Meet some of the people coming to Port Stanley, Ont., to see the solar eclipse

Thousands of people are expected to flock to small port cities along the Lake Erie coastline in southern Ontario to take in a rare treat: a total solar eclipse. 

Many people arrived in Port Stanley, Ont., early Monday to get a good parking spot and prime location on the beach. 

"I came really early to get the best parking spot," said Michele Nish, from nearby London. On recent travels through the United States, she met many Americans who were planning to head to the region so they could see the rare astronomical event.

"They're really excited," Nish said. "They said it was something that once you experience it, you want to see it again and again. I am really looking forward to it." 

Garrison Lale, 9, is in Grade 4. Schools across the region have shut down, so he will be working at his family's restaurant Mackie's, a mainstay on the main beach in Port Stanley since 1911. 

"I'm going to go outside and watch it. I've been looking forward to this since I first heard about it," Lale said. "I hope it's not cloudy when it happens, and I hope I see exactly what I saw in the YouTube videos."

The Lake Erie shoreline is among the best places on the continent to see the total eclipse. The last time a total eclipse could be seen in Canada was February 1979. 

Steve Pearce, from Delaware, Ont., came to Port Stanley with his wife and his camera gear, hoping to photograph the totality. 

"Hopefully, we'll have some clear skies and I'll have time to align the camera so I can track it and get some good photos," he said. "I've seen partial eclipses and an annular eclipse, but never a total solar eclipse. There's usually a lot of euphoria when it becomes total. People will get real excited when they see the diamond ring effect."

Liam Smith, a wildlife photographer, is also hoping to capture the totality with his camera. 

"I've seen many solar eclipses, but never a total one like this one. It should be pretty epic," he said.

"How often does the moon, the sun and earth line up? I know people who have cathartic experiences when this happens," Smith said. "It's going to be pitch black at two in the afternoon. It's amazing and I want to see it.

"Imagine what would have happened in the old days, when no one knew what this was: they would have thought the earth was ending." 

Want to share your eclipse photos? Email them to londonnewstips@cbc.ca