Amtrak Solar Eclipse viewing April 8 2024

[Metra Electric Rider]

As an FYI the Illinois service trains down to Carbondale are already booked according to a friend who was going to go (another friend drove down and had to get off I-57 because it was bumper to bumper coming back up north).

Just a friendly warning to plan now in the Midwest...

 

[MontanaJim]

I live in St Albans, Vermont. Epicenter for the eclipse. It could be good but Vermont, especially along Lake Champlain, is notorious for cloud cover so good chance St Albans wont be the best place to see the eclipse. Could get lucky though and either way, it will be totally dark for three minutes. I should add all motels in the area that i know of are sold out.

 

[Deni]

As an FYI the Illinois service trains down to Carbondale are already booked according to a friend who was going to go (another friend drove down and had to get off I-57 because it was bumper to bumper coming back up north).

Just a friendly warning to plan now in the Midwest...

Amtrak.com is showing availability for all trains to Carbondale on April 7th and and the early train on April 8th (that supposed to get you there in time for totality) and returns on the 8th and 9th are also available.

 

[Barb Stout]

Any idea if there will be traffic jams?

My sister and bil were traveling in the Pacific Northwest a few years back when there was a solar eclipse. They didn't know about it and were unnerved by all the traffic. They are rural/small-town folks and thus allergic to traffic. They decided to modify their plans somewhat due to the excessive amount of traffic and people.

 

[disney1990]

We saw the last one in Charleston. It was pretty amazing.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Honestly though DFW would be a better choice IMO if you're flying in. The city is in totality for almost the max duration, whereas SA itself isn't in totality at all, you've got to get out west toward Uvalde, Kerrville or Fredericksburg farther south. Even if the crowds are THRONGING in DFW, just walk out of your hotel to a nearby park and voila.

DFW and AUS are well situated and almost always cheaper than SAT, but a portion of San Antonio will be in the area of totality.

 

[LongHauler]

Flew into ABQ after work on Friday to catch the October annular eclipse at the Balloon Fiesta field on Saturday morning. Caught the SWChief out of town at 3:30p and met the Coast Starlight back home. Back at work on Monday morning.

 

[Dan Olsen]

I guess, though, that when you've experienced a total solar eclipse being on the centerline (100%), it is really an experience you'll never forget. I've so far attended 2 annular and 2 total eclipses in my lifetime. Far and away, the 2017 total eclipse, where we were very close to the centerline, was an experience that still sends shivers down my spine. We were lucky enough to view it with the Grand Teton range as our eastern horizon and a large flat valley of the Teton river before us. The temperature fell substantially, 360 degrees around us was illuminated in the distance (backlighting the Tetons), and overhead, the eerily glowing "diamond ring" of the eclipsed sun, surrounded by several bright stars in a black sky. The natural world fell silent as any birds that were calling stopped. In this case almost at mid-day (noon).
My current member photo is the sequence of the 14 Oct 2023 annular eclipse from Harrison Pass, Nevada. If the location is correct and the weather cooperates, it is something that you'll never forget.

 

[Rover]

See What the Solar Eclipse Will Look Like across Most of the U.S.

Even if you’re not in the path of totality, the solar eclipse on April 8 will offer a show to nearly everyone across North and Central America

https://www.scientificamerican.com/...clipse-will-look-like-across-most-of-the-u-s/

 

[dadonatrain]

I got lucky last time. Our front yard in Easley SC was seven seconds away from absolutely the centerline of totality and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. My only regret is I’m so totally incompetent with photography I didn’t even bother trying to get my own pics. I just downloaded one of the many near perfect shots by pros. I think I’ll be satisfied with that.

 

[RalphCT]

I got lucky last time. Our front yard in Easley SC was seven seconds away from absolutely the centerline of totality and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. My only regret is I’m so totally incompetent with photography I didn’t even bother trying to get my own pics. I just downloaded one of the many near perfect shots by pros. I think I’ll be satisfied with that.

