Solar Eclipse 2017

**Danno** · 08-20-2017, 10:14 AM

The fact that it's a weekday, after school starts, and has been scary hyped forever, makes for low crowds.

**Flyoverland Captive** · 08-20-2017, 10:18 AM

There are two ranches near me renting space for RVs; one is empty as of this morning, the other has maybe five or six RVs. Disappointed ranchers!

KQ · 08-20-2017, 10:31 AM

Oregon wildfire forces evacuations in prime eclipse zone

SISTERS, Ore. (AP) - About 600 residents are under evacuation orders in a prime eclipse-viewing location in Oregon threatened by the "Milli Wildfire" that has closed access to part of a wilderness area and a regional highway.

Fire officials said Saturday another 1,000 residents near the tourist town of Sisters have been told to be ready to leave if necessary.

Crews are expecting a tough day with winds gusting to more than 20 mph.

Some campsites and recreational areas are also shut down due to the 12-square-mile wildfire in the Deschutes National Forest that jumped fire lines Friday.

Officials say the blaze is producing heavy smoke while burning in forests at higher elevations and in sagebrush at lower areas.

The fire started late last week. Its cause is under investigation.

Oregon crews were also busy fighting the Nena Springs wildfire on the Warm Springs reservation.

Check the latest fire updates from the US Forest Service

**DasBlunt** · 08-20-2017, 10:37 AM

i heard gas shortages in eastern Oregon?

KQ · 08-20-2017, 10:40 AM

Solar Eclipse causing gas shortages throughout Oregon

12-hour drives to Portland? Earthquakes? Water shortages? Busting Oregon eclipse rumors

**Flyoverland Captive** · 08-20-2017, 10:45 AM

Originally Posted by KQ

Oregon wildfire forces evacuations in prime eclipse zone

SISTERS, Ore. (AP) - About 600 residents are under evacuation orders in a prime eclipse-viewing location in Oregon threatened by the "Milli Wildfire" that has closed access to part of a wilderness area and a regional highway.

Fire officials said Saturday another 1,000 residents near the tourist town of Sisters have been told to be ready to leave if necessary.

Crews are expecting a tough day with winds gusting to more than 20 mph.

Some campsites and recreational areas are also shut down due to the 12-square-mile wildfire in the Deschutes National Forest that jumped fire lines Friday.

Officials say the blaze is producing heavy smoke while burning in forests at higher elevations and in sagebrush at lower areas.

The fire started late last week. Its cause is under investigation.

Oregon crews were also busy fighting the Nena Springs wildfire on the Warm Springs reservation.

Check the latest fire updates from the US Forest Service

Three major fires in the area = lots of haze. The Sisters and Madras plumes were huge yesterday.

**Ted Striker** · 08-20-2017, 11:18 AM

Originally Posted by Flyoverland Captive

Three major fires in the area = lots of haze. The Sisters and Madras plumes were huge yesterday.

This morning. Pretty much all smoke.

**Fritz** · 08-20-2017, 11:33 AM

https://www.globalhealingcenter.com/...-of-sungazing/

I've been working my way up for 10 years so I can do this shit without protection. Won't have to eat for a few days after this either.

**stuckathuntermtn** · 08-20-2017, 11:33 AM

Same here.
It was kinda nice yesterday, but I guess the wind shifted. Can't see shit outside. Throat hurts, etc. I guess I'll see it get dark?
Afaik, some good viewing spots that look east northeast across the valley are closer to the fire.
Idk.
Maybe the wind will shift again.

**::: :::** · 08-20-2017, 11:33 AM

Ha, i decided to come home...gonna hit it tonight...not to worried for then. Still thinking tomorrow morning will be traffic-y

**Flyoverland Captive** · 08-20-2017, 12:17 PM

Originally Posted by Flyoverland Captive

There are two ranches near me renting space for RVs; one is empty as of this morning, the other has maybe five or six RVs. Disappointed ranchers!

Ran by a third ranch off the Ochoco Hwy today with a big, professionally-made sign advertising RV space. It is completely deserted.

**neckdeep** · 08-20-2017, 01:02 PM

I just talked to friends who have a restaurant and their numbers are actually down. The county's alarmist approach to planning got the locals to stock up on groceries and stay home. The increase in tourist business is minimal. Things are looking very grim for all the local entrepreneurs who invested in this fiasco. I guess predicting a disaster wasn't the best way to market our little mountain town. Let the finger pointing begin.

**stuckathuntermtn** · 08-20-2017, 01:30 PM

Wow, what superstitious backwater do they have a restaurant in?

**rideit** · 08-20-2017, 01:45 PM

Whatchyoutalkingbout, Willis? The 'disaster' is supposed to be the traffic, not the event. Knumbskull.

