Last USA Total Solar Eclipse Houlton ME.
The estimates are 10,000 up to 40,000 viewers taking the trek to the last USA Houlton Maine solar eclipse 2024. There are lots of logistics to plan to manage that many additional people heading to Aroostook County Maine. When you consider the total local small Maine town population is around 6000 happy souls. May be a little outnumbered but Houlton and the communities surrounding it are ready for a little company.
Plenty of long range problem solving, public discussions needed to happen and did for the total solar eclipse Houlton ME event April 8, 2024.
To pull of the solar eclipse event without a hitch for a positive experience takes everyone on the same page to how best to pull off the four day festival event.
What’s the big deal about a total solar eclipse?
Oh, I don’t know. Just the wrap up of the 13 state 2024 solar eclipse light show tour. A celestial astronomical event that is not going to cause totality again in my home town of Houlton Maine for hundreds of years. There is no rain date and no dress rehearsal. It’s showtime. Hit the lights.
Starting in Texas as the opening act, ending up just an hour later passing over Houlton Maine. Houlton Maine is lucky to be dead center for totality in the path of darkness bathing the Earth as it passes overhead.
Being a border town with Canada has a lot of perks.
The fun continues “over home” as we like to call Canada on this side of the border eh? My Dad’s mom, my grandmother Bessie Burtt was 100% Canadian red maple leaf DNA. Everyone is related back and forth on both sides of the USA / Canada International boundary line. You learn how to play better hockey on the solid sheet of frozen water at a Canadian ice arena.
Last USA total solar eclipse Houlton ME.
Big happenings with the 2024 total solar eclipse as it exits Maine, enters New Brunswick Canada.
The solar eclipse 2024 continues rolling on without stopping at customs and immigration inspections thru New Brunswick into Atlantic Canada, then out to sea.
So opening up the highways leading to your small Maine home town. This blog post is about rolling out the red carpet, firing up the welcome wagon. What’s involved in a slightly more complex event with all these out of town visitors. Attendance was high at last night’s meeting, lots of questions and brain storming at one of many solar eclipse gatherings at the Houlton High School auditorium.
What about cell phones and are the local tower systems designed for up to 40,000 visitors for the 4 day festival?
The extra load on communications, Internet, highways, local services, EMS. Traffic flow, what roadways to make one way? Coordinating public safety with the local Houlton Maine police working hand in hand with state police, sheriff’s patrol, US border patrol. I wondered about street lamps on sensors coming on to take away from the afternoon totality black out in Houlton Maine.
Where do you plan to view the eclipse wearing your special eye protection glasses?
Mt Katahdin, the very top would be a crowded place if Baxter Park was open to hikers in April which it is not. Or the site for the Waston Settlement covered bridge in Littleton that is a whisker north of Houlton Maine.
Local WHOU radio station and Channel 8 public service announcements to keep the public in the know of what to expect.
Solar totality blog posts, Houlton Pioneer Times and Bangor Daily News read all about the latest developments during planning and the actual eclipse festival event. Folks toying with the idea of traveling to Houlton Maine for the total eclipse. They all need to know all about the area, the festival of events, places to stay, where to eat and what to do for fun.
It’s a lot different than when this is your fourth, seventh or a yearly tradition to know what to expect for the next one.
There is no minutes from the wrap up meeting of last year’s total solar eclipse in Houlton Maine to re-read and build on. Learning from past years lessons to fine tune and tighten up the event are not here to glean.
Adjustments and refinement, like we make yearly to the Houlton Fair, Rotary Auction, Northern Maine Soap Box Derby or Moosestompers etc local events.
Those are easy because something to build on and either worked or did not from experience on each recurring yearly event. This is like the first ever let’s send some astronauts to Moon and back exercise. Risks, weather, expenses and unknowns on just how many people will show up in Houlton Maine wearing solar glasses.
The AirBnB and VRBO vacation sites, local motels for lodging are booked solid.
Local folks are opening up their houses, camps, cottages as extra places to stay. Transportation with five buses so far to shuttle solar eclipse watchers, event goers opening up local options to help shuttle all these guests. Want to be an Uber or Lyft operator for a weekend and have a clean driver’s license? Lots of ways to monetize the solar eclipse event.
Parking lots, places to camp with tents, RV’s on open land near the festivities. Lots of opportunities for local property owners to consider sharing their private location for eclipse watchers this April 8th,2024. Parking your vacation on wheels rig at Walmart store #1974? Only so many spaces for the last USA Total Solar Eclipse.
The last solar eclipse in 1963 taught locals much but it’s been a few years.
You can read to learn what to do, what to avoid online accounts are helpful. But experience with something of this magnitude and event planning that started years ago. The weather forecast, time of year affectionately known as “mud season”.
How much food to order, like a cruise ship, the best way to serve it up without long lines, big delays or bottle necks.
How to assure a fire truck or ambulance or police officer can respond to an emergency situation with all the traffic and wall to wall people. When you have around a 6000 population, the getting ready for possible six times or more that number of people roaming around in your small Maine community is exciting.
