Where to view April 2024 solar eclipse within a day's travel from Boston

March 4, 2024 4:18 PM

I have booked tickets for April travel to Boston, from which I hope to travel to a location where I will have a good chance of viewing the 2024 solar eclipse. Boston itself is well outside the path of totality, but there appear to be a bunch of suitable locations one could reach within a day's travel. If you wanted to see the eclipse, what would you select as a destination that maximizes the chances of good viewing conditions (primary consideration) and is also perhaps a nice place to visit for other reasons (secondary consideration)?

I live more than 1000 miles from the closest point on the projected path of totality for the April 2024 solar eclipse, but I had some about-to-expire airline credit and there's a family member I haven't seen in a while who is currently living in Massachusetts.. And so I took the plunge the other day and used my expiring credit to book tickets.

The meteorological pessimist in me (I grew up around the Great Lakes, moved to Seattle, and then eventually to SE Alaska - cloud cover has more often been the rule than the exception in my life) makes me think I should probably have a couple of options under consideration and choose between them based on short range weather forecasts a day or two before the event but it'd be nice to pre-arrange lodging somewhere where I would have the chance to start the day of the eclipse close enough to the path to move to someplace where weather and viewing conditions will be at their best.

I've been to this part of the continent a few times but am not nearly as familiar with it as some other regions so please lay some local knowledge on me if you have something to suggest.

posted by Nerd of the North to Travel & Transportation (14 answers total)

Best answer: As you may be aware, it's tricky to move East-West across northern New England (no east-west interstate, so many lakes and mountains). I wonder if White River Junction, about halfway up the NH-VT border, might be a good option. It's not within the path of totality (so you can still get a hotel room) but it's on I-91 and I-89. It's two hours from Boston and it puts you basically two hours closer to the Adirondacks, the Green Mountains, and the White Mountains. You would be 2-3 hours from Burlington, VT, Saranac Lake, NY, Pittsburgh, NH, and Magog or Sherbrooke, QC (if there's not a horrific wait at the border, which is possible). You could even cut over to Rangeley, ME in 3-4 hours.

None of those places are all that far apart but weather is complicated and it's definitely possible that it could be sunny in Saranac Lake and socked in in northern New Hampshire or vice versa.

Another option would be to take I-90 as far west as maybe Utica, which would give you access to a bunch of locations on Lake Ontario and also the Adirondacks. That's about 4 hours from Boston, plus 2-4 hours to your final destination, so a good bit more driving.
posted by mskyle at 4:54 PM on March 4

Oh to be clear: White River Junction is not super-appealing on its own but Hanover, NH is right there and it's the home of Dartmouth College and has a cute little downtown. There's an art museum but it's closed on Mondays (open Sunday though). The King Arthur Flour mothership is nearby as well.
posted by mskyle at 5:35 PM on March 4

Based on distance from Boston + "nice place to visit for other reasons," the obvious choice is Vermont. A 3 1/2 hour drive will put you well inside the path of totality. I don't think you can expect to get lodging at this point, though. Maybe you could find a room in southern Vermont or New Hampshire or maybe you'll just have to make it a day trip. Based on historical records for that day, it will most likely be cloudy in Vermont, but I'm not sure it's likely to be any better in neighboring states. If it were me, I'd probably just drive north to somewhere without a lot of tourists, like Morrisville (or a little farther north if it seems worth driving farther for longer totality.) There will be stuff happening in Burlington that day, but I think dealing with the traffic and parking would be too annoying. I'd stay away from that whole area.
posted by Redstart at 5:47 PM on March 4

Portland, ME is tourist central, but it's sure a good place to eat and the coastline is beautiful. I'm living here now, and I think we get something like 98% totality this time. There are a couple parks with lovely water views that may be good for the eclipse, although I think the sun will not be directly over them at the time.
posted by Countess Elena at 6:58 AM on March 5

(But then recall that any coastal town has got quick-changing weather, and I can't be sure what to expect most days, let alone the eclipse!)
posted by Countess Elena at 6:58 AM on March 5

Best answer: I just spent several months in St Johnsbury, Vermont, which I can vouch for as a nice place to spend a day. They will be having events including a big festival at the planetarium - St J loves Events. You might even still be able to get a room, or find one within an hour east.

Do not go to St J without going to Tirozzi's Bakery.
posted by Lyn Never at 7:06 AM on March 5

Best answer: Welcome to join us in our front yard to watch.
posted by terrapin at 8:33 AM on March 5 [3 favorites]

Terrapin, meetup? 😬
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 8:42 AM on March 5

Meetup was my 1st thought, as well. nice offer, either way.
posted by theora55 at 9:01 AM on March 5

Burlington, VT.

My husband is a pilot so we’re just going to attempt to fly where we think there might be better weather but Burlington is our plan A right now.
posted by lydhre at 9:04 AM on March 5

April is not a good time of year to have multiple vehicles on our road as they could be mostly mud. Sorry!
posted by terrapin at 11:17 AM on March 5

Response by poster: I appreciate all the responses. Will take some time to process the advice while looking at maps and consulting with the relative who will be my travel partner, but before this fades off the AskMeFi radar I wanted to thank people for taking the time to offer opinions.
posted by Nerd of the North at 9:22 PM on March 6

Best answer: This site will simulate what one can expect to see at any given location. The link shows the closest place to me I could find.
posted by terrapin at 10:24 AM on March 8

Response by poster: After due study of the map and the recommendations provided by helpful MeFites, my family member and I concluded that we should head across the US/Canada border, where we felt we would have more east/west maneuverability if the local forecast was unfavorable on the day of the event.

We booked a hotel in Granby, in Quebec's Eastern Townships, and had fabulous luck with the weather. A significant Nor'easter blew through New England a few days before the eclipse, giving me a very bumpy landing on my flight into Boston and leaving behind a bunch of wet slushy snow but as the day of the eclipse approached it just kept getting better. We had a lovely drive north through the White Mountains of New Hampshire the day before the event and near-perfect conditions for the event itself. We watched from a lakeside park in Granby where there was not a cloud in the sky and the temperature was 60 F with a slight breeze. I couldn't have asked for better.

Thanks to all for the suggestions.
posted by Nerd of the North at 4:36 PM on April 8 [1 favorite]