How many persons from out of town visit Bluffton between Nov. 26 and Jan. 1 to see the Blaze of Lights and cruise town looking at residential lights?

Take a wild guess. No, we don't have the answer, but here's one small glimpse that indicates the traffic. The Bluffton Area Chamber of Commerce provides free maps to assist out-of-town guests interested in viewing our lights.

Over 500 maps have already been picked up by these visitors. The maps are available in several downtown locations including The Dough Hook, Greg's Pharmacy and the Bluffton Marathon. Maps are also available at the State Route 103 BP and Circle K.

Perhaps the most visible map location is the red mailbox in front of the Bluffton Presbyterian Church yard.

In addition, maps are avialable to download from www.explorebluffton.com (Bluffton chamber website). The site is visited on the average of 25 or more times per day between Thanksgiving and New Year's.

The 500 maps (as of Dec. 20) compares to 350 maps distributed free during the entire Blaze season last year. So, is appears that visits to Bluffton is up.

A printer-friendly version of the 2011 map is an attachment to this story.