Lots of jobs and responsibilities for paid staff and volunteers to pull together to make the event a positive experience.
It makes a small Maine community pull together and work hard to tackle the known and unknowns. Stay tuned for more in future posts in this Maine blogging channel.
Communicating what is happening as the event schedule fills up and the calendar days accelerate toward April 8th, 2024’s total solar eclipse.
The count down toward totality, the last place in continental USA for a total solar eclipse in Houlton Maine.
Local eclipse watchers to crane their necks skyward to view the light show wearing eye protection. This celestial chain of events is once in a lifetime for most. Protect the peepers and avoid life long damage by covering up eyes to filter out the harmful, powerful Sun please.
This simple video shows you what happens that causes wildlife to hush and everything goes dark in Houlton Maine’s total eclipse.
The area 15 churches and counting are onboard and working together for warming areas, additional places to dine according to Hollie McAffee.
Besides church groups, eclipse planner Hollie McAfee says the local area snowmobile, fish and game clubs, area schools are coming together. Any gym, barn, warehouse is fair game to retool and use for some aspect of the total darkness in Houlton Maine. 10,000 of the 60,000 special safety approved eclipse eye glasses are given free to the area schools. Safety talks and reminders how to not damage your eyes for life education is so critical.
I remember the 1963 partial eclipse in Houlton Maine.
My 3 older brothers, mom and dad were ready to watch through welder’s glass for eye protection. But many of my friends were rushed inside into rooms with the blinds and shades pulled down.
As local panel speaker Mark Horvath, holder of a PHD in astronomy warned the group. During last night’s Q&A public session, he told the group you don’t want the total solar eclipse blinding light as the Moon slides away from between the Sun and Earth to be the last thing you ever see.
Safety first and last. Burning your retina and doing damage of any degree to your eyes is not worth it.
Dumpsters, is 100 porta potties enough? Do we need more venues for dining and how to creatively open up extra lodging options? More varied event entertainment, food trucks, pop up businesses and parking, spacing. Five star parks sponsored and designated for group watching as of this date.
The list of what’s going on for eclipse events grows and changes daily.
Learned last night the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd is ordering 1500 fresh lobsters, steaming them up, adding a baked potato and home made whoopie pies. Last USA Total Solar Eclipse Houlton Maine, you planning the trip north?
Locals are told to get your prescriptions filled, fuel up your vehicles before the mass exodus to the final total solar eclipse 2024 in Houlton Maine.
Like preparing for a Maine storm, stock up on what you need while you can buy it from local stores. School is off, local businesses are encouraged to free up their work force to create additional labor for the solar eclipse 4 day festival. It like a Monday national holiday in Houlton Maine.
Last USA total solar eclipse Houlton Maine.
The climax being the 2:22 to 4:41 April 8th here we go. The actual total solar eclipse is 3:32 to 3:35 PM April 8th, 2024.
The last major crowd traveling through “The County” was one of the two Phish concerts held at former Loring Air Force
Base in Limestone Maine. It is estimated 65,000 music lovers following their favorite band traveled up into Aroostook County a few years back for the outdoor live musical event. Some band followers and music lovers missed the Houlton I-95 Exit 302 and ended up in Canada. But that is a ‘hole ‘nother story for another Maine blog post.
So, Last USA Total Solar Eclipse Houlton Maine, here is why the math has to be just so for planet Earth, the Moon and Sun.
The full schedule for the four days of family fun events continues to be added to in Houlton, Presque Isle, Caribou and over into New Brunswick, Canada.
Guided historical walking tours, Howl At The Moon Dueling Piano Show, John Cariani presents “Almost Maine”, Maine author and comedian Tim Sample, Blackfly Brewfest, 3.32 mile road race, astronaut talk, solar system bus tour & planetarium visit. And so much more being added and updated daily.
Lots of fun, food, bring the entire family. Share the eclipse 2024 event with all your friends on social media outlets please.
More on places to stay in Houlton Maine. Where to eat in Houlton Maine.
The party celebration happens before, during, after the total eclipse ends in Houlton Maine and continues across into Canada.
More to come as the event gets closer and the schedule of events firms up to help you have the best experience possible. Reach out with questions and here to help as a local lifelong native of Houlton Maine. Everyone is an ambassador of Houlton Maine and home town proud. Here’s Market Square, one of your five local star parks to observe with facilities and friends the solar eclipse. Why not attend the last USA Total Solar Eclipse Houlton Maine?
In this video, Market Square Houlton Maine used as a farmers market venue.
What are you doing around April 8th, 2024?
Last USA total solar eclipse Houlton Maine. Have you ever witnessed a total or partial eclipse in your lifetime? There is a major difference between the two. Here’s your chance to travel to Houlton Maine for an out of this World experience. Want to volunteer or help underwrite the tremendous expense to open up a small Maine community for a total solar eclipse? Reach out and let the Maine Eclipse folks know you want to volunteer time, money or both and help in any way.
I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker
207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |
MOOERS REALTY 69 North ST Houlton Maine 04730 USA