Where Can We Find Solar Eclipse Glasses (Not Online)?

[_19disnA]

I also think it's a liability thing. Schools do not want to be responsible for the kid who doesn't listen to their teacher and takes their glasses off!

That was my impression also about school's being closed. They don't want the liability when the eclipse will be around the time busses would normally be picking up those going home. Teachers would also have issues trying to police who is/isn't wearing protective glasses. And bus drivers can't both drive the bus and keep track of which kids aren't wearing their glasses when looking out the window.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

My neighborhood!
For a great breakfast or lunch, check out Tucker's!

I would recommend gassing up and getting snacks and such in Concord.

The above map that someone posted with "total eclipse visibility" in the darker green area are more rural. Most towns in that zone will have small town centers with a gas station and and limited shopping/dining.
That whole area is very scenic for road tripping.

If you head back to Concord after dark, be cautious of moose and deer on the road!

Thanks for the Tucker's suggestion. We saw one in Dover, when we were there on our only other trip to NH. (I was having a health flareup & didn't get out of the hotel, so I only saw things on the drive in & drive out.) I kept looking for it on Doordash & Ubereats, but never saw it. Now, I know why. We were always looking for dinner, after DH came in for the evening. We'll definitely try to fit it in this time.

As a couple of you mentioned, I'm having a hard time finding a special event or tour that isn't sold out. I'll keep looking & figure something out. The Mount Washington tour sounds perfect. I wish we would have known we were going to be there sooner.

How big of a city/town do you live in? Have you called around to the local stores where you live to see of they have any in stock?

Large city, but we're about as far from the path as you can get. It didn't even occur to me that we may be able to find them here.

New development: We should already be gone from home, but I talked DH into waiting to have Easter with DS. Now that we've decided to do that, I can overnight some glasses from Amazon. Sorry I asked, before we made that decision. I truly didn't mean to waste anyone's time. I really do appreciate you all taking the time to offer help.

 

[PollyannaMom]

Sorry I asked, before we made that decision. I truly didn't mean to waste anyone's time. I really do appreciate you all taking the time to offer help.

No apologies needed! It's nice you can get your glasses and I'm sure the thread has helped others who were looking for info.

 

[Pooh2]

Glad you will get your glasses before you head out!
You can enjoy the day even without a tour.
The scenery is stunning with moutain views, covered bridges, pretty rivers.
Still kind of cold in the North Country though so bring some extra layers!

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Glad you will get your glasses before you head out!
You can enjoy the day even without a tour.
The scenery is stunning with moutain views, covered bridges, pretty rivers.
Still kind of cold in the North Country though so bring some extra layers!

A scenic drive with stops along the way sounds perfect. I just need to figure out a route. I was mostly looking for tours, because that would take less planning.

I used to be a super planner for trips, until DH got this job. After obsessively planning several trips, then having the destination change at the last minute, I gave up. My planning skills are really rusty now.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

@Pooh2 & @lanejudy, It appears that Lancaster is a prime location for viewing. I can't find an event or place to reserve parking. Do you think there will be somewhere there that we could pull over to view the eclipse? If so, where would you suggest?

 

[Pooh2]

@Pooh2 & @lanejudy, It appears that Lancaster is a prime location for viewing. I can't find an event or place to reserve parking. Do you think there will be somewhere there that we could pull over to view the eclipse? If so, where would you suggest?

The business area will be pretty crowded with heavy traffic but if you drive just north of town like Stark, you should be able to just pull off the road and hang out.
I cannot ever imagine paying to park anywhere in the North Country!
Seems like taking advantage of the tourists!

 

[tarheelmjfan]

The business area will be pretty crowded with heavy traffic but if you drive just north of town like Stark, you should be able to just pull off the road and hang out.
I cannot ever imagine paying to park anywhere in the North Country!
Seems like taking advantage of the tourists!

Awesome, thanks! We'd be some of those tourists they'd be taking advantage of, if it weren't for you guys. I have no idea what to expect, until we get there.

 

[scrapquitler]

DH just informed that it's going to work out for us to be near a location to view the solar eclipse. I'm so excited, because I thought we'd be in a part of the country that is far away from the path of totality. I can't order glasses online, because we'll be traveling the whole time between now & then. What stores or other locations have you found them? FWIW, we'll be in the Oxford, New Hampshire area at that time, but could drive to parts of Vermont & Maine too.

I"ve seen several local optometrists posting ads on FB offereing free solar eclipse glasses this week.
I've also seen them next to the register at Cumberland Farms and 7Eleven.
My local library had a local STEM program event the other night and they gave away free ones at that.

 

[scrapquitler]

Thanks for the Tucker's suggestion. We saw one in Dover, when we were there on our only other trip to NH. (I was having a health flareup & didn't get out of the hotel, so I only saw things on the drive in & drive out.) I kept looking for it on Doordash & Ubereats, but never saw it. Now, I know why. We were always looking for dinner, after DH came in for the evening. We'll definitely try to fit it in this time.

As a couple of you mentioned, I'm having a hard time finding a special event or tour that isn't sold out. I'll keep looking & figure something out. The Mount Washington tour sounds perfect. I wish we would have known we were going to be there sooner.


Large city, but we're about as far from the path as you can get. It didn't even occur to me that we may be able to find them here.

New development: We should already be gone from home, but I talked DH into waiting to have Easter with DS. Now that we've decided to do that, I can overnight some glasses from Amazon. Sorry I asked, before we made that decision. I truly didn't mean to waste anyone's time. I really do appreciate you all taking the time to offer help.

