In anticipation of the highly-awaited general sun eclipse of April 8, 2024, many intrepid vacationers deliberate epic trips to witness this celestial phenomenon. We made the adventure in some way that most of the people most probably didn’t . . . we undertook the adventure via bus. This three-part collection recounts the stories and classes discovered from an formidable six-day Greyhound travel from Oregon to Texas. Phase 1 covers the necessities of making ready for and embarking on this type of marathon bus voyage. Phase 2 dove into the realities of existence at the street, navigating the demanding situations and easy pleasures of sluggish shuttle. Within the ultimate installment, Phase 3 displays at the the sensible issues we discovered alongside the best way for somebody who is thinking about a travel like this.
. . .
My spouse and I knew that we would have liked to look the April 8, 2024 eclipse in totality. I had noticed the 2017 eclipse in totality from Redmond, Oregon, and it used to be awe-inspiring, and sure, I needed to admit that I become an eclipse chaser after that. My spouse overlooked it, as a result of he and his then-wife had stayed in Eugene, the place as a substitute of totality they were given 98% (if any of you will have noticed totality, then you understand how a lot of a distinction that 2% makes!!) after which so as to add insult to harm, his younger kid needed to pass to the toilet on the — absolute — worst time!
So we had been decided to make it paintings someway. My spouse has a long-time buddy in Dallas, so we knew we will have a spot to stick, we simply needed to get there. But if we regarded into flights, as a result of part the arena sought after to be within the eclipse trail and Dallas used to be a chief viewing spot, the flights had been gouging dear — we’re speaking just about $2,000 for a one-way price tag. We attempted all forms of combos, of riding into positive puts then flying, or flying into someplace close to there and renting a automobile, taking the educate . . . anything else shall we bring to mind. We didn’t pressure ourselves as a result of it could have taken two times as many days as a result of we might have stopped at evening in lodges. I used to be nonetheless seeking to paintings (I paintings remotely so I may do this) and my spouse sought after in an effort to paintings a bit of too, so riding ourselves didn’t look like the most productive use of time. The educate used to be virtually as dear because the aircraft. We had been fearful in regards to the availability of apartment automobiles anyplace close to the trail of totality and didn’t need to take an opportunity that we would no longer get one. One-way flights had been about $1,800 in keeping with individual and that used to be greater than we would have liked to spend. So we settled on a 3-day bus travel the usage of the FlixBus and Greyhound bus provider. That value us about $500 for the 2 folks, around travel. Neither folks in point of fact sought after to be on a bus for three days and three nights each techniques, however we felt like shall we live to tell the tale. Fortuitously, my spouse and I shuttle smartly in combination and we knew shall we deal with it. And, as all of our buddies stated, “You’’ll have an excellent journey!!”
Eugene to Los Angeles
To start with, our direction used to be kind of Eugene to Sacramento, Sacramento to Los Angeles, Los Angeles to Dallas. It used to be 48 hours a technique and 51 hours at the long ago. FlixBus was a separate provider however has merged with Greyhound so we took some FlixBuses and a few Greyhounds. It used to be handiest the primary leg of the travel, from Eugene to Sacramento, and we had been already past due. Our bus that used to be intended to select us up in Eugene used to be past due coming down from Seattle. We boarded virtually an hour past due. We had paid additional for the seats proper at the back of the driving force at the proper facet of the bus in order that we will have the panoramic view. Smartly, the bus driving force instructed everybody to take a seat anyplace they sought after to. She had some the explanation why assigned seats didn’t topic so we ended up sitting within the again and no longer getting the view. We discovered over the process the travel that some drivers put in force assigned seats and a few don’t. It no doubt brought about issues and confusions when drivers didn’t put in force seats. We had been thankful for the drivers that did put in force assigned seats, although that used to be the one leg that we had paid additional for viewing seats for.
I had idea I’d have some paintings time — in any case, we had been getting at the bus at kind of midday Thursday and getting off the bus at about 7pm Saturday, which intended part an afternoon Thursday, all day Friday, and all day Saturday when I used to be pondering I’d have wifi. That didn’t occur. The FlixBus wifi didn’t paintings; it simply by no means hooked up for me. The FlixBus used to be operated via MRT Western, and so they had been intended to have 2-hour wifi. I controlled to get my laptop hooked up to that wifi however it lower out after simply 1 hour. So, no paintings time.
At 345pm in Grants Cross, in southern Oregon, the driving force stated it could be only a fast forestall to select up and drop off, and the following forestall can be longer for food and drink. However as a substitute, 6 other folks went to the grocer so we needed to wait. The motive force didn’t forestall them from getting off, after which after we were given again at the street, the driving force stated that as a result of we had been at the back of agenda he couldn’t ensure we might make the relationship in Sacramento for Los Angeles. So we had been simply a few hours into our travel and already we weren’t certain if we might make our connections!
