Many eclipse visitors spent a sleepless night trying to leave

FRANCONIA, N.H. (AP) — Thousands of visitors to northern New England communities in the path of the total solar eclipse have been urged to be patient for the journey. In some areas, they needed it up to 12 hours after the event started, returning home on crowded highways and back roads.

In New Hampshire, travelers were stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic until about 2 a.m. Tuesday, clogging southbound Interstate 93. Southbound traffic on Interstate 89 was also heavy Monday evening. Southbound traffic was blocked on US Highway 1 in Houlton, Maine.

New England had clear skies and mild weather Monday, creating ideal viewing conditions for totality. In New Hampshire, people flocked to places like Lancaster, Stewartstown, Colebrook and Pittsburg, near the Canadian border.

John Martin, who was visiting from Massachusetts, described it as a “creep and a crawl” near Franconia, where New Hampshire Route 3 exits the highway.

“You look at your GPS trying to get off Highway 93 to find something a little faster, and everyone was thinking the same thing,” he told WMUR-TV.

New Hampshire state officials had warned travelers that the return could be slow and encouraged people to stay for a while in the region, which typically sees the most tourists during summer and foliage season. ‘autumn.

“To our out-of-state friends, remember: there is no sales tax in NH, so feel free to stay a little longer! » Governor Chris Sununu said Friday.

Traffic was also slowed in other states.

In Paducah, Kentucky, which was in the path of totality, as well as communities west of Illinois, thousands of people crossed the Ohio River after viewing the eclipse. Post-eclipse traffic also moved very slowly in places such as southbound Interstate 65 in southern Indiana and along southbound Interstate 81 in New York and Pennsylvania.