jasoncapecod wrote:is it the smartest decision to travel 10k miles during a global pandemic, to watch it get dark during the day?

Interesting Question for the on-the-ground portion. Hotels should be OK, very low likelihood of catching anything in your room. Airplanes are about the best place you can be indoors with strangers due to the excellent ventilation system designs. But groups in buses/vans for long periods, eating potentially indoors a bunch, etc... those are far riskier. That's where it is a bit ironic that they are forcing the group into tight quarters with each other for example. One gets it, it kind of forces that a bunch of them will get it. Having personal cars or etc.. would actually be much safer for everyone for example.

I have had a gazillion miles with United over the years and they are definitely a mixed bag. Sometimes I get great service, other times terrible. On average I would say fairly good service, but the range is a very wide distribution. Which seems kind of predictable that it is so. You don't grow and stay one of the largest airlines in the world with consistently terrible service; but then United has enough horrific stories about it too that have played out in the national media. And as far as your question about who should have notified you: its the airline you booked with, not the airline running the flight.

EMSC wrote:I have had a gazillion miles with United over the years and they are definitely a mixed bag. Sometimes I get great service, other times terrible. On average I would say fairly good service, but the range is a very wide distribution. Which seems kind of predictable that it is so. You don't grow and stay one of the largest airlines in the world with consistently terrible service; but then United has enough horrific stories about it too that have played out in the national media. And as far as your question about who should have notified you: its the airline you booked with, not the airline running the flight.

Agreed with everything above about United, although anecdotally my experience with them based out of Newark seems to be vastly better than those of people in other hub cities (Chicago, Denver, SF). Some say that's thanks to the leftover Continental culture. People in New Jersey loved Continental, considered it the hometown airline of sorts, and were not happy to learn that it was merging under the United brand.

Answers to some questions:

We have Amex emergency medical and evacuation insurance of 100K. I was required to send the policy to Ice Axe for the 2011 Antarctic ski cruise and to AstroTrails for this trip. Both companies accepted the Amex policy. AstroTrails clearly wants to send home fast anyone who gets sick.

AstroTrails is trying to be stringent about COVID. They and Argentina require a negative PCR test upon arrival in Buenos Aires Dec.11. AstroTrails requires that result be sent to them Dec. 10 before we leave.

AstroTrails wrote:Within the first 12 hours of arrival into Argentina, all passengers and staff must undergo a second COVID-19 PCR test arranged in conjunction with a private clinic in Buenos Aires The cost of this is included in the tour price.

FYI it's not easy in the US to turn around a PCR test in less than 3-5 days. We found a clinic in Santa Monica and reserved Dec. 8, the exact day we need to take the test.

For air travel we are following the same protocols Al Solish did when he returned home from his daughter's wedding in D.C. in August. We wear both KN95 masks and plastic face shields from home to destination. We already did this Nov. 16 on the way to Florida. That was on Delta, which is the last airline still not selling middle seats. We return Dec. 1. I'm inclined to agree that the actual time on the plane is not that high risk unless somebody seated very close to you is infected. The waiting area at LAX was a different story. Mask compliance was excellent but it was definitely congested close to gates. So we tried to be a bit farther away.

Travel to South America will be different. We reserved aisle and window seats and hope that the single middle seats in between won't sell. But there are 2 flights each way and we'll be lucky if we get away with no one next to us on any of them. The plane changes are at DFW.

berkshireskier wrote:...time on the ground in South America in restaurants, hotels, buses, etc.?) with a bunch of other people that you don't know and have no clue what precautions they may be been taking with respect to Covid?

I suspect COVID in the USA in December (winter) is far more prevalent than in Argentina (summer).

EMSC wrote:But groups in buses/vans for long periods, eating potentially indoors a bunch, etc... those are far riskier. That's where it is a bit ironic that they are forcing the group into tight quarters with each other for example. One gets it, it kind of forces that a bunch of them will get it. Having personal cars or etc.. would actually be much safer for everyone for example.

