Advice for Upcoming Flight for Eclipse
Aug 10, 2017, 5:58 pm
#31
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Hopefully they play fair. On that note, I wonder how many people booked backup cars that they ultimately won't pick up.
Aug 10, 2017, 6:02 pm
#32
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Aug 10, 2017, 6:12 pm
#33
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Aug 10, 2017, 7:37 pm
#35
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I figure my odds are rather greatly increased by this being SEA not PDX.
Aug 11, 2017, 9:55 am
#36
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: London
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Don't go too far east of SLE or you might run into smoke from wildfires ...
http://oregonsmoke.blogspot.com/2017...r-fire_10.html
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/stor...ark/546663001/
http://oregonsmoke.blogspot.com/2017...r-fire_10.html
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/stor...ark/546663001/
But I did get to experience the darkness and the birds nesting - quite an eerie experience, so it's worth being in the area of totality, regardless!
!Would it be better staying off the highway and take smaller back roads?
Another question - is there a gas station at/close to the airport in PDX? [I've booked a car with Avis].
Aug 11, 2017, 10:15 am
#37
Join Date: May 2006
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Everyone worrying about smoke: don't freak too much yet. It's not so thick that it blocks the sun. It just makes everything orange. We're still 10 days out. Weather and visibility forecasts are useless at this time.
If you go into Stayton or other small towns on back roads, be careful if you don't know the area. Those roads will be crowded. There will be people parked in places they shouldn't be (or ON the road). Be careful with parking over the dry grass etc. There's lots of little back roads you can go off of, but do expect to be sitting in traffic coming back to town.
There's a new 7-11 gas station that's almost open at the corner of 82nd and NE Airport Way. I'm not sure when it'll be open, but I drove by it the other day and it looked ready. Not sure how much you end up driving, but this might be one of the times where getting the fuel option is a good idea. Otherwise there's gas all along the 205 and 5. Just follow the blue signs. I usually fill up at Foster Road.
If you go into Stayton or other small towns on back roads, be careful if you don't know the area. Those roads will be crowded. There will be people parked in places they shouldn't be (or ON the road). Be careful with parking over the dry grass etc. There's lots of little back roads you can go off of, but do expect to be sitting in traffic coming back to town.
There's a new 7-11 gas station that's almost open at the corner of 82nd and NE Airport Way. I'm not sure when it'll be open, but I drove by it the other day and it looked ready. Not sure how much you end up driving, but this might be one of the times where getting the fuel option is a good idea. Otherwise there's gas all along the 205 and 5. Just follow the blue signs. I usually fill up at Foster Road.
Aug 11, 2017, 11:54 am
#38
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There's a new 7-11 gas station that's almost open at the corner of 82nd and NE Airport Way. I'm not sure when it'll be open, but I drove by it the other day and it looked ready. Not sure how much you end up driving, but this might be one of the times where getting the fuel option is a good idea. Otherwise there's gas all along the 205 and 5. Just follow the blue signs. I usually fill up at Foster Road.
Aug 11, 2017, 12:37 pm
#39
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: SEA and wherever else I can get to
Programs: AS MVPG -> MVP -> now nothing, DL SM, Global Entry
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What? Y'all aren't flying AS SEA-MSY on Friday, then DL MSY-ATL-GSP? 'Cause that's what I'm doing.... 
(g/f lives in Greenville, SC, and her tiny little hometown of Waterloo is directly under the centerline of the path of totality, so we're headed there to see it.)
(g/f lives in Greenville, SC, and her tiny little hometown of Waterloo is directly under the centerline of the path of totality, so we're headed there to see it.)
Aug 11, 2017, 12:42 pm
#40
Join Date: Dec 2008
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Everyone worrying about smoke: don't freak too much yet. It's not so thick that it blocks the sun. It just makes everything orange. We're still 10 days out. Weather and visibility forecasts are useless at this time.
If you go into Stayton or other small towns on back roads, be careful if you don't know the area. Those roads will be crowded. There will be people parked in places they shouldn't be (or ON the road). Be careful with parking over the dry grass etc. There's lots of little back roads you can go off of, but do expect to be sitting in traffic coming back to town.
There's a new 7-11 gas station that's almost open at the corner of 82nd and NE Airport Way. I'm not sure when it'll be open, but I drove by it the other day and it looked ready. Not sure how much you end up driving, but this might be one of the times where getting the fuel option is a good idea. Otherwise there's gas all along the 205 and 5. Just follow the blue signs. I usually fill up at Foster Road.
If you go into Stayton or other small towns on back roads, be careful if you don't know the area. Those roads will be crowded. There will be people parked in places they shouldn't be (or ON the road). Be careful with parking over the dry grass etc. There's lots of little back roads you can go off of, but do expect to be sitting in traffic coming back to town.
