Any plans for the April 8, 2024 solar eclipse?

[Glenn MacGrady]

The path of totality is going over a lot of canoeing waters, including the heart of the Adirondacks. So, what are your plans to view the eclipse from a canoe or anywhere else?

Maggie is an eclipse groupie and has been bugging me to take some sort of trip to get closer to the path. Since hotels in the towns in the direct path of totality are either all already booked or priced at Elon Musk levels, I booked April 7-9 in Lake George, NY, a favorite place of mine for 60 years. Lake George will get 98.9% of totality, and the tentative plan is to drive further north 100 miles on the 8th to Plattsburgh, where the totality is 100%, and view from whatever place we can find there.

Assuming the traffic on the Northway isn't totally jammed.

And further assuming the weather cooperates with clear skies, which doesn't look likely as of today's long range forecast. So, the hotel reservations are a gamble. At least we'll be in a very nice hotel for the first time in two years and in a place with a lot of natural beauty and touristy stuff in the area.

I might tote a canoe on the Merc for a short, spontaneous splash. Or I might not. Depends on the weather and how we feel.

 

[JCH_Ski]

We’re going to Southern Indiana - Starve Hollow State Park. We have a little squaredrop camper, sort of a hard-sided tent on wheels. We may need to drive a little way from there to get to a 100% viewing area. Should be fun! Taking several days to hike and explore.

 

[Sweetfancymoses]

There are 187 days "with sun" in Indianapolis in an average year. Even on those days, a cloud may obscure the view of the sun. That looks like less than 50% chance of being able observe the main event. I hope we're not setting ourselves up for a disappointment.

 

[Patrick Corry]

Yes, I am hoping to be on Fish Pond in the St. Regis Canoe Area, ADKs, NY on the 8th. I generally prefer to be there on weekdays only in order to avoid crowds, but in this case I will likely enter the area on Saturday in order to be in place by the Monday event. Judging by the included website information, Fish Pond should be directly in the path of totality.

Where & When

The Monday, April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse will cross North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada.

science.nasa.gov

 

[yknpdlr]

I formerly shared a cottage that my brother we Iinherited on the shore of Lake Ontario, on the totality centerline, not far from Watertown NY, about an hour from my home, With only about a 30% positive weather gamble, but at least will be with family along with my three telescopes set up, and probably an invasive group of nearby lake close by community neighbors (one reason why I no longer share ownership in the place).

Unless rained out under heavy overcast, there is a chance that the cooler lake water and the partial phase shadowing lead-up will cool the atmosphere and sinking air may tend to dissapate a light cloud layer. This has been known to happen in the past. Even if totally cloudy you will notice certain effects. It will get quite dark. If you have any thin clouds around the horizon, you may notice colors of a 360 degree sunset. If near any animals, birds or others, notice their response. I was at a clouded total eclipse in New Brunswick years ago, located in a field of sheep. The sheep all started bleating and gatheed together, heading for the gate to the barn in a hurry.

If you have any chance at all, as Glen is doing, definitely try to get into the path of totality. Even 99.9% total is a complete disappointment compared to that last 0.1%. There is no comparison.

Other than the spectacle of totality itself, one of the most impressive effects is witnessing the approaching sharp edge of the totality shadow of the moon rushing toward you at 2000 mph, which I should see coming at us over the lake water. Any even slightly elevated observing location should provide the same effect view.

 

[Sliding Focus]

I'm planning to spend the weekend with a friend in Saranac Lake—hopefully heading up early enough and going home late enough to avoid the worst of the traffic.

For anyone who's at all on the fence about getting into the path of totality, I highly recommend going for it! I drove down to South Carolina for the 2017 eclipse and it was an incredibly moving experience—definitely a memory to last a lifetime. I’d also recommend bringing binoculars if you have a pair.

To keep this post canoe-related: for any of you who're also heading to the Adirondacks, St. Regis Canoe Outfitters is offering a guided eclipse paddle; it’s kinda pricey, but being out on the water and sharing the experience with other folks sounds pretty fun! There also are lots of free viewing events happening that look like they'd be worth checking out too (albeit not involving canoeing).