These are excellent questions. AstroTrails has not provided day to day details (other than where we are located) and plans to tell us on Dec. 7. They did say they will provide a pre-eclipse briefing by video, which implies they don't want the entire group collected in one place indoors. The testing before and upon arrival is intended to create a "travel bubble." I'm sure that's what convinced Argentina to allow the AstroTrails tours after 5 months of lobbying and negotiations. We expect we are not going to be allowed to wander around on our own in Buenos Aires and Bariloche.

As all of you know, Liz and I are always biased toward independent travel: better value, flexibility, choose our own pre and post eclipse tourism options. Before COVID we had a group of 14 (including tseeb and spouse) set up with Argentine guide Jorge Kojulz whom we met on the Antarctic ski cruise. But Argentina keeps kicking the can forward every 3 weeks on when private tourists will be admitted. So we cancelled those plans recently and got a partial refund of our deposits.

2020's COVID era swings the bias toward an established tour operator. AstroTrails have been working with an Argentine tour agency in business for 65 years, and in Chile they were trying to work with the same company they did for the 1994 eclipse. This cuts down the odds of last minute bureaucratic hang-up.

Thanks for your explanation, Tony. It certainly sounds like you have taken every precaution possible to avoid infection from Covid on the plane, airport, etc. and on the trip itself. I hope it goes well and you avoid getting sick and you have clear skies for the eclipse!

Interesting story today on Bloomberg.com about the risks of flying on a commercial airline:



Personally, unless it were absolutely necessary, I would NOT fly commercial (especially on a long flight) until we have an effective vaccine that has been widely taken by a large percentage of the population. I think there is still quite a bit about the virus that the medical professionals and scientists don't understand, including how it transmits so easily from person to person.

Another interesting link about the early mutation of the virus that made it much harder to contain:

What area/town in Argentina are you viewing the eclipse from?

ChrisC wrote:What area/town in Argentina are you viewing the eclipse from?

Piedra del Aguila, about halfway between Neuquen and Bailoche on Route 237.

The path in Argentina is through mostly unpopulated empty areas but weather odds are good. The path in Chile is over Pucon/Villarica, very scenic but weather odds are iffy. We were there over New Year's 2018, beautiful but it poured rain the whole day when we were leaving Jan. 2.

Argentina will open to foreign tourists Dec. 15, day after the eclipse. Chile is opening Nov. 29, also requires the 72 hour PCR test. Chile will have tourists carry a tracking app. Chile has provincial parameters about what can be open similar to counties in California. Skier CaseyE lives in Santiago and posts on TGR. He went to Pucon for backcountry skiing in spring and that province got locked down after he got there. He saw the 2019 eclipse to the north in La Serena and will definitely be heading south for this one.

The Chile provincial rules are another indication that this eclipse is best done with an organized group that has secured advance government approval.

Our Dec. 8 PCR test in Santa Monica will be turned around in 12 hours and I suspect the one in Buenos Aires on Dec. 11 will also. AstroTrails will not accept a first test taken any earlier than Dec. 8 and demands its result be sent to them by Dec. 10. While we know that many positive people are completely asymptomatic, the rule of thumb is that positive test results start showing up around 5 days after exposure.

As my upcoming TR will show, my last two days have been quite active, but now we are home for good until we leave Dec. 10.

One valid question might concern someone getting exposed on the travel day Dec. 10. That person is very unlikely to show symptoms or test positive until after the eclipse Dec. 14 and possibly not until everyone leaves Argentina Dec. 17.

Overall this is something like what was done for sports teams; usually it was effective but there were exceptions. We will receive more details Dec. 7, which may include procedures within hotels and when we relocate.

socal wrote:Tony for what it's worth I've done testing at the Los Angeles free test sites, both times got results in 24 hours or less, including the Monday before Thanksgiving.

I've heard that anecdotally, but it's not guaranteed. If we haven't sent results to AstroTrails before we leave Dec. 10, we will not be accepted on the tour when we get to Buenos Aires. They specifically said that an electronic result shown upon arrival will not be accepted.

Also, since cases seem to be exploding in L.A. County, there is a good chance that turnaround time may slow down again.

LA results are now over a day or two based on a few people who took them last week. Just an FYI

We took the test in Santa Monica 11am Dec. 8, had results by e-mail about 8:30pm.

Tony, Since you are posting does that mean you made it through EZE?

