Adirondack towns boom in business during eclipse weekend

Tourism officials estimate that visitors to the eclipse spent more than $2.7 million in Essex County alone

Mike Lynch

The small town in the Adirondacks welcomed the springtime or total solar eclipse on April 8 and the days leading up to it with rare foot traffic and business.

In Champlain Valley, the Essex Ice Cream Cafe, which serves breakfast and lunch, did about $10,000 in business April 6-8, manager Todd Farmer said. During the busy summer months, the business typically brings in about $1,000. The cafe sold 500 of its gourmet pies, one of its mince specialties, in three days.

On the day of the eclipse, the line of waiting customers stretched around the restaurant and into the street, he said.

Farmer said it was probably the busiest day in the history of the place.

The cafe has been around for decades, but in recent years has come under new ownership and expanded its offerings. Cafe experiences are not unheard of during a solar eclipse.

In Newcomb, about 2,000 people came to watch the eclipse, said David Hughes, director of parks, recreation and events for the city.

He said it was the highest number of people ever coming to Newcomb on any day, at any time.

Spending increases during eclipse weekend

The Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism estimates that Essex County spent $2.78 million during the eclipse, an increase of $2.2 million from the same time last year.

The figure does not include day trip expenses and is based on the assumption that people pay an average of $258 per day for two nights. This estimate also includes food, attractions and retail spending based on visitor spending information from the 2023 Essex County Leisure Travel Research Report, according to ROOST.

ROOST marketing manager Michelle Clement said more detailed and accurate reporting on traffic and spend is expected to be ready by mid-May.

Anecdotal reports indicate that other communities may experience economic growth comparable to those in Essex County.

About 5,000 people came to view the eclipse, said Christine Pouch, economic development, marketing and events manager for the Hamilton County town of Indian Lake. The number exceeded the 1,500 to 2,000 people expected by town officials and was about the size of a gathering for September’s larger event, the Adirondack Moose Festival. Pucci said this is a welcome boost considering the winter snowmobile season is slower than normal due to a lack of snowpack.

All our businesses will have to wait. They sold out that day. She said they booked rooms in advance but people couldn’t get them.

Respectful and Prepared Visitor

Pucci said the crowd was very respectful and gentle.

She said they don’t mind waiting in line for potties or food. It was just a big crowd.

Essex County Supervisor Ken Hughes said something similar in a video recorded on the day of the eclipse, saying it was unheard of for large crowds to leave with no trash to pick up.

Several people who spoke to The Explorer praised ROOST and the Adirondack Sky Center and observatory president Seth McGowan for preparing small towns across the region to welcome the influx of visitors.

Starting in January 2023, McGowan gave 58 presentations about the solar eclipse throughout the Adirondacks.

McGowan and Sky Center hosted an event at the elementary school in Tupper Lake in Franklin County that attracted nearly 5,000 people. Officials estimated 15,000 people were in town, he said.

Part of that was due to clear skies, although McGowan said the event would have been great regardless of sky coverage.

“We provide our view through the telescope to NASA, and they continue to give us feedback because other locations along the path of totality are obscured,” McGowan said.

Overall it was a great day

At Raquette River Brewery in Tupper Lake, co-owner Mark Jessie said there are more customers than on a busy summer day. On the day of the eclipse, Jesse rode his bike around the city and talked to other business owners. Some told him they performed better over the weekend.

He said they were all happy. Some of them didn’t have a great day on the actual eclipse day. I think people are prepared.

In Lake Placid, the Olympic facility attracted more than 10,000 people, ORDA spokesperson Darcy Norfolk said. The Olympic Center and its ice rink and Whiteface Mountain each attracted more than 3,000 people.

She said there were a lot of tourists with out-of-state license plates, mostly people who had not been here before. Feedback has been positive, so we anticipate a good number of repeat customers in the future.

Norfolk said the area attracted millions of television viewers from various stations covering the eclipse. She said some 46.3 million people watched coverage from WCBS, which carried the event live.

In Keene, Cedar Run Bakery owner Kristy Farrell reported strong sales.

‘I think it even surpasses Independence Day or any summer vacation, (and) coupled with the patience of super friendly people and the really nice crowds,’ she said.