In the end, we made the relationship. Weed, California, used to be only a 10-minute forestall and no meals. Chico, California, used to be speedy. Oroville, California, used to be only a minute forestall. Christmas timber gave strategy to palm timber as we made our method right down to central California. Without a wifi, I wasn’t operating and I had not anything to do. Within the days prior to the travel I had made a three 1/2-hour Spotify playlist of songs about puts. I listened to that playlist as I watched the solar set in northern California. I will be able to’t have in mind the ultimate time I in reality did not anything however take a seat and concentrate to track and glance out the window. We made it to Sacramento with 20 mins to spare. We left Sacramento at 1043pm, and settled in for the evening.
The view from the Greyhound forestall in Indio, California.
The stops had been all mixing in combination. Seeking to sleep throughout the evening used to be difficult, since the seats had been uncomfortable however it used to be additionally raining so we had the chirp of the windshield wipers catching at the glass, and the fellow crunching on lime tortilla chips and tartar sauce that he purchased on the AM PM someplace. Maximum stations, like Fresno, had been little greater than parking so much and at evening not anything used to be open. Essentially the most a laugh factor in regards to the travel used to be the surroundings. There’s a large number of stunning nation between right here and Texas, and when any individual else is riding, you get to do not anything however take all of it in.
Wasteland Heart, California
Los Angeles to Dallas
Waking up, it used to be first light in Los Angeles. We had traded our seats within the entrance of the bus for seats within the again. It smelled extra like gasoline exhaust within the again left facet of the bus. We had an hour and 10 minute switch at Union Station in Los Angeles. The one position to get espresso used to be a Starbucks and also you needed to have the app to reserve. It used to be only a counter at the back of a tumbler door, so that you needed to order from the app after which open the door to select up your order. It’s chilly and wet and the entire evening via, and the driving force stated the AC used to be caught on, so it used to be getting less warm and less warm via the minute the entire time we had been at the bus. Fortunately, we modified buses and it used to be higher, however it took me a very long time to heat up.
Union Station in Los Angeles
The nation-state close to Indio is beautiful, with some red wildflower blooms. Misty mountaintops and windmills. We stopped in Blythe, California, for lunch, proper close to the Arizona border, and noticed an indication for Quartzsite, Arizona, a spot I had taken a street travel to prior to.
We were given burritos from Albertacos, which is a spot inside of a fuel station. Because the solar set at the back of the mountains outdoor of Phoenix at the night of the second one day, and we had been on the point of sleep on a bus for the second one evening, the conclusion set in that we nonetheless had a complete 24 hours left to move.
There used to be an overly talkative woman at the bus who used to be enticing a tender guy who used to be touring together with his circle of relatives to Georgia. It used to be about 8-10pm and the bus used to be darkish and a large number of other folks had been seeking to settle into snoozing. They stored speaking about no matter (I used to be attempting very exhausting to music them out) and on occasion their voices would elevate upper in pleasure and the passengers round them would jointly pass “shhh!”. All I may bring to mind used to be hoping that they might forestall speaking. After she were given off the bus, the person she were chatting with stated he used to be satisfied they talked as a result of she had given him some excellent recommendation. I’m satisfied that man were given the recommendation he sought after. We drove into El Paso, Texas, at 315am. I will be able to’t see anything else however the shadow of the mountains.
At the 3rd day, we woke up at 840am over the plains of west Texas. Final evening at about 4, about an hour and a part into the pressure, we met the Border Patrol. They got here via asking everybody in the event that they had been US voters and requested us to spot our luggage. That they had canines sniff throughout the baggage beneath. I noticed a gaggle of untamed pigs in a hill proper outdoor Pecos.
There’s no longer a lot in those Texas cities. A woman at the back of me instructed the individual she used to be chatting with at the telephone that it used to be “a large number of not anything” and that “it seemed like California low-key.” Each true statements. We noticed a little bit of the hill nation with low rolling hills and round-canopied tree tops.
Discomfort looked as if it would fade figuring out we had only some hours extra to move after we will have showers, blank garments, and a chilly beer. Plus I were given right into a rhythm of the usage of my spouse’s telephone as a hotspot and although the web used to be nonetheless very sluggish, I used to be ready to get 2 articles written.
. . .
Vanessa Salvia is an completed freelance creator and editor with in depth revel in developing top of the range content material for quite a lot of mediums. Her paintings spans writing articles for newspapers and magazines, crafting Search engine marketing-optimized internet content material, and aiding authors in sharpening their ebook manuscripts. To be told extra about her products and services and portfolio, discuss with vanessasalvia.com.