I was just about to suggest that you could order from Amazon and do an Amazon pickup location wherever you are. I've done that when traveling before - there are different kind of Amazon lockers and you can even do pickup of your amazon packages at RiteAid,

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I was just about to suggest that you could order from Amazon and do an Amazon pickup location wherever you are. I've done that when traveling before - there are different kind of Amazon lockers and you can even do pickup of your amazon packages at RiteAid,

Interesting. Good to know. I didn't know you could send packages to pickup locations & I haven't seen a Rite Aid in many years. We've shipped several packages to hotels, but we have to know we're going to be there multiple nights in order to do that. Thanks for the info.

 

[lanejudy]

I’m not very familiar with northern NH but here’s some things I found:

State parks will be open: https://www.nhstateparks.org/things-to-do/total-eclipse-of-the-parks

authorized parking areas around Colebrook: https://www.wmur.com/article/new-hampshire-total-solar-eclipse-parking-spots/60321562

list of northern NH towns in the path of totality:
https://www.wmur.com/article/new-hampshire-total-solar-eclipse-path-2024/46868154
You might Google the town websites — or better yet the local Facebook pages to see what’s going on. At least in my area (VT) pretty much every community with a town green or park is having a gathering, usually free. As PP says, parking in town might be challenging.

 

[greeneyedchick]

DH just informed that it's going to work out for us to be near a location to view the solar eclipse. I'm so excited, because I thought we'd be in a part of the country that is far away from the path of totality. I can't order glasses online, because we'll be traveling the whole time between now & then. What stores or other locations have you found them? FWIW, we'll be in the Oxford, New Hampshire area at that time, but could drive to parts of Vermont & Maine too.

I just got some from my local library which got them from our community college. Maybe contact your library.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I’m not very familiar with northern NH but here’s some things I found:

State parks will be open: https://www.nhstateparks.org/things-to-do/total-eclipse-of-the-parks

authorized parking areas around Colebrook: https://www.wmur.com/article/new-hampshire-total-solar-eclipse-parking-spots/60321562

list of northern NH towns in the path of totality:
https://www.wmur.com/article/new-hampshire-total-solar-eclipse-path-2024/46868154
You might Google the town websites — or better yet the local Facebook pages to see what’s going on. At least in my area (VT) pretty much every community with a town green or park is having a gathering, usually free. As PP says, parking in town might be challenging.

Thanks for the links. I'll check them out. I did try Googling the towns suggested here & couldn't find much of anything. Perhaps, I need to sharpen my Google skills. I didn't think to try Facebook though. That's a good idea.

 

[Pooh2]

Thanks for the links. I'll check them out. I did try Googling the towns suggested here & couldn't find much of anything. Perhaps, I need to sharpen my Google skills. I didn't think to try Facebook though. That's a good idea.

wmur.com had a list of activities and parking in various towns for Monday.

If you head up route 93 to Twin Mountain from Concord (maybe 90 minutes), then head on Rt 3 over to Lancaster area.

Or you could head up to Crawford Notch area and Mt Washington, there are lots of places to park on the sides of the roads near all the trail heads and river.

There is a big parking lot/viewing area across from Mt Washington Hotel that is usually pretty empty but will depends on the crowds.

At this time of year, all the restaurants are usually closed but looks like lots are opening for this opportunity.

From Franconia Notch on Route 93 and north, it's all very scenic driving.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

wmur.com had a list of activities and parking in various towns for Monday.

If you head up route 93 to Twin Mountain from Concord (maybe 90 minutes), then head on Rt 3 over to Lancaster area.

Or you could head up to Crawford Notch area and Mt Washington, there are lots of places to park on the sides of the roads near all the trail heads and river.

There is a big parking lot/viewing area across from Mt Washington Hotel that is usually pretty empty but will depends on the crowds.

At this time of year, all the restaurants are usually closed but looks like lots are opening for this opportunity.

From Franconia Notch on Route 93 and north, it's all very scenic driving.

Thank you for the additional info. Sadly, DH had equipment problems, so our trip was delayed by a week at the last minute. We'll now be in Concord this coming weekend. We're still looking forward to the visit & hope we can find some fun entertainment.

I'm sad that we'll miss the total eclipse. I hope all of you who will get to see it have clear skies & an amazing experience.

 

[Pooh2]

Thank you for the additional info. Sadly, DH had equipment problems, so our trip was delayed by a week at the last minute. We'll now be in Concord this coming weekend. We're still looking forward to the visit & hope we can find some fun entertainment.

I'm sad that we'll miss the total eclipse. I hope all of you who will get to see it have clear skies & an amazing experience.

You would probably be relieved that you missed the day if you could see the traffic here!
All the highways and side roads are a parking lot.
Glad we chose to stay home in the 95% totality area.
Some of the restaurants in the North Country were charging $75 to park (can apply toward your bill if you eat there!).
It's crazy out there!

 

[leebee]

@tarheelmjfan I was going to say "Welcome back to New England" but I see that your trip is delayed. I considered driving north, but we are going to be at 99.3% totality here in Orono, so I'm going to park in my own driveway for the eclipse; I'm pretty sure I won't notice the 0.7% difference! SIL'd mom said the traffic out her way was steady at 6am today, everyone headed north to see totality. I'm sorry you are missing this, but I guess it can't be helped. Bummer.
ETA: Yes, it is a bright, sunny day today! That is something that's been practically unheard of this winter, so we should have great viewing.