I watched the 2017 total eclipse and the 2023 Ring of Fire eclipse. I decided that I would concentrate on enjoying the tremendous natural phenomenon instead of watching it through a view finder. I will do that again this April from somewhere in Texas. I encourage everyone who wants to view the eclipse to get to an area where it will be in totality. Truly incredible and way more interesting than anywhere it is only a partial eclipse.

 

[tomfuller]

In August 2017 I hiked to the top of Sutton Mountain near Mitchell Oregon. After the eclipse, I found the geocache up there and put in a special eclipse coin for the next lucky finder. I did run into a bit of a traffic jam on the way back home. Last October I and many others had a terrible heavy clouded view of the annular eclipse from the north side of Crater Lake.
On April 2 I will drive from home to Winnemucca NV to board the eastbound CZ after 7PM. I will be getting off in Galesburg IL to rent a car at a place I have rented before. I will be driving east to Columbus Ohio for a big geocaching event the weekend before the eclipse. My plan is to drive NW from Columbus to the area around Wapakoneta OH which is near the center line and is also the boyhood home of Neil Armstrong. There is an Air and Space Museum there.
My hope is to find another geocache during or right after the eclipse a few miles east of Wapakoneta.
My return trip from Galesburg is not until Thursday so I hope to find more geocaches in Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.
I just got my "Twice in a Lifetime" black tee shirts with August 17, 2017 and April 8, 2024 on them. I intend to wear one of them in Ohio on the eclipse day. I'm guessing that more people will talk to me and ask about my experience in 2017.

 

[John Santos]

I watched the 2017 total eclipse and the 2023 Ring of Fire eclipse. I decided that I would concentrate on enjoying the tremendous natural phenomenon instead of watching it through a view finder. I will do that again this April from somewhere in Texas. I encourage everyone who wants to view the eclipse to get to an area where it will be in totality. Truly incredible and way more interesting than anywhere it is only a partial eclipse.

I strongly recommend against trying to photograph your first (or even second or third!) total eclipse. You will be too distracted and frantic and might miss the best parts, the few minutes before and after totality and all of totality itself.

There are interesting things to observe during the partial phase that you probably can photograph (or attempt to photograph) without losing anything, such as the really cool crescent suns projected through pin-hole gaps between leaves under a tree. They get smaller and more crescent-shaped as the eclipse progresses, but don't get so fixated you miss the final minutes before totality! Also watch for the lighting effects, the distant and approaching shadow, animal and bird behavior, etc. And the people!

If you are lucky enough to see 3 or more total eclipses, you might consider attempting to photograph the corona, Bailey's beads, or the diamond ring effect, etc. but don't even try on your first couple of eclipses. Also, remember, a total eclipse is TOTALLY different (pun intended) from a partial or even annular eclipse, so those don't count.

 

[AmtrakMaineiac]

We are planning to view the eclipse from a place we stay at near Danforth ME, which by the way has the former CPRR track running through it that was used by CP / VIA Atlantic Limited that ran from Montreal to St. John NB via Maine. That train is now only a fond memory. The line is still used for freight by I believe the New Brunswick Southern, I can't keep up with the name changes.

 

[hlcteacher]

Saw the 2017 one on Public Square here in Cleveland using a pinhole contraption that i made up on the spot, surprised at the people who stopped to see it through my thingie (i was too late to get glasses)...have already bought glasses this time and signed up as a volunteer for several of the activities planned around the Eclipse. It is a big deal here and "they" are expecting about a million people here to watch it. News folks have been hyping it for months now. I am excited, cuz I love once in a lifetime events!

 

[B&Ofan]

Saw the 2017 one on Public Square here in Cleveland using a pinhole contraption that i made up on the spot, surprised at the people who stopped to see it through my thingie (i was too late to get glasses)...have already bought glasses this time and signed up as a volunteer for several of the activities planned around the Eclipse. It is a big deal here and "they" are expecting about a million people here to watch it. News folks have been hyping it for months now. I am excited, cuz I love once in a lifetime events!

Thanks for reminding me, I meed to get glasses soon. I am looking forward to my trip. I am taking the LSL to Toledo. I am arriving several days before to visit my mom. I had to stay an extra day as even though I booked quite early the train coming home only had a Bedroom available. The next day things were normal.