There's a new 7-11 gas station that's almost open at the corner of 82nd and NE Airport Way. I'm not sure when it'll be open, but I drove by it the other day and it looked ready. Not sure how much you end up driving, but this might be one of the times where getting the fuel option is a good idea. Otherwise there's gas all along the 205 and 5. Just follow the blue signs. I usually fill up at Foster Road.
Thank you - all useful tips!
Aug 11, 2017, 1:14 pm
#41
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: SEA
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From Stayton and Sublimity, you can take the old Cascade Highway up to Silverton and then state highway 213 to Oregon City from there, getting you most of the way back to PDX. But these are two-lane roads, and I-5 is going to be so backed up that Google Maps may end up routing people even onto those.
Aug 11, 2017, 6:54 pm
#43
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: YVR
Posts: 1,846
Just a quick update...I was able to cancel my BLI-PDX flight with no fee because of a schedule change, and they refunded my points because of there wasn't even any alternate flights to pick from! That was lucky!
So now that I'm officially driving down the I-5 from BC, I get to feel the full experience of the Eclipse weekend traffic - with the border included! Yay! But honestly, I'm feeling better about that than I am about airports and rental cars!!! I'm leaving on Thursday, so hopefully it won't be too bad. I guess I just really need to be concerned for the day of the Eclipse, which I would've had to battle regardless of flying down or driving.
Cute Alaska eclipse story, too: the agent that cancelled my reservation told me that they had a contest for all AS employees to enter to win a seat on a flight that will be in the path of totality. I'm guessing it was on this chartered flight ( https://blog.alaskaair.com/alaska-ai...rican-eclipse/ ) Of course, she didn't win, but apparently it was quite the exciting contest for all of them, and I'm sure an amazing win for whoever did!
So now that I'm officially driving down the I-5 from BC, I get to feel the full experience of the Eclipse weekend traffic - with the border included! Yay! But honestly, I'm feeling better about that than I am about airports and rental cars!!! I'm leaving on Thursday, so hopefully it won't be too bad. I guess I just really need to be concerned for the day of the Eclipse, which I would've had to battle regardless of flying down or driving.
Cute Alaska eclipse story, too: the agent that cancelled my reservation told me that they had a contest for all AS employees to enter to win a seat on a flight that will be in the path of totality. I'm guessing it was on this chartered flight ( https://blog.alaskaair.com/alaska-ai...rican-eclipse/ ) Of course, she didn't win, but apparently it was quite the exciting contest for all of them, and I'm sure an amazing win for whoever did!
Last edited by pokee; Aug 11, 2017 at 7:03 pm
Aug 11, 2017, 6:58 pm
#44
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Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: YVR
Posts: 1,846
I think after rush hour, traffic will have died down. If I end up making the trek to Madras because of the weather, I'm going to stay at the festival most of the day before heading back to Portland.
Aug 14, 2017, 9:53 am
#45
Suspended
Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 1,808
I'm in Salem, ground zero. Places are gearing up around here for the madness. I know a lot of businesses will be closed and the hospital will be in disaster mode. They are adding triage tents and requiring some staff to sleep at the hospital. The real worry is with all the traffic emergency responders may not be able to get to where they need to go.
I did see that Hertz was in damage control mode on the rate increases and cancellations and that they were trying to get additional cars into the area. And Uber, not Lyft, just started service in Salem, so that could be an option too.
In Salem Enterprise has 2 good sized offices and Budget has one a the airport, which has no scheduled service, but if you take the Hut Shuttle from PDX this is where it lets you off.
I'll be spending the morning at Trinity Vineyards, which I can reach from my house using back roads. A lot of the vineyards around the area are doing special events.
The state attorney general just fined a bunch of hotels for unfair business practices for raising rates and canceling reservations. If this happens to you I would file a complaint.
https://justice.oregon.gov/consumerc...mplaintForm/en
http://www.opb.org/news/series/solar...rease-refunds/
I did see that Hertz was in damage control mode on the rate increases and cancellations and that they were trying to get additional cars into the area. And Uber, not Lyft, just started service in Salem, so that could be an option too.
In Salem Enterprise has 2 good sized offices and Budget has one a the airport, which has no scheduled service, but if you take the Hut Shuttle from PDX this is where it lets you off.
I'll be spending the morning at Trinity Vineyards, which I can reach from my house using back roads. A lot of the vineyards around the area are doing special events.
The state attorney general just fined a bunch of hotels for unfair business practices for raising rates and canceling reservations. If this happens to you I would file a complaint.
https://justice.oregon.gov/consumerc...mplaintForm/en
http://www.opb.org/news/series/solar...rease-refunds/