wxeyeNH Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 6 minutes ago, HIPPYVALLEY said: I would imagine it must get dark as night during totality if there’s cloud cover. It will get dark at night. Even in areas like mine with 98% it will get extremely dark. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nrgjeff Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 I'd probably try @PWMan in almost any forecast scenario. In 2017 some KCMO friends thought they were hosed with mid-level clouds but they got a lucky break for several minutes at just the right time. If there is any chance of a breaks in clouds I would take a chance on it. I suppose have some other activity to justify the drive. Again, one should still experience some effects under overcast and observe animals react. Even mostly cloudy could yield bits and pieces of the main show. The KCMO story was a morning MCS. Of course that day clouds lingered well after the storms departed, rather than quickly clearing. Friends gave it a shot despite lots of afternoon clouds. They got the break they needed. Sometimes things actually go right! At this point it's too early to worry about the forecast though. Maybe consider some back-up locations. One can still get a motel off the path of totality in the Midwest no problem. Then drive on in that day, early of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 2 hours ago, Professional Lurker said: Test out your glasses ahead of time, l hear there's a lot of fakes being sold. No sense in blinding your family. Sent from my Pixel 7 using Tapatalk I did and they seem OK but TBH I'm not sure you can 100% be certain they're not fake unless you actually test them with expensive scanning equipment or whatever.......the ones I used in 2017 were good and the 3 I just bought are the same kind so IDK.......trying to take all the precautions as much as I can 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wxeyeNH Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 51 minutes ago, nrgjeff said: I'd probably try @PWMan in almost any forecast scenario. In 2017 some KCMO friends thought they were hosed with mid-level clouds but they got a lucky break for several minutes at just the right time. If there is any chance of a breaks in clouds I would take a chance on it. I suppose have some other activity to justify the drive. Again, one should still experience some effects under overcast and observe animals react. Even mostly cloudy could yield bits and pieces of the main show. The KCMO story was a morning MCS. Of course that day clouds lingered well after the storms departed, rather than quickly clearing. Friends gave it a shot despite lots of afternoon clouds. They got the break they needed. Sometimes things actually go right! At this point it's too early to worry about the forecast though. Maybe consider some back-up locations. One can still get a motel off the path of totality in the Midwest no problem. Then drive on in that day, early of course. From a Meteorological perspective what I remember from my Aruba eclipse is the wall of darkness coming down the beach. I could see to the horizen and it was pretty pronounced racing towards us at 1000mph. Most people just stare at the sun through totality but I really noticed how the strange light reflected of the scattered cumulous around and the rapidly changing sunrise to sunset effect in the distance all around us. The only thing I remember about animals was that the hotel had lots of exoctic birds in cages. Normally as dusk falls the staff would cover the cages up in the evening. No one remembered to do that and the birds were going nuts trying to figure why got became night all at once. If you can't make it to centerline it will not get that dark but at the edges of totality Bailey's beads and the Diamond Ring effect last longer. As i keep harping, 99% partial and a 100% total is like the difference between kissing someone and marrying them. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tunafish Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 1 hour ago, HIPPYVALLEY said: Well, a few years ago a 60,000 fan Phish Festival in VT caused major traffic headaches. I can’t imagine if quarter of a million people pour into the state. Sure did. But that was because the destination (festival) stopped letting people in days before because the amount of rain they received turned all their grounds into mud soup. Everyone stopped on the side of 91 and walked. As long as their isn't a red light like there was for the festival, it shouldn't be too bad (until everyone turns around to head home - then, yeah, that'll probably be a mess). The advice in that Plainfield VT post isn't terrible...a little hype, but sage advice. Don't wait until the 8th to get gas, do your grocery shopping, or whatever errands you have if you can help it. The locals are, undoubtedly, still a little scarred from that festival. Kind as they were, it consumed their lives in a way they really weren't prepared for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PWMan Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 Thanks for the feedback. We have our glasses and live within a fairly easy drive of totality, so I don't see myself passing it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tunafish Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 18 minutes ago, PWMan said: Thanks for the feedback. We have our glasses and live within a fairly easy drive of totality, so I don't see myself passing it up. I think our spot will involve us taking 95. I'm not worried about it on the way up, but on the way back I can see it being a complete nightmare. Working on alternative routes home that don't involve 95, but there aren't many that don't take you WAY out of the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nrgjeff Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 Yes I remember the clouds 'flipping' from white to dark with the few Cu still around in East Tenn 2017. Thankfully it was totally clear overhead. We also remembered to observe the 360-degree sunset. I did not notice the shadow on the ground, but we were in a flat area. Were you elevated in Aruba? 