 

[mwmnp]

Amtrak today made an adjustment to the times 391 (Saluki) and 392 (Illini) will run on the day of the eclipse. 391 will leave Chicago at 6:35 AM and get to Carbondale at 12:05 PM, now arriving about 2 hours before maximum totality there instead of the roughly 15-minute cushion there would have been under the normal schedule. Meanwhile, the counterpart 392 that day will run nearly 2.5 hours later, leaving Carbondale at 6:40 PM and arriving in Chicago at 12:10 AM.

 

[west point]

My gosh. Is Amtrak really trying to do a marketing of the train. Now how much capacity will it put on 391 & 392? I forget is that a SL required train?

 

[PRR 60]

Amtrak today made an adjustment to the times 391 (Saluki) and 392 (Illini) will run on the day of the eclipse. 391 will leave Chicago at 6:35 AM and get to Carbondale at 12:05 PM, now arriving about 2 hours before maximum totality there instead of the roughly 15-minute cushion there would have been under the normal schedule. Meanwhile, the counterpart 392 that day will run nearly 2.5 hours later, leaving Carbondale at 6:40 PM and arriving in Chicago at 12:10 AM.

The return trip (392 @ 6:40 PM) is already sold out.

 

[Dan Olsen]

I strongly recommend against trying to photograph your first (or even second or third!) total eclipse. You will be too distracted and frantic and might miss the best parts, the few minutes before and after totality and all of totality itself.

There are interesting things to observe during the partial phase that you probably can photograph (or attempt to photograph) without losing anything, such as the really cool crescent suns projected through pin-hole gaps between leaves under a tree. They get smaller and more crescent-shaped as the eclipse progresses, but don't get so fixated you miss the final minutes before totality! Also watch for the lighting effects, the distant and approaching shadow, animal and bird behavior, etc. And the people!

If you are lucky enough to see 3 or more total eclipses, you might consider attempting to photograph the corona, Bailey's beads, or the diamond ring effect, etc. but don't even try on your first couple of eclipses. Also, remember, a total eclipse is TOTALLY different (pun intended) from a partial or even annular eclipse, so those don't count.

 

[Rover]

 

[Alice]

I strongly recommend against trying to photograph your first (or even second or third!) total eclipse. You will be too distracted and frantic and might miss the best parts, the few minutes before and after totality and all of totality itself.

There are interesting things to observe during the partial phase that you probably can photograph (or attempt to photograph) without losing anything, such as the really cool crescent suns projected through pin-hole gaps between leaves under a tree. They get smaller and more crescent-shaped as the eclipse progresses, but don't get so fixated you miss the final minutes before totality! Also watch for the lighting effects, the distant and approaching shadow, animal and bird behavior, etc. And the people!

If you are lucky enough to see 3 or more total eclipses, you might consider attempting to photograph the corona, Bailey's beads, or the diamond ring effect, etc. but don't even try on your first couple of eclipses. Also, remember, a total eclipse is TOTALLY different (pun intended) from a partial or even annular eclipse, so those don't count.

I second the photo advice, watch and experience instead. My photos from the 2017 eclipse are throwaways, should have videoed the audience if anything. This year in TX I'm just watching. I also agree about the pinhole effect between moving leaves. Saw those many years ago on my dash when driving somewhere, pulled into a shaded shopping center and was shocked other people had no idea what was happening in their town.

 

[Rover]

Places in the center line of Totality April 8, 2024
From a map by Xavier M. Jubier

http://xjubier.free.fr/en/site_pages/solar_eclipses/xSE_GoogleMap3.php?Ecl=+20240408

 

[xzperu42]

Saw it today from Montreal. Had planned to take the Adirondack up here, but was sold out by the time I pull the trigger (only Friday). But I will take the Adirondack home after a little add on excursion to Jonquière on VIA Wednesday.

 

[lordsigma]

Saw it in Vermont, awesome experience. Drove but heard Vermonter and Ethan Allen both were slammed.