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If you lived 3.5 hours from the eclipse, would you go?


mykidsrmyjoy
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I think that is a great way to spend the beginning of the new school year.

We are actually leaving a week early. I think I can make a case that it's seriously educational. Besides the eclipse (and we are staying with someone who is doing a presentation on it), we will see the aquarium in Gatlinburg, the Oak Ridge museum about the Manhattan project, the Nashville Parthenon, the St. Louis Science Center, City Museum, basilica, and Cahokia Mounds State Park. Plus the Dungeons and Dragons playground in Carbondale.

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On road trips with one adult and a whole bunch of tiny kids, you pray for a family bathroom, but you can make do crammed into a tiny ladies' room. :) Pay at the pump for gas. Pack snacks, rely on a drive-through for a coffee treat (because you totally deserve it making memories for all those babies), and you are good to go.

Haha, yeah it's doable, although not always easy! I love my tiny potty from IKEA. Find a private area and don't even worry about public restrooms (at least for the kids).

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Remember:  It Could Be Cloudy!

 

 

Weather forecasts are pretty decent these days... just check the weather before driving 3.5 hours. But that doesn't answer whether OP would want to do it if there was guaranteed to not be the tiniest cloud in the sky. 

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Weather forecasts are pretty decent these days... just check the weather before driving 3.5 hours. But that doesn't answer whether OP would want to do it if there was guaranteed to not be the tiniest cloud in the sky. 

 

I think my nightmare scenario is that there's one cloud in exactly the wrong spot... but even that will provide stories later on so all wouldn't be lost.

 

We'll be deciding between Plans A, B, and C in the last couple of days based upon weather.

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How do you see the %?

 

I had no idea that we would be able to see some here. I was tossing around the idea of going and it is 6 or more hours one way. But I would make a vacation of it.

http://americaneclipseusa.com/seeing-the-eclipse-from-home/

This website was helpful for me in determining how much of the eclipse we would actually see if we just stay home.

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I dunno, I'm pretty excited.  School starts the day of the eclipse so my university has cancelled all classes prior to 1pm so that everyone can gather on the quad and have an eclipse party :)

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Then I would make an evening of it, with dinner, etc....otherwise, no way.

 

This brings up a good point for anyone considering going... you can't make an evening of it (easily).  The eclipse is a late morning to early afternoon thing pending exactly where one is.  Here's a link showing the path and when it hits where:

 

http://www.eclipse2017.org/2017/path_through_the_US.htm

 

You can, of course, arrive early and stay late trying to avoid a bit of traffic.

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We are actually leaving a week early. I think I can make a case that it's seriously educational. Besides the eclipse (and we are staying with someone who is doing a presentation on it), we will see the aquarium in Gatlinburg, the Oak Ridge museum about the Manhattan project, the Nashville Parthenon, the St. Louis Science Center, City Museum, basilica, and Cahokia Mounds State Park. Plus the Dungeons and Dragons playground in Carbondale.

 

So excited about the places on your list! We love our science center in St. Louis (are you going to get tickets for the King Tut exhibit?), and Cahokia Mounds is amazing. And the mosaics in the basilica are so breathtaking...I hope you love your visit here! Also, I hope you share about your visit to the Nashville Parthenon...we thought about going there this summer, but we only had a few hours in Nashville, so we went to their science museum instead. But we're considering it for a future visit! 

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I read through half of the responses, and to my surprise no one suggested to ask the kids? :lol:

 

It would be "worth" for me if my kids were interestedand excited about going. Simple answer, really. Why are you asking a bunch of moms? Ask your kids! :coolgleamA:

 

 

Totally agree with the above.

 

I remember in grammar school being in the path of a partial (?) eclipse, and the one thing I remember is how quickly the temperature dropped, and what that felt like.  I totally wouldn't have gotten that feeling from watching the eclipse over the internet.  That temperature drop made me understand how much energy we get from the sun, and how pre-scientific people must have been terrified by the loss of the sun.

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Well, we're going with 6 kids ages 1 through 10, but it's a family trip halfway across the country.  The eclipse happens to be the day after a family reunion that is right smack in the path of totality, so it seemed like a great time to take a trip.  We made reservations last September.

 

For the OP, I'd consider looking at this graphic of North American solar eclipses through 2050, and seeing if you're near the path of totality for the 2024 eclipse:  https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEmap/SEmapNA/TSENorAm2001.gif

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For Michiganders, the 85% of totality that the western side of the state - mid way so say north of Grand Rapids - will occur around 2:20 EST. So not an evening.

