Wise up, gas up and stock up on highway to viewing haven
The great eclipse migration has begun. And for those hitting the road late, maybe pack a lunch. Oh, and don’t forget some extra gas. You’re probably already too late for eclipse glasses or a place to stay.
Metro Denverites making the trek north for Monday’s total eclipse of the sun have already been warned of extreme traffic delays that could give a turtle time to cross the road. But drivers should also be prepared for delays at gas stations as eclipse hunters are already crowding the pumps.
“We didn’t prepare enough, apparently,” said Jean Milligan, the deli manager at Reata Travel Stop in Sterling along Interstate 76 on the way to Nebraska. “This place has been slammed.”
Normally, Milligan said he’ll make 100-110 sandwiches at the deli from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. He had made 200 before 2 p.m. Friday.
Milligan said he was glad the travel stop had ordered extra gas and store items. But that doesn’t mean it hasn’t run out of things — namely eclipse glasses.
The Colorado Department of Transportation said some experts have predicted up to 600,000 people will be heading to Wyoming, which would double the state’s population. The agency told people to imagine six Denver Broncos games exiting at once. High traffic was expected through Tuesday — with the worst day Monday, when the eclipse takes cosmic stage.
CDOT safety patrols normally carry five gallons of extra gas for people who run dry on the roads, agency spokesman Jared Fiel said. But staffers this weekend will be stocking up with 20 gallons — and filling up as needed.
Love’s Travel Stops spokeswoman Kealey Dorian said the national chain usually sees traffic dropping around this time as the summer travel season ends. But the eclipse is extending that season by a week or two.
Most of the chain’s stores are staffing the eclipse weekend as if it were a holiday weekend, bringing in an extra worker or two, she said. Stores have worked with vendors to make sure they were stocked on items that typically sell well over the summer, such as bottled water and small snacks.
All in all, however, the weekend isn’t fazing the chain too much, she said. “For us, it’ll be more of the same.”
Little America, a travel center, restaurant and hotel in Cheyenne, has started to see an uptick in visitors, but it hasn’t been overwhelming — yet. Hotel administrative assistant Kyla White said the staff is expecting the hit to come Saturday.
“It’s pretty much taking a week and putting it on one day,” she said.
Little America has seen its fair amount of traffic with Frontier Days, but White said that probably won’t compare to the number of people coming for the eclipse. Typically, the travel center slows down after the rodeo, so White said the extra business is a good thing.
The hotel booked Sunday night completely six months ago. And although Little America hasn’t been hit too hard, she has heard of other gas stations with 20-30 minute waits and people filling gas cans in their cars.
The travel center stocked up on extra gas, restaurant supplies, gas station supplies and emergency backup supplies. The restaurant plans to open an hour earlier Monday and has scheduled extra staff for the day.
“It makes me nervous,” she said. “No one really likes a small town getting filled up. For example, I’ve noticed a lot of different license plates: New York, Florida, Iowa, you name it. There’s been quite a bit of foreign plates.”
She said Cheyenne wasn’t used to traffic, which makes her nervous for her Monday morning work commute, although she speculated that plenty of people will take the day off.
“We’re excited,” she said, “but we also kind of want it to be over.”
Nationally, officials aren’t quite sure what to expect. Federal Highway Administration spokesman Doug Hecox said the eclipse is going to cross 14 states, more than two dozen interstates, and countless state highways, county roads and city streets.
“Traffic patterns before, during and after the eclipse are unclear to us,” he said. “The nation has simply not seen an event quite like this in nearly a century, so it’s hard to make a good estimate with so little baseline data from which to extrapolate.”
Hecox warned of road rage and distracted drivers, especially as people watch the sun instead of the road, which could be dangerous for pedestrians and bicyclists. He discouraged people from pulling over or trying to watch the eclipse while driving. Instead, he said people should go to a park or yard.
It’s not just an increase in cars, though. Casper-Natrona County International Airport director Glenn Januska said the airport is expecting 167 flights arriving between 5:30 and 11:15 a.m. Monday. That number is equivalent to one plane every two minutes.
CDOT has offered suggestions to help drivers heading to the eclipse:
• Fill up on gas to avoid running out of fuel
• Don’t stop and pull off on the side of the roads
• Don’t illegally park anywhere, such as on highway medians
•Bring plenty of water, sunscreen and snacks
Arthur F. Burns Program fellow Thierry Backes contributed to this article.