1 hour ago, wxeyeNH said: From a Meteorological perspective what I remember from my Aruba eclipse is the wall of darkness coming down the beach. I could see to the horizen and it was pretty pronounced racing towards us at 1000mph. Most people just stare at the sun through totality but I really noticed how the strange light reflected of the scattered cumulous around and the rapidly changing sunrise to sunset effect in the distance all around us. The only thing I remember about animals was that the hotel had lots of exoctic birds in cages. Normally as dusk falls the staff would cover the cages up in the evening. No one remembered to do that and the birds were going nuts trying to figure why got became night all at once. If you can't make it to centerline it will not get that dark but at the edges of totality Bailey's beads and the Diamond Ring effect last longer. As i keep harping, 99% partial and a 100% total is like the difference between kissing someone and marrying them. Our main animal obs was the cicadas going off like it's evening. I've read about things like those birds etc. In a previous post I wrote about the smaller orange/pink prominences (much smaller than the silver corona) and I'm glad I remembered to look at the smaller prominences. Otherwise the 2017 delicate corona at the solar Min was absolutely gorgeous. I'm hoping 2024 near solar max the power doesn't take away from the finesse. Anyway we won't get cute with extended Bailey's Beads or Diamond Ring - just in and out of totality. I'll take 4 minutes of totality please! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorEastermass128 Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 I heading to Rochester for this. For some reason, I thought it was closer than a 6-7 hour drive when booking it. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professional Lurker Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 My wife thinks I'm crazy for wanting to fill up a 5gal gas can to bring with us. She doesn't want to be stuck in a car that smells like gas.I don't want to be stuck in a car that doesn't smell like gas because we're empty...Sent from my Pixel 7 using Tapatalk 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewbeer Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 I thought about bringing a 5 gallon gas can too, but probably just going to fill up about an hour before arriving, maybe in Bradford or Woodville. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dryslot Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 5 hours ago, dendrite said: This will verify. lol Yup, 35-40% chance that happens up here in April, May even snow lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PWMan Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 3 hours ago, tunafish said: I think our spot will involve us taking 95. I'm not worried about it on the way up, but on the way back I can see it being a complete nightmare. Working on alternative routes home that don't involve 95, but there aren't many that don't take you WAY out of the way. I'm not worried about sitting in traffic for a while. I do it for ski weekends, sporting events and occasionally driving to/from Boston, and this is a obviously a unique opportunity. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mreaves Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 3 hours ago, Brewbeer said: I thought about bringing a 5 gallon gas can too, but probably just going to fill up about an hour before arriving, maybe in Bradford or Woodville. If you’re on 91, P&H Truckstop in Wells River might be the easiest to access. Great homemade bread and other baked goods too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 LOL.......is the eclipse modelled? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 Mega lol......OK I'm not too worried yet for Dallas...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professional Lurker Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 Mega lol......OK I'm not too worried yet for Dallas......Yeah I need to not look at this for a week...Sent from my Pixel 7 using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Go Kart Mozart Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 13 hours ago, ice1972 said: LOL.......is the eclipse modelled? Yup. Looks like an Apps runner now, but we'll see if the -NAO suppresses it some. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Go Kart Mozart Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 I'll be at my sister-in-law's in Erie. Just hoping for the rare sunny day in early April. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j24vt Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 Keep in mind that it is mud season in northern NE and it's probably worth sticking to paved roads unless you have 4wd and good ground clearance. The ruts are real. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorEastermass128 Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 3 hours ago, j24vt said: Keep in mind that it is mud season in northern NE and it's probably worth sticking to paved roads unless you have 4wd and good ground clearance. The ruts are real. Lots of eclipse pilgrims stuck in the mud. I can’t wait to see the pics of Honda Pilots with CT plates stuck in mud halfway up the driver side door. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jebman Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 Come see the eclipse in Texas. No mud. No cloudy skies. Just wall to wall sunshine, beautiful 87/66 weather to witness the best eclipse of your life! