The total eclipse is August 21. It looks like south of Louisville, KY is the closest spot to me. I'm thinking of making the road trip. Any suggestions on places to stay? I suppose e erything may be booked up by now.

__________________
Common sense isn't so common.

Sounds like a great excuse for a S&W camping get together if someone has the acerage there.

Wyoming is right in the path from northwest corner to southeast corner and everything for 75 miles on either side of the centerline has been booked for months. We only have about 550,000 people in this state, and estimates are another 400,000+ might show up to see it!

__________________
Everybody could shoot

I checked Casper, Wy a week ago and everything was booked. We've decided to take a tent and camp somewhere in the eclipse path the last night before the eclipse. My goal is to find some isolated high spot in the Wind River range and maybe not be covered up with people.

Come on over. Im just a couple of miles from being right under the center.

__________________
James L. "Jim" Rhiner

We are supposed to be in the totality zone in Charleston here. I've already got three pieces of number 14 welding glass with appropriate coatings, So I'm ready.

__________________
"He was kinda funny lookin'"

August 21st also happens to be the day that I will make the sun disappear unless my demands for 1 trillion dollars are met. I will only do it temporarily to let you know I am serious-but the next time it will be permanent. SO start sending in the money.

__________________
Forum consigliere

Rabun Co. Georgia is the closest point to me and about everyone else on the East Coast.

The best spot in KY is going to be in western KY.

If you don't have a room by know, I don't believe there are any left. Farmers are renting a 15X20 piece of their fields to people so they can have a space to set up and watch it.

Heard on the TV the other day that there were going to be 125 food trucks there.

Going to be on charlie foxtrot for that day.

Don't forget to bring "Eclipse Music"

__________________
Still Running Against the Wind

Got an eclipse question. I know you are not supposed to look,at it without special glasses, but would it be dangerous to aim my digital camera at it and see it through the screen on the camera? I would like to take some pictures of it, but don't want to cause damage to my eyes.

__________________
Miss Buddies crsides & fat tom

World Map of Eclipse

USA - 2017 August 21 Total Solar Eclipse - Interactive Google Map - Xavier Jubier

You can move the cursor (small white cross hair) to ANY location and zoom in. (I was able to zoom in on my neighbor hood.) My neighbor was home -car in drive. My car was not in drive.

Once you select a location - LEFT CLICK.
Will show viewing times along with azimuth and elevation details.

BEST location information web site I have found.

Bekeart

I will not have totality at home.
Twenty miles to a friends place will give me almost two minutes of totality.

Need to go a bit further than Louisville to see the total eclipse. The Louisville area will be about 96 percent obscured.



The "Best" experiences of this eclipse in the USA are marked on the map. The green marker labeled GE is the point of Greatest Eclipse. The magenta marker labeled GD is the point of Greatest Duration. This is the location where the total eclipse lasts the longest along the entire path. Between the purple lines the eclipse will be total.

WARNING DO NOT DO IT! You will damage the sensor in the camera.

The ONLY part of the eclipse when your camera would be safe is during TOTALITY.

ANY other time you are aiming your camera at the sun ...
It is just like using a magnifying glass to burn ants.

1. I treated my office with special sunglasses==they were about $1.25 each--I think a bulk package of 20 ran about $20.

2.We are in the 90% corridor.

3. I checked on Google Earth one time and saw my GSP in the backyard.

When I heard about this last winter I realized that Boysen res.WY was right in the middle of the path and is maybe 30 minutes from my sisters house.Mentioned to her it would be a great place to watch with no crowds
She laffed and laffed and laffed

Here are some links that might be of interest:

Total Solar Eclipse 2017: When, Where and How to See It (Safely)

Best Solar Eclipse Glasses - Prepare for the Aug. 21st, 2017 Eclipse

25 facts you should know about the August 21, 2017, total solar eclipse - Astronomy Magazine - Interactive Star Charts, Planets, Meteors, Comets, Telescopes

The Solar Eclipse and Ham Radio - Nuts & Volts Magazine - For The Electronics Hobbyist

Won't do your eyeballs any good, either!

Same in Missouri. The line runs from north of KC to south of St. Louis, and we're right on the south edge of the path. Every little town in the totality has been planning eclipse parties for better than a year, and all the hotels are booked . . .

