Greetings Eclipse Chasers -
We
recently returned from a site selection and planning trip to
Australia for next year's total solar eclipse. These site inspection
trips are invaluable in adjusting and fine-tuning our planned
itinerary. Although the trip was exhausting, our experiences in
Australia have resulted in some important improvements to our 2012
eclipse itinerary.
Our
original tour included nights in Sydney, Melbourne and Cairns. After
testing out this itinerary on the site trip, we found it too hectic
with too many hotel changes and lost days spent at airports. There
was virtually no free time to explore Sydney on your own or to relax
and take in the Australian experience with fellow travelers.
So we've
removed Melbourne from the itinerary to give us additional time in
fabulous Sydney. We think you'll love this city as much as we do.
Although we still have a busy Sydney itinerary, you'll also have
some free time for shopping or sightseeing (e.g., Sydney Tower, the
Aquarium, the Taronga Zoo, or maybe a climb on the Sydney Hawbour
Bridge). And it saves one precious day spent in hotel transfers,
airports and flying. You can always add extra days to the trip if
Melboure (pronounced "Mel-bun") is on your "must-do" list.
Of
course, the key to the trip is the selection of an eclipse viewing
site and this proved to be a challenge. Cairns (pronounced "Cans")
is the largest city in the path of the 2012 total eclipse. It's also
famous as the starting point for boat trips to Australia's Great
Barrier Reef. In theory, we could watch the eclipse right from our
hotel or from a beach in Cairns. In practice, this doesn't work.
First, this is an early morning eclipse and the Sun is only 14
degrees above the horizon during totality. You need a clear view to
the east to see the eclipse and your can't get that from the grounds
around the hotel. The hotel won't let us view from the roof due to
liability issues. Second, Cairns doesn't have a beach. Instead, it
has mud flats that become exposed at low tide. There's no convenient
place for our group (or any other group) to set up for the eclipse.
Third, a large peninsula extending into the ocean blocks the horizon
and is about 5 degrees high. This means we would miss the early
stages of the eclipse.
These
factors rule out Cairns for eclipse viewing. However, there is a
good two-lane highway running from Cairns up to and through the
central line to Port Douglas. We spent the better part of a day
scouting locations along this highway. There are some very nice
public beaches but most have no facilities. And since they are
public, they cannot be reserved for any group. The eclipse begins at
5:44 am, a few minutes after sunrise. This means that we have to be
at the eclipse site several hours earlier to get cameras and
telescopes set up in the dark! There will be thousands of other
eclipse chasers all traveling along this same two-lane highway in
the hours leading up to the eclipse, and Port Douglas is hosting an
eclipse marathon on the morning of the eclipse (www.solar-eclipse-marathon.com)!
Talk about chaos! Between the high volume of traffic and the
uncertainty of finding an eclipse site hours before the event, we
decided that this was a recipe for disaster for any groups like
ours.
What to
do? It just so happens that our Australian contacts connected us
with some folks who own land in the hills north of Cairns. They are
converting a large field on their property into a first rate tent
camp for the eclipse. The tents will feature single and double BEDS,
pillows, linens, towels and lights. The camp will offer toilets, hot
showers, great food (meals are included), cold beer and soda (for
purchase), activities and entertainment with a unique, indigenous
flavor. There will even be a WiFi area for internet and email
access.
A visit
to this location revealed a gorgeous, natural setting at the top of
a ridge that offers an unobstructed 360-degree view. The eastern
facing downward slope of the viewing site ensures that people in
front of you will be downhill and won't block your view of the
eclipse. Because we are away from the coast, it will be cooler with
virtually no mosquitoes, sand flies or midges that are common in
November.
Our plan
is to stay in this camp on the two nights immediately preceding the
eclipse. You will have the luxury of setting up your equipment the
day before the eclipse and in the light of day. On eclipse morning,
you'll be just steps away from the viewing area, a section of which
will be cordoned off exclusively for our group. We will not have to
deal with a 1 am hotel departure on eclipse morning, the insane
traffic on the coast road, finding space on a public beach and the
stress of setting equipment up in the dark. These are problems that
many other tour groups will be facing.
As a
bonus, we'll have two nights under the brilliant stars of the
southern hemisphere, free from the interference of city lights. Fred
will give us a short introduction to the southern constellations on
our first night.
After the
eclipse, we will return to our hotel in Cairns for two nights where
we will have the opportunity to travel to the Great Barrier Reef.
We are
thrilled with the arrangements we've made in Australia and we hope
you'll join us for another eclipse adventure in 2012!
Gary
Spears and Fred Espenak
Why not travel with the travel experts at Spears Travel
Doing eclipse trips since 1991!
We are insured and bonded
Spears Travel has been in the travel business since 1958
Make sure and check out our past
trips and testimonials.
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