well as we look forward to a new year.

There are many people who live in areas that aren’t too far outside of the totality path- close enough that traveling to it could be done as a day trip. If y0u are reading this, this post is for you.

I’ll get something out of the way: as a reminder, please do NOT settle for the deep partial (likely 95% or more) that you would get from home. See my other posts on the eclipse experience: no degree of partial eclipse will EVER compare to totality. There are beautiful, incredible things that you can see and experience, but ONLY in the totality path (shown between the red lines):

http://xjubier.free.fr/en/site_pages/solar_eclipses/TSE_2024_GoogleMapFull.html

There are people suggesting to stay in the totality path for the rest of eclipse day, then drive back the next day. If some of you can do that, great. But I understand that some of you need to be back home the same day, and by a reasonable hour. This blog post covers that.

I don't want people (who live close to the path) choosing not to go to totality because they were worried about the traffic. There will still be heavy traffic going to and from the totality path, but hopefully this post will help you get ahead of the biggest jams.

So, here are some thoughts, in no particular order:

Traveling (to and from the totality path):

• If you can, try to get a place to stay as close as possible to the totality path for the night leading into the eclipse. 

• If you can't, leave VERY early on eclipse morning. Account for significant traffic getting to the eclipse path. 

• Use your digital devices to show the way there (and back), but also have detailed road maps. Ideally, have a road map that shows the path of totality on it.

• If traffic starts to build up too much, seek alternative routes.

• Traffic updates on your phone may not be accurate. Flip through the radio stations for traffic updates.

• Watch from close to the edge of the totality path. The blue line in the map linked above is the centerline. That's the longest possible totality for the region. There will be many people and websites that suggest "Go to the centerline!" If you have the flexibility to do that, great. But if it's your goal to be back home by a reasonable hour that same day, that may not be possible. So, my suggestion is, go into the path far enough that you get a decent length totality, but stop when the crowds start becoming big. Will this be in an area that gets 90 seconds of totality? 2 minutes? 2 1/2? That depends on your region. See the "general crowds" tip below.

• Try not to set up in an area that has a lot of people in the immediate vicinity (i.e. no big eclipse festivals, etc.)

• Try not to set up in an area that has a lot of people in the general vicinity (i.e. not a sizable town or city or small town overrun with eclipse tourists)

• Try not to have any large gatherings in between you and the edge of the totality path. For example: if you are coming from Houston or Bryan/College Station, you'll notice that Waco is in the totality path. Not only does Waco have a sizeable population, they are planning a big eclipse event. So, if you want to be home by a reasonable hour that same day, the suggestion would be to watch the total eclipse from EAST of Waco. Yes, it's a shorter totality, but at least you're ahead of those crowds (other examples can be provided for other regions) 

• General crowds: these will be people on the side of the roads not associated with towns or gatherings. I’ll take a guess and say that you’ll likely see more people gathering the deeper in the path you go. My suggestion: once the crowds on the side of the road start becoming rather large, turn your car around, drive back to the areas where the crowds aren’t too bad, and observe from there. (This assumes you’ll still get a decent length totality) Remember: if you are in the path early (as you should be) the crowds gathered on the sides of the road at that time will only grow later, so use your judgement

• You don’t have to observe from right next to a major road, but don’t observe from a site that has one road with a slow speed limit in and out (example: some parks may have 1 road in and out with a slow speed limit (15-20 mph) and it may be several miles before you reach a parking lot. If possible, avoid these)

At the site:

• Observe from next to your car, or close to it. No reason to have a long hike back to the car after totality

• You can bring other things to do to pass the time, but pack those things up when the eclipse is more than halfway to totality. (One trip to the car as you are leaving)

• If you meet people there at the site, get their contact info before totality so you can share stories later: you may be leaving very shortly after totality (see below)

Leaving the site:

• I have a bold suggestion: leave immediately after totality. The first 2-3 min after are cool to see the world brightening again, but after that, it’s VERY anticlimactic. There’s going to be a lot of beginners at this eclipse who think they may need to stay until the eclipse is completely over. It’s going to take them a few minutes after totality to come to their senses and realize that there’s no need for them to stay for the post-totality partial. So, the idea is to leave before they do. I’ll suggest driving away no later than about 5-7 min after totality. Hence the suggestions in the “at the site” section- those allow for a quick escape.

• If you need to, set a reminder alarm for about 3 min after totality and another one for about 5 min after: you may not be thinking clearly after totality and it’s easy to get caught up in celebrating in the wonder of post-totality. The first alarm is your "warning" alarm (or you could leave then). If you don't leave at the first alarm, be sure to leave when the second one rings!

I hope this post has been helpful. Please share your comments below. Thanks for reading!