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 1 hour ago, Jebman said: Come see the eclipse in Texas. No mud. No cloudy skies. Just wall to wall sunshine, beautiful 87/66 weather to witness the best eclipse of your life! You sure about that chief? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jebman Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 2 hours ago, ice1972 said: You sure about that chief? Well we wont have mud. Central Texas didnt get stuck with feet of snow like the Northeast did this winter. Sunshine and hell hot is something we are very, very good at. The southeasterlies set up, dews climb to prodigious heights then it gets nice and hot. And cloudless. Most of Texas should be clear to maybe partly cloudy, should be pretty good eclipse weather. Famous. Last. Words. Watch us end up with a rare Gulf Low that clouds Austin up with heavy rain all damn day April 8, while the rest of the country gets wall to wall sunshine and an unseasonable heat wave lmao! You know, somehow, I really wouldnt be surprised. I am OLD. This is my very last chance to see a total solar eclipse in America. I'm in bad shape. I will NOT see the 2040s. I will be very lucky to see 65. Yeah, April 8 will be thick dark clouds in Texas, record rains with absolutely FRANTIC emergency water rescues, over four feet of rain in a 7 hour period in Travis and Hays Counties shattering records since the Civil War in the mid 19th Century. And I spend the entire day clinging desperately to a tree, screaming for help until I am fooking hoarse, while 57 foot deep waters rage all around me! Connecticut will be sunny and cloudless with record hot weather, setting new 200 year records making me wish heartily I had gone to Connecticut to see the eclipse because Texas is so wet during a total eclipse from record rains from a 3500 mile long line of training thunderstorms. The ONE time in my whole life I never wanted rain in Texas ---- WE WILL GET IT ----- On April 8th, the Day of the Total Eclipse. Bank on it. With serious interest. Hey, there's still time for me to board a flight to Connecticut. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 3 hours ago, Jebman said: Well we wont have mud. Central Texas didnt get stuck with feet of snow like the Northeast did this winter. Sunshine and hell hot is something we are very, very good at. The southeasterlies set up, dews climb to prodigious heights then it gets nice and hot. And cloudless. Most of Texas should be clear to maybe partly cloudy, should be pretty good eclipse weather. Famous. Last. Words. Watch us end up with a rare Gulf Low that clouds Austin up with heavy rain all damn day April 8, while the rest of the country gets wall to wall sunshine and an unseasonable heat wave lmao! You know, somehow, I really wouldnt be surprised. I am OLD. This is my very last chance to see a total solar eclipse in America. I'm in bad shape. I will NOT see the 2040s. I will be very lucky to see 65. Yeah, April 8 will be thick dark clouds in Texas, record rains with absolutely FRANTIC emergency water rescues, over four feet of rain in a 7 hour period in Travis and Hays Counties shattering records since the Civil War in the mid 19th Century. And I spend the entire day clinging desperately to a tree, screaming for help until I am fooking hoarse, while 57 foot deep waters rage all around me! Connecticut will be sunny and cloudless with record hot weather, setting new 200 year records making me wish heartily I had gone to Connecticut to see the eclipse because Texas is so wet during a total eclipse from record rains from a 3500 mile long line of training thunderstorms. The ONE time in my whole life I never wanted rain in Texas ---- WE WILL GET IT ----- On April 8th, the Day of the Total Eclipse. Bank on it. With serious interest. Hey, there's still time for me to board a flight to Connecticut. We’ll hope it’s clear cuz the flight to Dallas is booked and it wasn’t cheap….. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tunafish Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 10 hours ago, NorEastermass128 said: Lots of eclipse pilgrims stuck in the mud. I can’t wait to see the pics of Honda Pilots with CT plates stuck in mud halfway up the driver side door. At this point I'm almost as interested in the human element of this whole thing more than the eclipse itself. It's going to be theatre in NNE. Hoards of people, most of whom will be ill-equipped, woefully unprepared for any extended stay on the roadways, and tempted to try alternate routes that'll lead them to no-gas-no-cell-service land. Will be fascinating to watch unfold if we get a clear-ish day. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wxeyeNH Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 We all know how forecasts 276 hours work but just for fun this is this mornings GFS run. Won't it be the kicker if Texas is cloudy and NNE is clear! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 38 minutes ago, wxeyeNH said: We all know how forecasts 276 hours work but just for fun this is this mornings GFS run. Won't it be the kicker if Texas is cloudy and NNE is clear! Ya was looking at this earlier......had to reel it in a bit with the 276 hr lead but if this stays on the models for another few days I'll be getting nervous for our Dallas plans......that would suck so bad...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 Gonna need to see that wave speed up and get out of the way.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dendrite Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 Yeah I definitely wouldn’t worry too much about those maps until you get inside 5 days. Even less if there isn’t a major synoptic system. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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