I live just on the edge of the totality,  but after seeing the 2017 eclipse I want to get right in the middle of it and let my kids experience it.  That will require about a 2 hour drive, so here is my plan to survive the hordes.

Plan:  
Check the weather in the morning,  if clouded over abort adventure
Leave 4 hours early giving two hours extra time.  If that isn't enough we'll still just pull off and watch the eclipse.
Take back roads using the offline navigation app to continually get closer to desired location.  
Arrive at middle of nowhere, pull off the side of the back road and hang out until eclipse.
Look up
Drive home.
Backup plan: arrive at airforce base where I work that is 75% towards the desired location and have all the services I could desire.

Communication:  (don't know who I would be calling,  emergency services i guess)
Cell phone (have a federal emergency telecommunication card that will allow me to cut through most cell traffic if networks are overwhelmed.
Ham radio with local repeater freqs

Navigation:
Using offline gia maps with eclipse overlays.
paper maps

Food:
Cooler with lunches,
extra days worth of other food

Water:
Plenty of bottles
Normal water purification items

Security:
Guns

No prep needed.

I live directly on the centerline of totality.

I'll just look out my window.  Maybe sit out on the sidewalk.

Attached File

I have a similar plan OP. Just not sure where to go. Definitely have to stay off main roads.  I could be in path of totality if I drove 2 hours north on I87. Bit I know that plan will not work. So back roads it is. Just not to sure to where

I suspect that some of the worry is just media driven fear mongering, but up here in Northern New York, there is a LOT of discussion about some really messed up traffic as a result of the totality.

There is ONE hotel room left in this area. Iirc, they are peddling it at $1100 for the night.  In a Hampton Inn.  Everything is sold

The only real issue is traffic, and it's fallout.  Gridlock is expected ( but likely wildly over stated). Personally, I just want to make sure the tank on the truck is full

If winds are low, I intend to be paddling a canoe in the middle of the lake when this thing hits ..

Not making anything out of it...

Both my office and house is in the path...

I'll get up, go outside look around a few mins and go back in and finish whatever I was working on...

I have anything I could need here and 10 mins away at home...

I'm on the edge of totality, so we're gonna watch it from home/office.  As of this morning there is already a lot more traffic locally, busy stores, and fuel went up about 40c/gal in an hour.  Long lines at walmart pumps too.