**neckdeep** · 08-20-2017, 01:55 PM

Originally Posted by rideit

Whatchyoutalkingbout, Willis? The 'disaster' is supposed to be the traffic, not the event. Knumbskull.

Maybe the disaster is all the money being lost right now. Looks like the county spent about ten times more than needed for this. Everyone who sank money into setting up campgrounds and food services is taking a beating.

**panchosdad** · 08-20-2017, 02:00 PM

Originally Posted by neckdeep

I just talked to friends who have a restaurant and their numbers are actually down. The county's alarmist approach to planning got the locals to stock up on groceries and stay home. The increase in tourist business is minimal. Things are looking very grim for all the local entrepreneurs who invested in this fiasco. I guess predicting a disaster wasn't the best way to market our little mountain town. Let the finger pointing begin.

Impossible to know if the County's attitude was the cause, but certainly things have materialized far different than forecasted. Surrounding communities seem to have much lower traffic as well, so my guess is that local efforts had a minimal effect. From the beginning I kept wondering where they were coming up with the 30-50k numbers of visitors. Turns out, "they" just had no idea. Go ahead and point fingers if it makes you feel good.

**AK47bp** · 08-20-2017, 02:10 PM

Originally Posted by The AD

I think you're probably right and this is something I can't even fathom. This is a very rare event. How can you not be interested in something like this? OTOH, I'm constantly shocked when I fly somewhere and most people in the airplane don't even look out the windows.

80/20 rule, 80% don't give a shit, 20% do. Of the 20% that give a shit, 80% don't give enough shits to travel to see it. Of the 20% that do give enough shits to travel to see it, 80% of them won't.

Do the math bruh.

**Danno** · 08-20-2017, 02:12 PM

Originally Posted by panchosdad

Impossible to know if the County's attitude was the cause, but certainly things have materialized far different than forecasted. Surrounding communities seem to have much lower traffic as well, so my guess is that local efforts had a minimal effect. From the beginning I kept wondering where they were coming up with the 30-50k numbers of visitors. Turns out, "they" just had no idea. Go ahead and point fingers if it makes you feel good.

There's lots of blame to go around. Just seems like the media, and social media, narrative has been that this would be mayhem, traffic jams for hours in the middle of nowhere, etc.

**neckdeep** · 08-20-2017, 02:23 PM

Originally Posted by panchosdad

From the beginning I kept wondering where they were coming up with the 30-50k numbers of visitors.

From Allred, the guy who talked his way into a job as the county eclipse coordinator by hyping the shit out of everything. Literally, hyping shit. As in, he's the same guy who said the county needed to rent 700 portapotties and then subsequently had to resign his county position because it turned out he was in a partnership trying to rent portapoties to the county. That's why I said maybe the moral of the story is don't listen to the guy who has a financial interest in renting honeypots.

No skin off my back. Heck, my life is easier without hordes of tourists. I feel sorry for all the locals who invested in reliance on these predictions. We really got led down the garden path on this one.

**Flyoverland Captive** · 08-20-2017, 02:50 PM

^^^ True story? Wow...

**capulin overdrive** · 08-20-2017, 03:27 PM

Even for people that care about it, you got how many living where it's 90% or 80%, etc. etc. ?

Add in kids back in school, and all the doom and gloom hype.

Some planners didn't pass their rocket science classes.

**splat** · 08-20-2017, 03:48 PM

I'm just dropping this here....

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**char_** · 08-20-2017, 04:05 PM

Free flow traffic back to south of Salem. Off to Astoria soon just need to get north of Salem then I figure I am home free. Super quiet roads for a Sunday. Some I5 traffic but still doing the speed limit or better for the most part.

ODOT and OSP must be happy with the overtime money, they are everywhere.

KQ · 08-20-2017, 04:30 PM

Originally Posted by neckdeep

No skin off my back. Heck, my life is easier without hordes of tourists. I feel sorry for all the locals who invested in reliance on these predictions. We really got led down the garden path on this one.

Same thing happened here when we had "The Gentlemen of the Road re: predictions of visitors. Looked dicey for a lot of the local restaurants that had invested in perishables to feed the masses but in the end it came out okay and the city was happy they had hosted the event.

**babybear** · 08-20-2017, 05:19 PM

I wondered if this would be the equivalent of nasty winter storm warning that never materializes locally. seemed like similar weather unpredictability to it all
Rode my bike to teton village to do a few park laps and the village is more busy than town altho only normal holiday busy
It's kind of silly seeing the police stationed everywhere for a basic mid-week day but I guess I'm glad they were over-prepped vs the alternative
I said to my friend today that we should nominate the Town of Jackson to run FEMA lol