__________________
Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

My wife wanted to order a bunch of the special glasses to watch it and I said no thanks. I'm not trusting my eyesight to a $1.00 pair of glasses.

__________________
Isaiah 41:10

Caj, Do you accept PayPal?

Put me down for 2 bucks.


WuzzFuzz

Thanks. I ordered a pair of eclipse sunglasses today.

__________________
Miss Buddies crsides & fat tom

If your in the upstate, the 3 offices of the Greenville Hospital System Eye Institute are giving away eclipse glasses. The design of the glasses was approved by NASA and the American Astronautical Society.

Greenville Health System GHS Eye Institute has FREE eclipse filters - Greenville Health System

I used to do that when I was eight or nine. Got pretty good at it. Then one day a priest came along and . . .

Never mind.

We will be on a private ranch near Riverton, WY. Arriving Friday, not returning until following Tuesday -- the forecast for traffic between Denver and path points in WY and NE are terrifying!

Similar to how a refinished gun has 0% original finish, a 90% partial solar eclipse is a 0% total solar eclipse. You won't be getting 9/10ths of the experience of a total eclipse, you will be getting nothing by comparison.

I'm not going anywhere. I'll see about 60% where I am. Once you've seen one, you've seen them all. The last one I viewed was in Ohio at about 98%. All we used was two sheets of paper. Put a pin-hole in the top sheet and hold the other below it. Focus by moving the two sheets closer or apart. Works well enough to see an image and it's safe.

I remember the odd color of everything outside. Sort of like the orange tint in all the apocalypse movies.

__________________
Si vis pacem para bellum.

Maybe I'll just make a road trip to my old gun club in Cincinnati instead. Might be close enough. I'm not terribly interested in sitting in gridlock and putting up with the circus.

__________________
Common sense isn't so common.

Don't know what the big deal is really. Middle of Monday, suddenly the world goes black. Terrified people think the world is coming to an end. Then the sun comes back-everyone breaths a sigh of relief and forgets the frantic promises made to God if only He brings the sun back- People goes to Denny's for dinner and then watch Monday night football like nothing happened and wait for the next divine message. Only next time God might not be kidding.....

__________________
Forum consigliere

As mentioned above, Rabun county Georgia is in the direct path so my wife and I will be sitting at a local winery eating a box lunch and drinking wine with two other couples that are dear friends; and one hundred forty-four total strangers. Getting back home should be a challenge, about six miles.

The area motels, inns, and B&B's have been booked for months. I have had acquaintances call me and ask to rent our home on Black Rock Mountain. A few also asked if they could park motor homes there. I barely have parking for the four vehicles our crew will park there.

Far be it for me to discourage a road trip, but to see a more complete eclipse, you need to move closer to the path than you already are (SSW). Cincinnati is almost the same distance from it, and will only see the sun one percent more obscured than you will in your backyard.





An 80 mile drive southwest of Evansville on Rt.60 puts you in the best Total Eclipse viewing territory in the whole country. Between the point of Greatest Eclipse and the point of Greatest Duration.

I have some friends coming down from Canada to go with us to South Carolina to see the eclipse. We ordered rooms about a month ago. We had to call from city to city to find a place. Most were already booked or so expensive that we couldn't afford them. Some campgrounds are also already booked. Some smaller towns are expecting huge crowds. They are recommending visitors bring their own food and water. Outhouses will be provided, though.

If the $1.00 glasses are certified, they will work better than $10 welder's goggles. I've used them in the past and I can still see.

I've ordered glasses for myself and my friends and a special "neutral filter" for my DSLR. Most of those filters are back ordered. I ordered one about the same time we booked our rooms and I'm hoping to get it at the end of July.

I don't know what all the hub-bub is...I'm just going to out onto the front yard, put on my old welding helmet, and watch the whole shebangs, so I can say I saw it...Where I'm at, I'll watch the whole thing for about the whole 2 minutes or so, since I'm right in it's direct path at it's zenith. Then come back inside and take my afternoon nap.


I'll tell you all about it, after it's over, if you want me to.


WuzzFuzz

Oh, Oh, Oh..good thing I just remembered, to leave a light on...I'm afraid of the dark.