 

[billconner]

I'm staying home probably. 3:15 of totality. Might go 20 miles to inlaws - they live dead center of totality.

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

I’d also recommend bringing binoculars if you have a pair.

How would you use them without danger to eyes? Look through them while wearing the eclipse glasses?

To keep this post canoe-related

No one has to. A solar eclipse is sufficiently important and rare to have some OT outdoor discussion.

 

[TrailBlaser]

My wife, son and I are biting the bullet and driving up to the ADKs for the day. We're planning on Indian Lake, but figure we might end up elsewhere depending on what the traffic and crowds are like.

 

[Nick Pending]

If you have any chance at all, as Glenis doing, definitely try to get into the path of totality. Even 99.9% total is a complete disappointment compared to that last 0.1%. There is no comparison.

Other than the spectacle of totality itself, one of the most impressive effects is witnessing the approaching sharp edge of the totality shadow of the moon rushing toward you at 2000 mph, which I should see coming at us over the lake water. Any even slightly elevated observing location should provide the same effect view.

Agree with yknpdlr. Those wanting to really see it try to get into the totality zone if at all possible. My house was within it for the 2017 eclipse, but only for 19 seconds worth, so we drove south to a friends house about 20 miles and got about a minute and forty-five seconds worth out of a possible about 2:23 or so, which was the max for Oregon where we live. Potential traffic and crowding didn't make trying to get closer worth it for another 40 or so seconds. IT was good enough.

Some other effects that yknpdlr doesn't mention are worth looking up and preparing for. Google "shadow bands" and "Baily's beads" (spelling is correct there) and the "diamond ring" or "wedding ring" so you know what to look for and the timing. The shadow bands are 1-2 minutes before and after the total phase, Baily's beads and the diamond ring are just before and after. Shadow bands might not be visible if you're out on the water (unsure of that). There are sites that will tell you exactly when the eclipse should start for the area you're interested in viewing from. With crowding and traffic potential, you want to be in place well before that time. Good luck.

 

[yknpdlr]

How would you use them without danger to eyes? Look through them while wearing the eclipse glasses?

There is a lot of misinformation out there duing every eclipse about the "mysterious dangerous rays" caused by the eclipse. Probably because most people who can see any portion of the partial phases are not in the zone where the eclipse goes total. While it is absolutely extremely dangerous to your vision to directly view any portion of the partial eclipse phases, It is completely safe to view the whole of totality with naked eyes, binoculars, or as I have done, through a powerful astronomical grade telescope. Ditch the dark eclipse glasses during that time, but only if you are so lucky to be in the brief zone of totality. This will be my fourth such total eclipse viewing through a telescope, and I have not suffered any vision problems as a result. Get actual valid real information.

The problem occurs because on normal sunny days it hurts if you look at the bright sun for more than a second or so. The pain is your body's warning clue that damage could be done. But during the partial phases when the moon only partially covers much of the sun, it may no longer "hurt" like you are accustomed to when otherwise viewing the open bare sun, so you don't get the warning pain that it is damaging. But it is just as much. As soon as totality begins, only the much dimmer sun's outer corona is visible and there are no "mysterous dangerous eclipse rays" entering your vision.

 

[yknpdlr]

Some other effects that yknpdlr doesn't mention are worth looking up and preparing for. Google "shadow bands" and "Baily's beads" (spelling is correct there) and the "diamond ring" or "wedding ring" so you know what to look for and the timing.

Right, those are all effects I neglected to mention if you have a clear sky view. Shadow bands are mysterious pre-totality squirming shadow lines creeping across the ground. Baily's beads and the diamond ring are the last bits of the solar disk showing up through valleys on the limb edge of the moon. If there were leaves on the trees, each gap would project an image of the partially eclipsed sun on the ground. If near trees, look for the same effect casued by close branch clusters.

There are timing aps available that will, based on your exact location, give you an audible countdown of each portion of the eclipse, and especially will give you a verbal warning of when it is safe and about to become unsafe to directly view the totally eclipsed sun. During the 2017 eclipse it worked perfectly for me, down to the fraction of a second.