 

We are staying in Michigan City the night before, leaving ahead of the worst of the traffic to set up our telescope in Michigana, and will picnic at the site as well as have afternoon snacks there. We won't head out until after the traffic thins, and have high hopes of finding a pizza shop with gluten free pizza options on the way home.

 

So just remember that this is a middle of the day event.

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Well, we're going with 6 kids ages 1 through 10, but it's a family trip halfway across the country. The eclipse happens to be the day after a family reunion that is right smack in the path of totality, so it seemed like a great time to take a trip. We made reservations last September.

 

For the OP, I'd consider looking at this graphic of North American solar eclipses through 2050, and seeing if you're near the path of totality for the 2024 eclipse: https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEmap/SEmapNA/TSENorAm2001.gif

The 2024 eclipse is much farther away than he 2017 one. Looks like the 2045 one will be very near us, but who plans that far in advance? :-)
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We're traveling 12 hours and pushing back our homeschool start date to see it. Normally we visit my parents in July, but we're making the trip in August this year just for the eclipse. They don't live in the path of totality but live close enough that they will see about 95% totality. It will be just me and the kids going.

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We are 3.5 hours from the total eclipse. We would still be able to see a good portion of the partial eclipse where we live. I AM taking the kids, without dh, into the city for this. BUT I'm staying with my sister for 3 days. We'll visit, party, shop all weekend, then watch the eclipse and come home Monday night.
If I had to do it all in one day? Nope, not a chance. I can't handle that much driving.

Can you couple the trip with other fun things from that area?

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It also depends where you live (sorry if someone has already said this). If there are a lot of people in your area, traffic will be a nightmare. Apparently a million Californians are going to be making the trek up to Oregon, and the ones who are making it a day trip are going to be caught in a crazy traffic jam on I-5 and won't be anywhere near the viewing window when it's eclipse time.

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Ugh! I just remembered that MIL is coming to town that day. Would it be rude to ask her not to arrive between 1-4 pm? I was making plans with a friend and our library is havingan event.

 

I would tell her about it and talk to her about whether it will be safe to drive during the eclipse.  You can make a strong suggestion to arrive before or after.  :)

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It also depends where you live (sorry if someone has already said this). If there are a lot of people in your area, traffic will be a nightmare. Apparently a million Californians are going to be making the trek up to Oregon, and the ones who are making it a day trip are going to be caught in a crazy traffic jam on I-5 and won't be anywhere near the viewing window when it's eclipse time.

This. They are saying in Oregon if you are not camped where you want to view dont even try. Traffic is going to be beyond crazy.

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Just saw this on the NASA Eclipse site: "To date four manufacturers have certified that their eclipse glasses and handheld solar viewers meet the ISO 12312-2 international standard for such products: Rainbow Symphony, American Paper Optics, Thousand Oaks Optical, and TSE 17."

 

 

FYI – another option – we went to a talk given by a Berkeley astrophysics prof and at the end he sold pieces of welder's glass (at cost), which is what he uses for viewing eclipses (you tape it inside a cardboard mask, to protect the rest of your face). It was a Radnor filter plate, heat-treated glass, 2" x 4.25", #64005011. Hmm, I see Amazon has them at a much higher price ...

Edited by Laura in CA
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We're making a holiday of it with old friends. It was pretty funny though - one of our friends refused to go (logistics, etc.) she appealed to me - why is this so great. I was like, well, it's okay, don't worry if you can't make it. But our other friend was like, you are inflicting a cruelty on your oldest child who will miss this rare once in a lifetime experience, you terrible mother. At the end of our visit, the gung ho friend was like, I'm kidnapping your kid so he can at least see it! Reticent friend and I laughed about it. But, seriously, I think she's going to show up to the holiday with an extra child.  :lol:

 

Basically... if you can make it, great. But for younger kids, small budgets, etc... not a big deal if you miss it.

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No way! I live outside of Portland Or, my inlaws are near Salem and Bend. They have people renting camp sopts on thier bare land. The traffic forcasts say expect up to 8 hour delays! Tbe frenzy associated with it, and with my inlaws experiences (renting out fields) I am inclined to believe the traffic delays will truely be insane.

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I live smack dab in the path. Our town is sucking every tourist opportunity out of this that is possible. Hotels are booked, friends are renting out their apartments for the days surrounding it. I'll probably sit at home or go to campus and watch. 

