Total Solar Eclipse of 2024 in Southern Illinois

The 2024 Total Solar Eclipse on 2024 will pass through places like Mexico, Central and Northeastern USA, and the Maritime provinces of Canada on April 8th, 2024 as it makes it’s way across the United States but you need to be in Southern Illinois for the Total Solar Eclipse if you are looking for unobstructed, serene, country views! Lots of big cities have eclipse events planned but if you want to avoid the crowds, parking issues and want to enjoy an eclipse viewing experience on a working family farm, we’ve go what you need!

The Ryder Family Farm is right in the path of 100% totality for the April 8th, 2024 solar eclipse. The quaint, historic river town of Golconda, Illinois is one of the Southern Illinois cities along the route of totality for the Total Solar Eclipse of 2024. Our farm is located just a few miles north of Golconda, Illinois and we are so excited to be hosting a Total Solar Eclipse Farm Dinner in 2024 for Southern Illinois eclipse viewers, click here for more details!

This isn’t our first eclipse. Our farm’s location was also inside the line of totality for the August 21, 2017 Total Solar Eclipse and it was amazing to hear all the sounds of farm life slowly come to a halt as the sun set over the pastures for a few minutes. Our chickens got very quiet, the goats and dogs got very still and confused. Crickets began to chirp in unison. You could see the stars in the middle of the day! It was a truly a breathtaking experience. We made a fun little video showcasing the 2017 Eclipse footage of our kiddos experiencing their first Total Solar Eclipse here:

Looking enjoy the Total Solar Eclipse of 2024 outside the big city?

Our farm is busy planning a wonderful array of experiences for visitors seeking eclipse event totality in 2024. It is going to be an experience you wont forget! Think amazing food, farm animals, the beauty of The Shawnee National Forest and the total solar eclipse all at once.

For the Total Solar Eclipse of 2024, our farm’s location will give visitors a 2 minute and 50 second, life changing experience, without the crowds! We are planning unique opportunities for visitors to the area that only our farm can do.

We have tickets for our “Farm Dinner” Total Solar Eclipse experience available now and will launch a variety of add-on experiences and merchandise shortly. Attendance will be limited and demand will be high for this unique Southern Illinois eclipse experience on our farm.

The eclipse will begin at 12:43 pm CDT on April 8, 2024 in our location with totality projected to be happening at 2:00 pm and lasting for 2 minutes and 50.8 seconds, almost 3 minutes of totality!

Our area has lots to offer!

Before or after your eclipse experience you can visit Historic Golconda, Illinois and the Ohio Riverfront, hike Garden of The Gods, explore Pounds Hollow, visit the city of Metropolis and see the Superman Statue and so much more.

Our area has lots of local lodging options, with several very unique facilities (think school busses, yurts, barns, etc.) There are also well established cabin businesses here like Shawnee Forest Cabins, Willowbrook Cabins, Timber Ridge Cabins or camp grounds like Shawnee Forest Campground, Lake Glendale Campground or Dixon Springs State Park.

Don’t miss out, reserve Total Solar Eclipse Farm Dinner Tickets Today!

Does Totality make that big of a difference?

Your viewing location’s totality is very important when eclipse viewing! Totality is defined as the maximum phase of a total eclipse during which the Moon’s disk completely covers the Sun. Some locations have varied levels of totality. For example, Chicago, Illinois will only experience a 93.5% totality during the 2024 solar eclipse. Depending on location and the date an eclipse occurs, totality can last from a fraction of a second to a maximum of 7 minutes 32 seconds.

Plus, you can view the eclipse directly without eye protection only when the Moon completely obscures the Sun’s bright face – during the brief and spectacular period known as totality.

The following image from The Great American Eclipse.com shows the path of totality as it passes over our farm, located just north of Paducah. Another notable fact, the April 8th, 2024 eclipse will be the last visible eclipse in the U. S. until 2045. Want more info? Click the link above to learn more about the Total Solar Eclipse of 2024.