 

[Sliding Focus]

How would you use them without danger to eyes? Look through them while wearing the eclipse glasses?

I was thinking of using mine just for viewing during totality (when, as yknpdlr said, it is perfectly safe to look without special eye protection), but if you wished to view the partial phases through binoculars as well, you could buy sheets of solar filter film to cut and place over the objectives. Pre-made filters are available too, but cost a lot more. Do not look through the binoculars while wearing eclipse glasses—binoculars gather a lot more light than your eyes do, and that light gets concentrated as it passes through the optics, and eclipse glasses aren't designed to protect you at the much-greater light intensity that you would experience as a result. If you want to look at the partial phases through binoculars, your eye protection must be placed in front of the objectives (the front lenses/lenses facing the sun) in order to be safe.

No one has to. A solar eclipse is sufficiently important and rare to have some OT outdoor discussion.

Good to know!

 

[yknpdlr]

In many years past it was said you could use a totally black black and white negative film for viewing, or home smoked glass. Neiter is sufficently dark or uv protective to be safe in any way. Shade 14 welder's glass is ok but it is so dark that it is seldom used by welders and can be difficult to find unless spiecial ordered. Certified "solar eclipse film" is all that you should use. I have large disks meant to fit securely over the end of my telescopes for partial phase or general solar viewing. If you can see anything at all through a filter other than a dim image of a blue sky bright sun, then it is not safe to use. There have been cheap chinese-made solar glasses available in recent years that were not sufficently UV filtering. There was a recall of at least one such batch sold by Amazon in 2017.

 

[Boatman53]

I just need to drive inland for an hour or so to be in totality, not sure of the destination at the moment but we have some ideas.
Jim

 

[Robin]

On any winter day here in Maine, it’s cloudy, windy and cold. And dark. Eclipse smeeclipse, why drive north for two hours to watch it get dark standing in a rest area with a bunch of strangers, I’ll stay home and wait a couple of hours for real darkness.

 

[yknpdlr]

The total eclipses I have experienced have been with close friends and/or family, so I am not at all excited about the possibility of a group of strangers gathering close around, even though they will surely loudly oooh and aaah at the climax of the event. Surely there are isolated rural locations one can find for private viewing if so desired. Each total eclipse eperience for me rated extremely high on the emotional level scale. WhIle I won't quite compare it to witnessing the birth of my own children, the categories of each are not far removed on the appreciation of nature emotional level. I can think of few other singular moments of life experiences that come close.

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

I saw my first solar eclipse in Maine, not quite total, on Saturday, July 20, 1963, as I was climbing Mt. Katahdin alone from Abol Campground to Roaring Brook campground, where my father met me. I climbed through rain, hiding out in caves near Thoreau Spring, started but retreated along the Knife Edge, which was above the clouds, and then the sky cleared enough to see the eclipse when I was jogging down past Chimney Pond at about 5:45 pm.

 

[Nick Pending]

On any winter day here in Maine, it’s cloudy, windy and cold. And dark. Eclipse smeeclipse, why drive north for two hours to watch it get dark standing in a rest area with a bunch of strangers, I’ll stay home and wait a couple of hours for real darkness.

Yup, there's always doomers and gloomers everywhere. Don't sweat it Robin, you won't be missing anything at all. Nope, nuthin'!
< GRIN > (that thing means it's a joke, so the rest of you watch away!)

 

[yknpdlr]

I saw my first solar eclipse in Maine, not quite total, on Saturday, July 20, 1963

That was also my first. I remember it well from my home backyard in northern NY State. I had just got my first telescope, a 4.25" criterion Newtonian. No commercial solar filter film then, (just a plate of #14 welders glass, which I stil have) but the telescope had a projection screen attachment that nicely showed the deep partial phase, which was all I had at my location.

I can only imagine the emotional horror that ancient peoples must have felt at the sight of the daytime sun disappearing for no apparent (factual) reason known to them. Who gets sacrificed?