 

I would drive a couple of hours, probably not passed 3 unless there were other things I wanted to do in the area. Yes, check for planned festivities.

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I live smack dab in the path. Our town is sucking every tourist opportunity out of this that is possible. Hotels are booked, friends are renting out their apartments for the days surrounding it. I'll probably sit at home or go to campus and watch. 

 

I would drive a couple of hours, probably not passed 3 unless there were other things I wanted to do in the area. Yes, check for planned festivities.

This is one of those rare things that can be a nice bonus for rural communities that otherwise don't have much going for them. If they are in the path, for a  couple of days, they can make some extra bucks!

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No, I wouldn't. We live right in the path of totality and they are predicting massive traffic jams and huge crowds. I would only do if it you could go a day or two in advance and stay for one or two days afterwards. Even then I think it would be very stressful with young kids, especially dealing with basic things like finding bathrooms.

 

We're still debating whether or not to rent out our house. Friends have invited us to stay with them if we do it.

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No way! I live outside of Portland Or, my inlaws are near Salem and Bend. They have people renting camp sopts on thier bare land. The traffic forcasts say expect up to 8 hour delays! Tbe frenzy associated with it, and with my inlaws experiences (renting out fields) I am inclined to believe the traffic delays will truely be insane.

And every porta potty in the state has been rented for months!

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Eh, we drive that far (or farther) to eat in favorite restaurants when we get the whim.  From a young age my kids needed very little time to get ready for a road trip.  They loved them as much as we did (still do - they now head off on their own/with friends when they get a chance).

 

It's amazing how different we humans are as a species.

 

But I'll admit to being glad not everyone wants to go.  It'll be crowded enough!

 

Driving any distance over 30 minutes with our 3 kids was miserable except when we discovered Harry Potter on tape.

 

The last few years when it was just Sailor Dude and us, everything changed. He loves to road trip, is an excellent traveler, and we dearly miss him this summer while he is interning across country.  When you have kids that like to travel and who are competent, responsible drivers, the whole world opens up. Shortly after he got his driver's license, we planned to drive to San Francisco for a week's vacation. At the last minute, dh's dear friend died and he flew off for the funeral.  Ds and I did the 10-hour drive and had a blast.  I miss him the most when we road trip now. Dh and I send photos all along the way, so we can "share" the drive.  He's bummed about missing this trip.

 

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FYI – nnother option – we went to a talk given by a Berkeley astrophysics prof and at the end he sold pieces of welder's glass (at cost), which is what he uses for viewing eclipses (you tape it inside a cardboard mask, to protect the rest of your face). It was a Radnor filter plate, heat-treated glass, 2" x 4.25", #64005011. Hmm, I see Amazon has them at a much higher price ...

 

Be careful...when we went to the eclipse show at our planetarium last month, they said they no longer recommend welder's glass for viewing, because the formula for welder's glass is different from what it used to be.

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Not with little kids unless they travel very well and I could find somewhere to stay in order to avoid traffic. 

 

We're going to have about 80 percent, and that will have to be good enough. 

 

I AM excited about it though! We will order the glasses and make a big deal of it for sure. 

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An eclipse of the sun is different from an eclipse of the moon. The moon ones are kinda boring. For the sun, though, in totality, you would be able to see stars in the middle of the day. The sky would go dark.

 

For little kids, they won't get the wonder of it. They just won't. Well, there are probably some littles who would, but mine would have totally not understood that this was significant and would have ended up crying right at the moment of totality over something inane. That's just the nature of small kids.

 

If your 8 year old really wanted to go, you might want to make an effort...but you'll have to plan well ahead of time. You won't just bee-bop down the road to see it. There will be a huge amount of traffic.

 

My kids are 14 and 12. My ds14 studied astronomy last year and really wants to see this in totality. I was letting DH handle this. Turns out he didn't realize that everything would be booked. It'll be a 10 hour drive for us, but DH didn't make any plans for where we'll stay or how we'll get there. So, I don't know if we'll be able to go or not. We'd need to get a hotel for a day or two before or we'll get stuck in traffic. I just found out all of the above yesterday at dinner with DH. I had no clue all this was supposed to happen, or I'd have been on it before now.

 

So I'm on the opposite end of you. We really wanted to go, but now we're going to have to struggle to find a way to get there. I think I'll be dealing with a super disappointed ds14.

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