Maybe the outside motion detector lights will come on, and I'll be ok.


WuzzFuzz

We're ready. Total eclipse viewed right from the backyard patio and hubby picked up the free eclipse glasses yesterday from the GHS Eye Institute. He says he's making Piña colada for the show.



Now I just have to get out of NY and get down there.

Can anybody pick up glasses there, and if so, where is it located? Thanks.
Larry

__________________
Miss Buddies crsides & fat tom

Yup, free for anybody while they last. Three locations, Greenville, Easley, and Spartanburg. Greenville Health System GHS Eye Institute has FREE eclipse filters - Greenville Health System

Time to resurrect this thread since we're on the cusp of August and only three weeks away from Eclipseville!



Anybody making special plans to see it -- I mean more than just traveling to a spot within the range of totality? My wife and I are going to drive down into South Carolina to see it, and I think we might go early and spend the night. It's only about two hours from here, and I don't want to miss it.

I saw a total eclipse in eastern North Carolina in 1970 when I was 13, and it was spectacular. The very coolest part -- and the part I hope to see again -- were the "shadow waves" that come just before and just after totality. They look like parallel dark lines crossing the ground very fast -- really otherwordly-looking!

Here's the link again to the maps of each region: Total Solar Eclipse 2017 - Maps of the Path

__________________
Ukraine -- now more than ever

Might I suggest Tequila Sunrises instead?

And chase 'em with -- what else -- Corona beer!

__________________
Ukraine -- now more than ever

Sharp as a tack today, eh? Cute idea though.

Last one to see it is a rotten egg! Sorry, SC!

We're about 100 miles from the middle of the path, and where it first hits Oregon. We're not going anywhere! I've heard reports of what traffic might be like, and we're hunkering down right here.

I spoke to a Wyoming State Trooper last week. His department is planning for a worst case scenario: Bumper to bumper traffic on I-25 north from the Wyoming state line to Casper. Emergency service personnel are expecting shortages of food, gasoline. Even cell service may be overwhelmed. Response to the inevitable car wrecks and medical emergencies may be impossible due to gridlock. We plan to close and lock the gate to our driveway, mix up some gin and tonics, and watch from the front deck.

What amazes me is the naivety of people who think they just will be able to drive north to watch. They have no concept of the potential for traffic jams and shortages.

I suppose I'll just stay put. Would have been interesting to see, but don't want to put up with the crowds and gridlock.

__________________
Common sense isn't so common.

I'm going to sleep in.

__________________
Mike
S&WCA #3065

I saw a piece on Fox Business news that you need to be very wary of
inadequate viewing lenses. They named 4 good brands. I think it was nasa that was named as the authority. Maybe you should check there for your brand.
I seem to remember as a kid we made a viewer out of a Quaker Oats carton. A pinhole in the lid, cut out the side and view eclipse on the bottom of the carton, IIRC. probably somewhere on the interwebs.

__________________
I fish, therefore I lie

I believe that direct sunlight can damage digital cameras. If you can put a dark filter on your camera, it may be able to take short exposures.

One time I held a nest of about five red, green, polarizing and any other filters I could find over the lens (35mm cam) and the partial eclipse came out pretty good.

You can make a pinhole device that will project the image onto a blank piece of paper and observe it indirectly.

__________________
"He was kinda funny lookin'"

Out come my stack of big welding lenses. Kids want to see it. I saw one back in ancient times(late 70s I believe). Thing that struck me wasn't the lack of light. It was the lack of noise. Everything quit making any noise.

I first heard of this around the beginning of 2016. Saw the path go across 441/23 at the GA/NC lime and had visions of the view from Black Rock Mtn. or contact the folks in my parents old place and ask to overnight on the porch. The ballfield behind the vol. fire dept. would have been nice.
Just as well I didn't follow through. A week off would have worked but a lot of life happened in the past few days that's not going to resolve itself anytime soon. Those of you who have made plans I wish you all clear skies.

there sure is going to be a LOT of upset people if it is cloudy on August 21. they may need the extra cops for riot control

I just saw the long range forecast and it says heavy rain that day followed by plague and pestilence.

__________________
James Redfield
LM #497