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The moon slips towards total eclipse as it comes up over the canyon wall with the upside down sombrero rock formation just outside Mexican Hat, Utah.The small town of about 260 people expects an influx of 20,000 eclipse viewers this weekend, Mayor Ann Leppanen said. It sits in a pocket of Utah that’s directly within the annular eclipse’s path. It has almost no light pollution. The weather forecast calls for mostly clear skies Saturday, making for ideal viewing conditions.
When Bluff began preparing for an onslaught of eclipse chasers more than a year and a half ago, holding weekly meetings. It assembled a band of 50 volunteers and boxes of solar viewing glasses. As of Wednesday afternoon, Leppanen’s team was “Starting yesterday saw a major uptick in number of people coming in with RVs asking about camping,” Leppanen said. “Today we’ve got a noticeable uptick in traffic going through.”For those who want to visit Bluff anyway, or have existing reservations, Leppanen said to bring plenty of water, food and medication. Don’t expect an easy day trip.
Only one major highway, U.S. 191, passes through town. There will likely be gridlock for the entire weekend. She expects the local gas station to run out of fuel and the restaurants to run out of supplies. Cell service will probably be limited, too. “I would not want to be here unless you get here before the 13th,” Leppanen said. “... Be prepared to be stuck here afterward.”By the time the crowds clear out on Sunday, Leppanen says she hopes to have the town cleaned up and back to functional in time for theIn case you missed itThese SLC neighborhoods are getting Utahns out of their cars.
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