Yes, we had a a ton of paperwork which we had to e-mail to AstroTrails in England before we left Dec. 10 and we brought paper copies with us.

LAX check-in was normal like a domestic flight except that we had to do it in person, not online in advance.

In DFW there was a big line where we had to show one of the forms that we had been pre-approved for admission to Argentina. There are only 180 non-South Americans with permission, all specifically for the purpose of viewing the eclipse, until after Dec. 15. Then we had a temperature check before boarding the plane.

The Sheraton hotel where we are staying and the bus tour today (Dec. 13) had temperature checks and sanitize spritzes every time you entered the lobby or got on the bus. We got off the bus several times for garden walks and also for a steak lunch, which was outside.

Buenos Aires weather is superficially similar to Japan or East Coast USA in terrms of average temperature and quantity and incidence of rain. But the extremes are more moderate, 3-5 degrees cooler in summer and warmer in winter. Thus freezing is rare and jacaranda purple flowers were in full bloom as they are in the opposite months in SoCal. There were also some palm trees in the rose garden we visited. It was mid-80's F and humid but often there was a breeze to be more comfortable.

We all met for COVID PCR tests at 7PM Friday and received negative results this morning. We checked into the hotel about noon and were pleasantly surprised not to be on lockdown for the afternoon. So we walked around for few hours, exchanged money at the blue dollar rate (10x what it was 5 years ago when I last skied Las Lenas) and checked some shopping options for Liz. After the COVID test 4 of us we went out for dinner, a first rate Italian meal at Basa with a bottle of wine for $100 including a generous tip. The restaurant had adequately spaced tables and no surprise had few diners when we arrived 9PM but was full when we left at 11PM.

We're up very early tomorrow to fly to Bariloche. Eclipse day is Monday, then a full day of tours by bus and boat Tuesday with stargazing late that evening. We return to Buenos Aires late afternoon on the 16th and head home late on the evening of the 17th.

Thanks for the update. I was wondering if they asked you not to post.

I was looking for LiveStream and saw that it looks like Argentina was a better call than Chile where it looked foggy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEHcZE4qcDE says not much over 30 mins to go for totality.

We just got back to Bariloche from the eclipse: very successful, best shadow bands I’ve seen. There was thin cloud for first 20 seconds so two people got pictures of the shadow bands on the clouds like the famous pictures from Polynesia in 2010. Lots of prominences, at least 4 big ones.

Streaming was probably from Chile where weather was worse. Pucon was mostly clouded out as predicted, but someone on SEML reported success from the Chilean coast. There was also a flight over the Pacific in some kind of aircraft with unusually high windows. The sun was 72 degrees high in the sky where we were at Fortin Nogueira (estancia north of Piedra del Aguila on route 237 in Argentina) and likely 65 degrees or so from the aircraft. It was extremely windy at Fortin Nogueira but we positioned behind a row of windbreak trees so it was comfortable and people could set up high end photography gear.

There are only 180 non-South Americans with permission

The AstroTrails tour company negotiated for 180 special Argentine permits. In reality only 89 were used, 38 of them by our group. I'm sure there were more visitors to Chile but I don't know how many more.

We took few pictures but should get access to excellent ones from veteran eclipse photographers in our group.

Shadow bands on cloud by Andreas Moller at our location:

The thin clouds lasted the first 25 seconds of the 2 minute 5 second totality.

Good view of prominences from Tolten near the Chilean coast:
This is shortly before third contact.

If we haven't sent results to AstroTrails before we leave Dec. 10, we will not be accepted on the tour when we get to Buenos Aires. They specifically said that an electronic result shown upon arrival will not be accepted.

Two people from Scotland did not get their PCR test results in time and were not allowed to go on the trip.

YouTube video from our Fortin Nogueira site by Nick James of AstroTrails:
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAlzqdfHTT8&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]

Some more pictures from Nick James, second contact:


Third contact:


Fisheye view during totality, part of circular sunset visible through windbreak trees:


Temperature graph from Andreas Muller:


AstroTrails groups before heading back to Neuquen or Bariloche:


Both Andreas Muller and Rick James contributed pictures to Miroslav Druckmuller for enhanced computer processing,


There were two comets visible during totality, zoom insets of them here: